Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I reiterate that I am absolutely aware of the challenges people face in their daily lives. I know the role that wage growth and increases in wages can play in alleviating that burden. I want to see this happen in the economy and society but in a way that is affordable and sustainable for everybody. I appreciate the Deputy's candour about the Lansdowne Road agreement. At least she is clear about her inconsistency. She is saying she would have voted against the Lansdowne Road agreement but she is now making the case, with which I disagree completely, that the very agreement she would have voted against is in difficulty and that she believes this to be a bad thing.

I never raised the issue of Northern Ireland with the Deputy, although I did raise it with Deputy John Brady earlier. I am not getting into a debate about the benefits or otherwise of neoliberalism. I am not a neoliberal. I am against the kind of policies that have caused such difficulty in other parts of the world. I am in favour of putting together policies that are affordable to make sure we do not go back into the cycle of wage increases tomorrow we find we cannot afford the day after that end up being wage cuts that cause chaos for families. I do not want to see that happen. I believe the Lansdowne Road agreement and my acknowledgement of the consequences of the Labour Court recommendation for public service workers make up the framework within which we will address this.

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