Paschal Donohoe (Fine Gael)

Like my colleagues, I wish to refer to the discussions that took place in Government Buildings last night and I have some questions for the Leader. Many of my colleagues have pointed out that these are interim measures and that nobody knows whether they will work or what their effect will be. It is bit late now for such questions. The discussions have been going on in different forms for the past six to 12 months. The difficulties faced by our economy are very well flagged in the OECD report. It is very late in the day for people to be standing up and saying they do not know whether these measures will work and that these are only interim measures. A person facing a cut in child benefit will know the effect this will have on his or her income. A young person facing the effect of a reduction in social welfare and dole payments knows the effect this will have. Nobody is saying to these people these will be temporary or interim measures and we do not know what the effects will be.

I have two questions for the Leader. From what I have gathered from the media, people are saying there will be a 5% cut for everybody. Where is the equity in such a proposal? Does it mean that a person on €125,000 a year and another person on €25,000 a year will both face the same percentage cut? Where is the fairness, equity or justice, in such a proposal?

I heard people on "Morning Ireland" saying this will be a temporary cut. Nobody represented by these people believes this, whether these are union leaders or politicians. We know the difficulty we are facing is much deeper, more permanent and more structural. As much as I welcome ambiguity at times and know the role it plays in politics, we need clarity not just for the international markets but also for our own people. The consensus that has ill-served our country over the past three or four years is at grave danger of being repeated. I am terrified that not just the Government but everybody sitting around the table has bottled it.