Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Deputy is wrong; I am well aware of it. He asked whether I am receiving information about these things. Of course, I am. I listen to the news like everyone else. I do not get to read all of the material that comes out but we are regularly kept informed, through our own ambassador and people in Britain, about what is happening. The answer to the Deputy's question is "Yes". He asked whether I understand what is going on; I do, absolutely. All the polls, indicators and commentators and all the people who knew everything got it wrong in Britain. The people voted, as they are entitled to do, and elected a Government with an overall majority, small though it may be.

The Deputy spoke about ordinary people, working class people and working people. When the Greek prime minister was elected on the basis of a very populist set of proposals, Greece had been approaching a 1% growth rate but that went back. When the prime minister came to the European Council on the assumption that there would be massive write-offs, he found that he was talking to people who must also deal with ordinary, everyday people. The Spanish prime minister was not in a position to say that he would write-off €36 billion worth of moneys Spain had given to help Greece and the French president was not prepared to say that he would write-off €42 billion of the contribution France made. That was followed by a referendum and another election.

The Greek prime minister, with his new Government, must make very difficult choices and decisions because one has to pay one's way in the world. The assumption that one can have everything for nothing and that somebody else will pay continuously is not the way it is going to be.

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