Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Is it someone who knows what workers' rights are and is there to protect them, or an insider, as Deputy Ross would have it?

As the House knows well, the Government has established new rules for appointments to State boards. We changed the rules to make the system more open and to broaden the range of people on State boards. A report produced by the Institute of Directors before Christmas makes it clear the new regulations are working. We have a wider range of people, better qualified people and a system people really trust. The new system is the most radical reform of our system of governance in the State sector and it will serve us well into the future.

When we changed the system, we deliberately ensured that Ministers would be able to use their initiative to appoint people of high quality who are well qualified for the job. That is precisely what the Tánaiste did in this case. She appointed a man whose qualifications for the job are impeccable and who also has the know-how to drive the implementation of policy for the next few years. He is well qualified on that. David Begg has the experience, the expert knowledge and the personal qualities needed to do the job, and I know he will do it well.

Much of this debate has been dominated by talk about the past, which is fair enough. As we come to the end of this Dáil, it is only right we should reflect on the record of this Government. It is only right we should talk about how we came back from bankruptcy to be the fastest-growing economy in Europe. It is only right we should talk about how we are putting the country back to work, with nearly 1,000 new jobs announced just today. It is only right we should talk about the progress we have made in public services, despite the fact Fianna Fáil left us without a red cent to spend in the first three years of this Government.

In my own area, I am particularly proud of the progress we have made in modernising our mental health services. I am proud of the fact parents no longer have to worry about the cost of bringing their children to see a doctor. I am proud we are able to put money into the fair deal scheme and make sure it is on a sound footing for the future. I am proud of what we have achieved. However, I am also frustrated that the Government has had to spend much of the last five years cleaning up the mess left by Fianna Fáil and the Greens. Thankfully, that part of the job is nearly done. The recovery is not yet a done deal but we are well on the way. Just as the Opposition will complain and protest about the past, it is our job on this side of the House to talk about the future, to talk about what we have to do with public services, to talk about what we will secure and how we will ensure the recovery remains solid and on a firm footing, and to use the fruits of that recovery to improve the lot of all our citizens.

We have done the job the Irish people asked us to do five years ago. Our job now is to paint a picture of a better, fairer future and to persuade the people to give us the chance to make it better.

I find the fact that someone who has spent life inside and outside of this House talking about how bad it is that people should have pensions at all and the scathing attacks made by Deputy Ross on Aer Lingus pensioners looking for their rights to be reinstated particularly annoying. It is sad that we now see others on the other side of the House taking the same position. It is ridiculous. This motion should never have come before the House.

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