John Paul Phelan (Fine Gael)

We have seen a remarkable divergence of opinion on this issue, not just between the coalition parties but within the Fianna Fáil Party. The Taoiseach is, clearly, pulling the strings. Perhaps he should be in the House when we debate this issue.

I raise the issue of the direct marketing of credit in the run-up to Christmas. Yesterday, I received a letter from a leading financial institution offering me a substantial personal loan. I know others have received similar letters from other institutions. The letter invites me to, "Say yes to the things you really want", and offered a personal loan of €25,000.