Michael McCarthy (Labour)

This motion is about retaining the current election spending limits. It also asks the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to introduce legislation to regulate expenditure in the period leading up to the calling of an election. There is nothing unfair about this. A reasonable person would not disagree with it.

The reason there is so much opposition to the motion on the Government benches is the one I outlined when I opened this debate. No other political party on this island has the ability of Fianna Fáil to attract funding from the corporate sector.