New year but same old FF who propose to throw money at services with no clarity on how they would pay – Fitzgerald

When Fianna Fáil’s construction led boom busted, the wheels came off the wagon and funding for vital services disappeared. Never was this clearer than when the doors of Templemore were closed. Looking into 2016, Fianna Fáil propose to do the same thing again; spend, spend, spend. Yet they have provided no clarity on how they plan to do this”, says Minister for Justice, Frances Fitzgerald.

“Fianna Fáil rejected this Government’s Capital Investment Plan which will see €27 billion invested in services including transport, education and resources for the Gardaí. Instead they suggest that an extra €4.3 billion should be spent and they have failed to demonstrate how this spending would be funded.

“Fine Gael has a plan to continue to invest in services and we know exactly how this can be achieved. Since the launch of the Action Plan for Jobs in 2012, 135,000 jobs have been added to the economy, at a rate of over 1,000 jobs per week. Creating more jobs and ensuring that these jobs pay, will provide more money to invest in services.

“The Irish people need and deserve high quality, but sustainable services. The next election will be about who can be trusted to keep the recovery going, based on stability. The Irish people have worked too hard, we cannot go back.

“Fianna Fáil need to realise that it’s not 2006 anymore and that throwing money around is not the solution to every problem. Creating more jobs is key to keeping the recovery going and to supporting essential services.”