Inquiry showed once gung-ho Taoiseach to be a weak performer

There is a strong suspicion that the horrible lessons we learned through the economic bust are

IMAGINE for a moment that it is April 2007 and the leaders of Fine Gael and Labour are hosting a joint press conference. It is two weeks before the general election and they have just announced their intention, if elected, to put us on a surer economic footing.

Enda Kenny and Pat Rabbitte tell the assembled journalists that it would be their intention to widen our tax base by introducing a property tax and water charges, and that they are planning to introduce a law to stop Irish people buying property in utterly daft locations, either here or abroad, in an effort to save them for themselves.