Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail)

The public is getting sick and tired of spin and more spin. The spin we are hearing from the Minister today is the same spin we heard with the publication of the jobs initiative. Following research by my colleague Deputy Michael McGrath, we find that the jobs initiative meant taking money off pensioners and putting it into an Exchequer black hole. Unfortunately, unemployment has increased throughout that time.

The Minister and his colleagues are now telling people that the Government is now committed to spending €700 million less per annum than what Fianna Fáil agreed with the troika last year. The Government is making its own decision in accordance with the economic sovereignty of this State. According to an article in the Irish Independent two weeks ago, it is deciding to make the cuts in capital expenditure to avoid the more difficult decisions on welfare and on other areas of current public expenditure.