Tom Shehan (Fine Gael)

I acknowledge the comments of my colleague. I have always been one for a direct hit to do the job. For example, if there was a blocked pipe in my home, I would not get the garden hose but rather a power hose. I have found piecemeal solutions irritating but I now recognise why they came about. It was impossible to deal with this issue in one fell swoop. It could not be done in such fashion and I do not know if we are finished yet.

This Bill is trying to achieve stability in Europe, and the word "stability" is being lost in our conversation. In Germany people are saving and they are getting a low interest rate, so it costs money for them to save. They must also deal with a service charge. The German economy is getting money for nothing. We would love to be in such a position but it will take time to get to there, and as Senator Gilroy mentioned, we must take small steps rather than giant strides. I have always been a firm believer that the running of a country is similar to running a business, and when a firm is spending beyond its means and borrowing on a weekly basis, it cannot continue.

This Government has made cutbacks but, as in business, it has loans to repay. There is a fine balance between the budget deficit, the repayment of loans and, effectively, cutting one's cloth to measure by finding savings. The Minister of State should be complimented on his effort in this regard, with one shining light being the changes to procurement. It needed to be done and, in fairness to the Minister of State, he carried out the task effectively. I heard him say recently he is not finished with the process yet, and I wish him the best of luck with it. As I noted, it irritates me that we cannot get the power hose, as it were, and do this in one giant leap, that we must instead take a series of small steps. I wish the Minister of State the best and I have the utmost confidence in his actions.