Martin Mansergh (Fianna Fail)

I accept the substance of the Minister's argument but wish to make a brief comment on what could be called his ideological digression. I agree with much of what he said but would not go all the way. For the past 20 years, whenever a prominent Deputy on the Opposition benches in the other House has used the words "private profit", he has spit them out as if they have represented some sort of deep obscenity. If one is to criticise the 1960s generation, from which I come, it should be that we have tended to hold that attitude. I hope, however, we have educated ourselves out of it.

I sometimes aspire to what a 17th century writer called the character of a trimmer, which is defined as shifting the boat if it leans too much to one side. Equally, however, one does not want the boat to turn over on the opposite side. There are excesses on the capitalist side. We had, for example, a debate on the Order of Business about advisers to the Health Service Executive. In other contexts, bonuses, incentives, overtime and share options can at times reach obscene levels. I simply do not accept that all these are necessary for a tiny multimillionaire elite to do an honest day's work.