Paul Connaughton (Galway East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this motion, which was tabled on foot of the results in the recent election in Greece. I wish the new Greek Government the very best. It was democratically elected by the Greek people.

Certainly, the Greek Government will not need my approval as a backbencher from County Galway, but I do not see why we would stand in its way. I wish its members the best of luck with what they are doing. However, I have noticed that in the short period they have been there they are already tending to row back from where they stood before the election. I noticed one comment by the new finance Minister, whose name I will not try to pronounce as I will not do it justice. He said only yesterday, "Help us to reform our country and give us some fiscal space to do this, otherwise we shall continue to suffocate and become a deformed rather than a reformed Greece". He has got elected and is looking for a bit of space and time. It sounds familiar to the situation when we came in four years ago and looked for that same space to reform. Four years on, we are starting to see the benefits of that even if it is probably not as quick as we would like and there are still things out there that upset people. There are a number of people in our country who will never get over the issue of Anglo and bondholders.

It would be easy for me to stand up here like any backbencher and kick the previous Government and other politicians, but what would be the point? The point here is what the future will bring. We see our country growing again and we see economic growth going the right way. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan, who is still in the Chamber, asked whether things might have been quicker in getting back to double the growth. That is not guesswork and certainly there is something to consider. However, while I am not saying any of them is sitting here tonight, there were Members across the Chamber who said we had to default straight away or go for a second bailout. They were nearly wetting themselves when they were saying this. Technically, they were betting against the country. Now, there is no talk of that. Four years ago, they said the euro would go on but Ireland would not be part of it, or if we were that it would be a two-tier euro. They said we had no business in it, but where are they all now? They are nowhere to be seen and they do not talk like that anymore. That is because we are getting back to where we want to be, which is somewhere sustainable with growth and jobs. I agree that we could do a great deal more and that we need to do a great deal more.

One of the biggest issues that has always faced Greece is that if there was political instability, it was followed by economic stability. We have had political stability for four years due to the current Government of Fine Gael and Labour. I do not know how many elections Greece has had but it has been at least two or three in that time. Greece has not had a chance to have political stability. We also see another issue which is that it is always easy to blame people we never meet and can never know. I am not here to cheerlead for banks or the ECB, but like every country Greece is in need of reform. It has very high unemployment which it has to sort out itself. Of course, we need to help it to do that.

I have no particular gripe with a debt conference although I am not wholly convinced as to what it would achieve. I have no doubt that every country that goes to these talks will look to see first how it can help itself and second how it can work as part of the European Union. As a small island country that needs to work with others, it is to our benefit in particular if other economies recover and do well and as such I have no problem with that. However, we have to be logistically minded and sensible as Deputy Derek Nolan said. For every action we take, there will be a consequence, whether we like it or not. After four years in this Government, I know that when one makes unpopular decisions, one pays the price. The idea that some form of debt write down will solve everyone's problem is ridiculous. People have to start coming up with other solutions also. Countries and economies need to reform. Greece is not calling anymore for a large debt write down, but is looking to work with colleagues and partners and we should support fully what it does. It is not acceptable to continue to suggest a single populist answer that writing off the debt will make everything rosy in the garden. It is unfair to Irish citizens and European citizens. Let us see what is discussed at the debt conference, what solutions emerge and whether they will work or suit everybody else. If we can have that conversation, we can move forward.

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