Seanad debates

Wednesday, 27 November 2002

Overseas Development Aid: Motion.

 

There is a need to address various matters. One of the matters I wish had been addressed is the extraordinary performance of the Leader of this State, the Taoiseach, in South Africa, who, when the Government was cutting overseas development aid, was lecturing the rest of the world about their lack of generosity. Unless the political will changes, the Government is ideologically and politically incapable of taking the decisions that will be necessary to meet the ODA target. It is going through a charade of pretending it will do something, which is manifestly impossible, given its ideology and the figures we have for the end of 2003. It is talking about what it used to do, it is making promises into the future, but the evidence of this year and next year is that it is drifting remorselessly away from the target and quite soon it will, not officially but de facto, abandon it.

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