THE FIVE-way leaders' debate last night was marked by sharp clashes on taxation, the restructuring of the banks and health.
The 90-minute debate saw repeated arguments between Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny and Labour leader Eamon Gilmore on policy issues, with Mr Kenny rejecting Labour claims of a €5 billion “black hole” in its financial calculations.
Labour leader Eamon Gilmore claimed that Fine Gael’s economic policies would result in higher taxes, more people out of work and no recovery.
The debate also saw repeated attacks by Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin and other party leaders on Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams and his party’s economic policies.
Mr Martin said Mr Adams was “the last person” to talk about cutting back on social welfare fraud “given the baggage you came with” while Mr Gilmore accused the Sinn Féin leader of “fantasy economics”.
Mr Gilmore claimed the European Commission had found that Fine Gael’s fiscal plans would cost €5 billion more than stated and the party had not explained where this money would come from. He asked how many public servants would have to be sacked to make up this shortfall.
Mr Kenny said there was no €5 billion “black hole”. Fine Gael’s figures were backed up by the Department of Finance and the Economic and Social Research Institute and the European Commission had confirmed that the party’s plan to extract a further €9 billion from the economy was right and prudent.
He accused Labour of shifting tack in its economic policies by extending the time allowed to make the required budgetary savings.
During the debate on RTÉ's Frontline, which was chaired by Pat Kenny, the leaders answered questions from members of a studio audience of about 140 undecided voters.
The first question, from a man whose three children had emigrated, asked the leaders to explain their strategy to help Ireland survive.
Mr Kenny said that by 2016, he wanted to make Ireland the best small country in which to do business. Mr Martin said the first test of political leadership was to accept that we need to fundamentally change how we do politics.
Mr Gilmore said Ireland had to create jobs and to ensure the economy grew and people did not have to emigrate.
Mr Adams called for a real republic based on genuine republican values. Creating jobs was the most important thing that politicians could help do, he said.
Green Party leader John Gormley said Ireland had a dysfunctional political system. That was why the Greens had proposed fundamental reforms, including a reduction in the number of TDs.
Answering a question about the banks, Mr Martin said it was not about “bailing out” the banks. There was an obligation to the 1.8 million working in the economy to ensure there was a functioning banking system.
Mr Gilmore said Labour was the only party to oppose the bailout of Anglo Irish Bank. This was a huge mistake that tied the banks to the State.
“Anglo Irish was nothing more than a piggybank for developers, he said.” .
Mr Adams said Sinn Féin would not put “one red cent” into the banks until they were restructured and acting in the common good
Mr Kenny said it was an obscenity and a scandal that €100 billion had been pumped into the banks.
Mr Martin attacked Mr Adams’s approach to the banks, questioning where Sinn Féin would find the €50 billion needed to pay the salaries of State employees over the next four years.
He claimed Mr Adams was behaving like a host of the Late Late Show by promising “one for everyone in the audience”.
“Paul Daniels couldn’t tell it the way Micheál Martin is presenting it,” Mr Adams quipped. He said Sinn Féin would save money by not spending it on toxic banks and would use €7 billion from the National Pension Reserve Fund to help create jobs.
Mr Gormley said the IMF-EU deal had to be renegotiated but this could not be done unilaterally.
Mr Gilmore told the audience that Mr Martin was “the great pretender”.
“He’s pretending he wasn’t in Government for 14 years, he’s pretending he wasn’t Bertie Ahern’s apprentice, he’s pretending he wasn’t Brian Cowen’s salesman.