Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

He was goading the Opposition, on which the Government is depending on for the confidence and supply agreement. Does he have any respect for Teachtaí Dála who are duly elected? To be fair to him, he is not normally like that. I knew his predecessor, an Teachta Sheehan, who was a grand old man. Deputy Jim Daly is reasonable and I believe he is making efforts to deal with the appalling mess in mental health services and under the so-called A Vision for Change, but he was goading the Members who were going to vote with him six minutes later. I never stood in a polling station, when we were allowed to stand near them, to canvas and goad someone who might have been going in to vote for me. Such arrogance is breathtaking. I do not know who wrote the script for the Minister of State, as he is not normally like that. It was the spin doctors and the Government has so many it cannot account for them.

With that level of expenditure a person would think there would be some realistic accountability. Instead, we have one of the most dysfunctional health services in western Europe. The situation is no better when we look at the Further Revised Estimates for housing. Some €3.95 billion has been spent, yet there are still record levels of child and family homelessness and everything else.

Last week I said the Minister for Health could not run a sweet shop. The Government could not run the reception desk in any run-down hotel. It is fruitless, toothless and useless, which I hate saying to the Minister and the Minister of State. I have nothing personal against them, but they are so inexperienced and inept in dealing with and tackling the problems in the country that it is not funny. The Minister of State, Deputy D'Arcy, should know something because he comes from County Wexford in rural Ireland. I would not expect the city slickers to know anything because all they think about is Dublin and to hell with anybody outside the Pale. I would expect no better from them. I dealt with the Minister for Finance at the talks on the programme for Government when I saw his breathtaking arrogance.

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