Darragh O'Brien (Fianna Fail)

I appreciate the Minister's response to the comments made. This has been a good debate. The legislation is necessary and I do not propose to delay the House further on it. There is a genuine desire on the part of all sides to ensure this country recovers as quickly as possible for the good of its citizens. This side of the House and my party will support these and other difficult measures. The months coming up to the budget will be difficult, but I hope that when it comes to dealing with the pre-budget outlook and the budget, the Opposition will be found to be a responsible opposition. It is important that our citizens see as unified an approach as possible. While we may argue about certain points of policy, we all know the direction we are going. There is confidence, and there should be, that we will come through our difficulties for the good of the generations that will follow us. This is one step in that regard.

We can do so much in this country, but I have one word of caution with regard to the response at European level. We would all like to see a more co-ordinated and robust response from Europe. I agree with comments made earlier by Senators Hayden and Barrett that in many instances we are not dealing with some of the fundamental problems. This Bill is a step in the right direction, but it will not be the last. The EFSM will be a more permanent mechanism. Hopefully, Europe and Ireland will learn from the mistakes of the past and be able to move forward so that we have stable European and Irish economies where job growth will return, people will be able to afford to pay their mortgages and bills and quality of life will be improved.