MINISTER FOR Defence Willie O'Dea yesterday admitted that the controversy surrounding the over-70s' medical card has done a "lot of damage" to Fianna Fáil.
Mr O'Dea refused to be drawn on whether any Government U-turn could be expected on education cutbacks, but did admit he was worried about the damage the medical card issue has caused to his party.
"I am of course [worried] - it has done a lot of damage, in the short term," the Minister said. "I hope that in the longer term people will see that the Government wasn't inflexible, that they recognised that there was a problem there and they reacted accordingly.
"The difficulty is that there are social welfare changes every year in the budget, and immediately the budget is over, before the Minister even sits down, the figures are available so people will know exactly where they stand.
"That wasn't the situation with the medical cards and people were very confused," he said.
Mr O'Dea also admitted yesterday that the initial proposals in relation to the over-70s' medical card were not explained to the public properly.
He refused to comment on any potential rollbacks by the Government in relation to proposed cuts in the education sector, insisting that this was a matter for the Minister for Education. "We've got a problem with barrack closures; there's a lot of resistance to that, and it's something I regret obviously, but it's something I found absolutely necessary to do."
Mr O'Dea was speaking in Limerick yesterday at the opening of Wickes DIY store in Eastpoint Retail Park, where 40 new jobs have been created.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin also defended the cuts yesterday, saying: "We have had to take decisions which are tough, which are challenging, which reflect a much different environment from the one we have been in over the last ten years.
"The Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, is an experienced politician and, as I say in life, it is great for somebody to say we got this particular one wrong. We have responded to the issues and we will move on from there."
Meanwhile, a Green Party town councillor, Betty Doran from Mullingar in Co Westmeath, announced yesterday that she was resigning from the party in protest at the Budget. News of her resignation came as pressure on the Greens to force a concession from the Government on the issue of education cuts intensified.
Ms Doran is a former Labour councillor who went Independent and joined the Greens two years ago. A spokesman for the Green Party last night wished her well.