Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)

It has been a year of promises made and promises broken. Amid all this crisis, chaos and failure, what has the Government achieved in the Dáil? Well, hardly any legislation. It has been a legislative wasteland. It is a Government functioning on fumes and a coalition that governs by press release, not by law or action. This may well be the worst Government in the history of the State, because no Government has presided over such a combination of record crises, hollow promises and stubborn inaction. Working people, children, disabled people and carers pay the price. Let me tell you who is paying the highest price. It is Ireland's young people, that is who. It is young workers locked into eye-watering rents, students paying higher fees, people in their 20s and 30s with no hope of buying a home, and young families squeezed by childcare costs. It is the Government's failures that push them to leave this country in their droves. Any Government that fails its young people has failed Ireland.

Let me finish with this. Our citizens need action, real action, to end the rip-offs, the scandals and the crises afflicting our society. Action is needed to cut energy prices, to reduce grocery bills, to actually build affordable houses, to bring down rents and to reduce childcare costs. This is action that can be taken right here, right now today. We in Sinn Féin will fight for that action every step of the way because Ireland deserves better than this Government, workers deserve better than this Government and young people deserve better than this Government.

Tá an tAire Airgeadais ag fágáil agus ba chóir don Rialtas ar fad fágáil leis. Is é ceann de na Rialtais is measa chonaiceamar riamh. Tá fíorathrú ag teacht mar tá muintir na hÉireann réidh. Tá Éire réidh. Tá an Rialtas seo gearrtha amach ó ghnáthdhaoine agus tá an t-am istigh. The Government is out of touch, out of ideas and should be out of time. Today, the Minister for Finance is taking his leave. Oh, that the rest of ye would follow.

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