Dan Boyle (Green Party)

It a bit late for the Senator to call for someone's resignation after the Bill has gone through the other House. I will respond to some of the points made by previous speakers. This is difficult legislation. There is no joy or satisfaction for any Government in proposing a reduction in a number of categories of social welfare payments, but this is being done in the context of the state of our finances and it being done in a deflationary environment. People might debate the headline figure of inflation, they might talk about the harmonised index, but for the material things that matter in people's lives such as food, clothing and heat, there is no doubt that the rate of deflation has been 4% and beyond.