Michael McDowell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

A good and long-standing family friend of mine, Mr. Garret FitzGerald, was once alleged to have asked, "That is all right in practice but does it work out in theory?" It is not true that he was the first to have said it. If one googles the phrase, one will find out it was said about 30 years before Mr. FitzGerald was alleged to have said it. It reminds me, however, of one proposition. I agree with Senator Kieran O'Donnell that when it comes to taxation, one cannot be a slave to theory; one must be a slave to what is practicable. It is not a matter of patriotism. Senator Higgins may talk about patriotism and whether people who stay outside the country are patriotic.