Unplaced hysteria over cut in respite care grant

The hysteria over the €325 cut to the respite care grant shows the scale of the problem the Government has in managing the completely unrealistic expectations of the public.

Even as the first signs of the recession started to show themselves, this grant was radically increased by €300 in 2007 and 200 in 2008.

The biggest problem the Government faces is not the public finances, but the completely unrealistic expectations of a public which expects social welfare benefits to go on at boom time levels despite the country being bankrupt.