Brendan Ryan (Labour)

I explained what happened to the yield but the Senator was not listening carefully. Many people converted income into capital gains because it was cheap and easy and they paid 20% tax rather than 42% tax. It was a great scam, out of which they did well, and they will be eternally grateful to the Government for its generosity.

Before Government Members begin cheering about social inclusion measures, they should read the latest report of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. Can they forget about what happened seven or eight years ago? The State is almost 100% richer than it was in 1996 when former Minister Proinsias de Rossa was alleged to have abandoned pensioners. This is a different country with different opportunities and the Government should have the confidence to be judged by its own decisions and sustain its judgment without harping back to 1996 because the next statement it utters will refer to Ernest Blythe taking the shilling from pensioners in the 1920s. Let us talk about modern Ireland, which is a rich country, and let us debate the way resources are allocated. The Government has made decisions about resource allocation that sustain inequality, let down our infrastructure and create an unequal Ireland.