Richard Boyd Barrett (Dún Laoghaire, People Before Profit Alliance) | Oireachtas source

-----that they abandoned. That is what people are concerned about.

What I, and I believe most of the country, would like to know is what the difference is between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. I consider myself reasonably studied and knowledgeable in Irish politics, but if someone were to ask me what is the difference between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, I would scratch my head and say, "I haven't got a clue". I defy any member of Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael to explain to me the difference between them. If the spectacle being played out at the moment were a debate about issues and policies, I believe the country could understand that and might even be willing to wait. However, there are no discussions about those. The only issue we have heard mentioned is water charges and the two parties have to talk about that because the people put it on the agenda. However, that is not an obstacle to forming a Government because there is a very simple arithmetic to it. The majority of Deputies in this Dáil promised, because of a mass popular movement, that they would get rid of water charges. No debate is necessary. That is not an obstacle to Deputies from Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael talking to each other. All they have to do is respect the democratic wishes of the people as expressed in the election.

Both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have fired out little jibes at "the others", who are not willing to talk and address the issues affecting the country. Au contraire.Today Deputy Bríd Smith held a meeting, to which everybody in this Dáil was invited, where the Luas workers, who have been maligned and misrepresented regarding a very serious industrial dispute affecting citizens in this country-----

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