Frances Fitzgerald (Fine Gael)

Obviously the focus in the United States has been very much on human rights. Yesterday I raised in the House the issue of human rights in Ireland with regard to the Irish Human Rights Commission and the changes to the Combat Poverty Agency and the Equality Authority. The Leader was not here yesterday, but I want to ask him to convey to the Government the concern of those on this side of the House that in a time of recession and economic difficulty, when minorities and vulnerable people will face even more challenges, the Government has chosen to cut funding to these organisations which protect human rights and protect the vulnerable. It is a frightening decision by the Government and it does not bode well for democracy and the protection of human rights in this country. I ask the Government — the Progressive Democrats, the Green Party and Fianna Fáil — to reconsider its decision at this time and to do another U-turn on this because it is one area in which a U-turn should be done.

We were given to understand by the Government that there was a liquidity problem with the banks. We have heard the Government say that we in this country are facing an international problem. However, I see from the AIB statement this morning, in which its earnings forecast was reduced, that the key problem, as we suspected, is loans to property developers——