Ivana Bacik (Dublin Bay South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

Members of the Government have buried their heads in the sand when it comes to the impact of data centres and left the door wide open for polluting LNG. It seems the private sector will continue to be relied on to deliver essential public services like childcare while workers' rights are only getting derisory treatment. The Government has abandoned initiatives such as drug policy reform and the citizens' assembly on the future of education. There is nothing to reassure us about how we will face the threat of Trump's dangerous tariff plans. There is only lukewarm prospects, at best, in the programme for achieving the necessary passage of the vital occupied territories Bill that we have all united on. In short, the programme for Government is not up to the task. There is no sense of urgency about tackling the crises that face us in housing, climate and disability services. We are seeing no vision and a regressive set of policies.

It is not only the policies that are regressive, but also the practise of politics. We do not even know what constituency deals were done with, or sidebar commitments made to, the "Lowry lads". Those deals do not appear in the text of this programme. Let us be clear, in that many people were deeply uncomfortable, given his history, about the involvement of Deputy Lowry in the negotiation of the programme for Government. Many people are very concerned, remembering when Deputy Martin described Deputy Lowry as a "rogue politician" and called on him to resign his seat. People despair that the highest standard to which Deputy Martin can aim is an assurance that a leading negotiator of the programme for Government will "not be in government to do any corruption", as if that were something to boast about.

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