450,000 people can’t take Cowen’s advice

TAOISEACH Brian Cowen says people must start spending more to help with the recovery. First of all there can’t be a recovery until thousands of jobs are being created — and that’s not happening.

Secondly, how can Cowen say people must go out and spend when the policies of his Government have resulted in €450,000 people losing their jobs and the slashing of the income of thousands of people who are lucky enough still to be in work?

If the Taoiseach wants people to spend, then he should stop using borrowed money to bail out the banks and bondholders and use it to have a national programme of public works to enhance the nation’s infrastructure and investment in manufacture to increase exports.

This will immediately create thousands of jobs and put money in the pockets of those who gain employment. Then he can justifiably demand that people go out and spend.

The Taoiseach should also gain the support of the other parties for nationalising Ireland’s energy resources or at least getting a large share of any profits made from those resources — a practice followed by many other countries.

Oh yes, the Taoiseach, along with his colleagues, should stop telling the people that the Government has difficult problems to tackle with without also mentioning that its members, and indeed most of the main government party, bear responsibility for bringing these problems on the country.

Brian Abbott

‘Glencairn’

Bishopstown Road

Cork