Jim Higgins (Fine Gael)

One of the problems one faces as Opposition spokesperson is that if one sketches the gloomy reality of the current crisis in the economy, one invariably attracts the comment that one is playing politics or not acting in the national interest but nothing could be further from the truth. The economy is in big trouble and the Celtic tiger a thing of the past. It is highly doubtful it can be resurrected or resuscitated under the current regime. The difficulties facing the economy are largely, although not exclusively, self-inflicted. They arise as a result of Government mismanagement, a frightening and growing lack of competitiveness and a fundamental failure to tackle key issues which make it increasingly difficult for enterprise to survive, let alone thrive.