Jerry Buttimer (Fine Gael)

It is a pity the real Minister for Finance is not present because there is a clarion call for change in the Government. The patriotic thing the Minister of State and his colleagues could do is to dissolve both Houses of the Oireachtas, call a general election and let the people decide. It is time for leadership, new beginnings and prudent investment that has not happened for the past 11 years. We hear nauseating calls about national governments. The Government has had a majority in both Houses of the Oireachtas for the past 11 years, more so in the past two years, and it has done nothing about it. Let us stop talking about national governments and start talking about real leadership.

I refer to the importance of choices made by this Government. Senator Quinn referred to choices made by consumers, the Irish citizens. He is right. Let us examine the choices today. The Minster of State, Deputy Haughey, is in charge of education and lifelong learning. Let us look at the choices made by young people with mortgages. Some 10,000 people are three months in arrears. People are struggling to pay child care. This afternoon, people are visiting the money advice and budgeting service and the social welfare offices.