The Mahon tribunal report will remind people about the “enormous greed and corruption of a tiny elite who plundered” society and this “will intensify the boycott against the household tax”, it has been claimed.
Socialist Party TD Joe Higgins made the allegation during leaders’ questions in the Dail when he said people would make the link between that corruption and Ireland’s current disaster, when the majority had to “pay for their greed with disastrous consequences for society”.
Tanaiste Eamon Gilmore acknowledged a link between the contents of the Mahon report and what the tribunal was asked to investigate. He said this “is not unrelated to the difficulties that this country faces today”.
Mr Gilmore said he had just received a copy of the final Mahon tribunal report. He had not had the opportunity of reading it yet.
He said there would be a comprehensive debate on the report next week.
The issue the Government “is dealing with right now is to renegotiate the terms of the bailout for Anglo Irish Bank”. It was dealing with the mess that was created by the previous government.
They were “dealing with a bank which was the piggy bank fro the property bubble which brought the economy to its knees. Some of that property bubble was in turn unfortunately connected to corrupt acts that were performed by some individuals.”
The report “is related to the difficulties the Government has in managing our way out of the mess inherited from the previous Government”.
But Mr Higgins, calling for the Government to abandon the household charge said there was a “herd of elephants that is stampeding from Malin Head to Mizen Head” and that was the “massive revolt” against the household charge.
He said the Government should not have put the burden of the “corruption and reckless speculation” that would be outlined in the Mahon report “on the backs of the people. That is why there is a huge revolt.”
He told Mr Gilmore “the Labour elves have not done their job in making you aware of the extent of the anger that is out there” and renewed a call for the Government to abandon the household charge.
But the Tanaiste told him “if we were to follow your ideas Deputy Higgins we’d run out of money”.
