David Norris (Independent)

I do. Senator Mary White has said people are wondering if Fianna Fáil party members do not have confidence in the leader. How can they? It is not a question of confidence in the Government. People do not have confidence in the Government because it has done exactly what I said would happen almost three years ago when it started to disable every organisation which had tried to speak out on behalf of the vulnerable and the marginalised. I refer to a letter I received. I am not unique in receiving this kind of letter. It reads:

Dear Senator,

I've been up all night pacing the floor and running the figures from the budget yesterday. Our family holds a medical card. My husband is a PAYE worker, I am receiving a social welfare benefit and we have 1 child.

Medical Card holders were exempt from paying the Health Levy & Income Levy until the Budget yesterday. The Revenue Commissioners have confirmed that Medical Card holders will NOT be exempt from paying the Universal Social Charge.

I have calculated that our income, come 1 st January 2011, will be reduced by 9% or approximately €68 per week. We had been prepared to take a reduction of our income but this figure is devastating. We must prioritise light, heat, food on the table and fuel, insurance & tax for the car so my husband can get to his work which is not served by public transport.

To put this into perspective this will make the difference between us being able to meet the mortgage repayments in full or falling into arrears. The amount is the equivalent for my grocery budget on a weekly basis. Our child benefit right now is redirected towards light, heat & food. I have never been in the position where I can go out and spend it on my 2 year old.

That is what happening in the country. How can a woman like her be expected to have confidence in the Government when this is what it has done to her? I do not say it was done deliberately and I am not counting the mistakes made, but we are dealing with the results.

Did anybody watch "The Week in Politics" programme a week ago and see the shot scanning the Front Bench in the Dáil and the devastation on the face of every Minister? Another visual image was the faces of the people in the audience on "The Frontline" programme with Pat Kenny, many of them from Fianna Fáil stock. They are devastated.