Alex White (Dublin South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

At least we heard about universality from Senator Cullinane, although there is a huge debate about how it would be funded and the amount of persuasion that would be required for the public to pay at the absolute top level for all services in all circumstances. A significant debate is needed in that regard and perhaps we should have it in the Seanad. No health policy whatsoever is coming from the Fianna Fáil Party, other than simply to express annoyance, irritation and sometimes anger about what was said five years ago while the party claims the opposite is now being done. Senator MacSharry is entitled to make that point, but surely the Irish people are entitled to expect from the Fianna Fáil Party something additional to that, yet we do not hear anything whatsoever.

Reference was made to choices. We live up to our responsibility in government. We are two parties in government working together in the interests of the Irish people. Of course we must make choices and of course we do not always agree, at least initially, on precisely what choices we should make, but the fact it is that we do come to conclusions, very good and balanced ones. The two parties in government did not have a collective manifesto, as described by Senator MacSharry. We had two separate manifestos and approaches to the Irish people.