Budget impact - Rob poor to pay for past greed

WITH the ink barely dry on the swingeing provisions of Budget 2011, voters have received an early taste of what to expect from our politicians over the next few months.

True to form, party leaders were busy swapping angry exchanges in the Dáil, using the budget debate as a platform to get the campaign for the impending general election under way with a vengeance.

Taoiseach Brian Cowen delivered a classic example of defending the indefensible.