Pat Buckley (Cork East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I listened to the Minister's response to the first speakers. I went through his amendment to compare it to the motion, which is a simple little two-pager. When I say "simple", I mean that it calls for the introduction of a windfall tax, the provision of financial relief and certainty for householders, the reversal of the increase in carbon tax and the provision of new regulatory powers to the CRU. The amendment has 52 paragraphs. As with the Minister's speech, most of it is about the Government patting itself on the back for all of the great things it has done with all the money it has spent. Where did it get the money? It is taxpayers' money. It is our own money and the Government should not be patting itself on the back for spending it. It is supposed to be spent on our citizens to help them. Obviously the Government has not gone far enough. In paragraph 51 there is groundbreaking news and I will give the House the exclusive on it.

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