Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)

It also merits repeating that the people need an immediate election. Yesterday, the Taoiseach should have put the negotiations on hold, arranged to delay the budget and called an election in the minimal constitutional period. This is what the people want. The public wants a new source of hope and people who are responsible and were at a remove from those who were running the country. They want people who were not part of the problem to address it. We need an immediate election.

Given our circumstances, there was no other way. We missed yesterday's opportunity, so we must look to bringing the negotiations and budgetary process forward and to having an immediate election to bring stability and clarity to the situation. Nothing short of that will do. It would be helpful if, before Saturday's march, senior members of the Government apologised to the people for what has occurred. Doing so would help to defuse the march.