David Cullinane (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Despite the very cheerful articulation of where things currently stand in the economy by Senator Mullins, it masks a different reality altogether in that we have far too many people out of work, people are still emigrating, people have been faced with an increase in taxes with the universal social charge, a property tax and they will face the introduction of water charges shortly. There have also been major cutbacks in spending in the area of health and education, which have impacted on front-line services in hospitals, primary care centres and schools across the State. We have fewer services and front-line staff across the board. We are paying more taxes than ever before. If we learn anything from the lessons of the Celtic tiger years, it must be that an economy has to be there to serve the citizens, all of the people, not the vested interests, the elites, the wealthy and the bankers. If there is economic growth, we need to see that used to benefit the people of this State.

We have not heard a whimper from a single Government representative in this Chamber in about a year about the fact that we had the biggest transfer of wealth in the history of this State when we transferred billions of euro of taxpayers' money into the banks to pay back the debts of bondholders, speculators and gamblers. We were promised by the Tánaiste and the Taoiseach that we would get a retrospective deal on banking debt but we have not got it.