Liam Twomey (Fine Gael)

The developers will simply close their companies and declare bankruptcy. The banks have the clown that is this Government on which to fall back. The taxpayer had better not be pushed into another mess in a few weeks' time. The only evidence thus far that the Government understands the seriousness of the current crisis is its guarantee on deposits, a measure which has been proposed by a wide range of people over recent months.

Although I will not let the banks off the hook, the Government contributed to the crisis. Banking representatives told the Joint Committee on Finance and the Public Service that they did not believe a Northern Rock was lurking in Ireland and that significant sums of money were being provided through the interbank market to Irish banks. Given that the Minister of State does not give a hoot about showing courtesy to this House, I ask him to set out for the Dáil the source of funding for Irish lending banks. Irish banks get their money from deposits and interbank lending. Some Irish banks have reported that interbank lending was only a percentage of total lending. If overall lending in the Irish financial market is significantly down, have deposits also reduced significantly or is there something else we need to know? For some strange reason, investors have fled the Irish banking sector like swallows at the end of summer. They have simply disappeared and Irish bank shares are collapsing. Why were investors leaving the Bank of Ireland at the beginning of the summer despite yields of 12%?

People clearly are aware that serious problems exist. I will not accuse the Government of lying, but it is not telling the truth or letting the people know what is going on. The toxic trio are acting under the same delusions that affect many Fianna Fáil Members of this House. They are not telling the truth to the people but they cannot hide it forever. They will take the blame because they are not facing up to their responsibilities.

In regard to the economy, the Minister of State failed to discuss the reforms for which he is responsible. Government Members have been speaking ad nauseam about these since they were re-elected for their third term. What problems arise in terms of competitiveness? Is the Minister of State satisfied that all the issues pertaining to competitiveness are being addressed adequately and that they will not cause our economy to shrink in the future? In regard to the growth of Irish exports and foreign direct investment, currency exchange and competitiveness issues have arisen. Little can be done about currency exchange but a lot can be done to address competitiveness. However, the bland words we hear from Government representatives do nothing to assure us that something is being done. We want to know the concrete actions being planned.

At the end of the day, markets can handle both good and bad news but they cannot handle uncertainty or the press leaks and personal opinions which we get from Ministers with responsibility for economic policy. Is a redundancy package planned for the public service? Will medical cards be taken from patients over the age of 70? The Minister for Finance says he will not announce his decisions until budget day but he is adding to the uncertainty in the economy. Consumers are losing confidence because of the way the economy is being treated by this Government. It is time to address that issue.

Regard should be had for those facing negative equity because of what Fianna Fáil has done. The former Taoiseach, Deputy Bertie Ahern, claimed that anyone who talked down the property market was unpatriotic. These people are now left with massive negative equity because Fianna Fáil wanted to win the previous general election. The personal cost did not matter. How about doubling mortgage relief for the people whom the Government deliberately misled to win an election? That might reverse the belief that Government Members are merely a crowd of charlatans out to mislead at every turn.

The Government needs to start acting as if it is in power because toxicity exists in the Irish banking system and further problems are coming. If our own toxic trio, who have played an important role in causing these problems, do not act promptly, the situation in which we will find ourselves will be much worse. It is time to ask the banks how bad matters have become because we cannot help if we do not have this information. We may support the Government's legislative proposals but, like the people, we are becoming sick of being misled and hearing lies. When the Minister for Finance makes his speech, he needs to tell the people how bad the situation has become.

When the banks appeared before the Oireachtas committee less then three months ago, they could not have painted a rosier picture. One would never have believed that within three months the Government would be bailing them out of one of the greatest crises to have affected the banking sector in the history of this State. If the drip feeding of bad news continues for the next several months, the Government will send us back to the 1980s because consumer confidence will have disappeared. Business people and those who are financially aware know what is happening because they have been following events. That is why they have ceased to buy shares in Irish banks.

Ministers need to get off their high horses and start acting like a Government by being honest with the people. Fine Gael have put a number of questions to the Minister for Finance. There will be an expectation that when the Minister comes into Dáil Éireann he will answer those questions and that he will be a little more receptive to the views of those on the Opposition side of the House. Otherwise, we will have to be far more aggressive with the Government in persuading it to do what is right for the people. I have heard rubbish talk — I will use the word "bullshit" — from Fianna Fáil about a bipartisan approach. Fianna Fáil has abused every sort of bipartisan approach from those on this side of the House. I do not think it will be so easy this time. It is time for that party to start taking the hard decisions and to do the job it was elected to do.