Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

The Government is cognisant of the difficulty, on the one hand, in meeting the conditions of the IMF, the ECB and the European Union and, on the other, providing for the protection of the most vulnerable and the provision of front-line services, while offering whatever incentives we can for people to avail of the opportunity to seek gainful employment. Deputy McGrath is no different from anybody else. We have a duty and a responsibility in these straitened circumstances to ensure the decisions made by the Government are as fair as is possible, particularly as they affect those who are most vulnerable.

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