Kenny the therapist fails to offer a cure

THERE IS a scene in the Oscar-winning film Good Will Hunting where a therapist tells a physically-abused patient: “It’s not your fault.”

Last night, Enda Kenny appeared to opt for his own version on the theme, telling the public: “You are not responsible for the crisis.”

It was a curious note to strike in a speech that was otherwise fairly straightforward.

One assumes that most citizens are fully aware it is not their fault, and do not need to be told as much.

They do not want the Taoiseach as therapist; they want the Taoiseach as trouble-shooter and problem-solver.

And on that score, the overwhelming sense from last night’s address was that nothing is going to be solved very soon.

“The truth is, our economy remains fragile, and it will take us several years to recover fully — will take several years to create the number of new jobs we need,” Mr Kenny said.

He insisted he was “very optimistic”, but neither sounded nor looked it. At one point, he even acknow-ledged that, for many people, the worst was not over.

“I would love to tell you tonight that our economic problems are solved, that the worst is over. But for far too many of you, that is simply not the truth.”

People may rightfully ask where was the sense of inspiration in the speech. There was no soaring rhetoric, only sombre tones. In a sense, though, it’s hard to blame Mr Kenny for the bleakness of the message.

Former finance minister Brian Lenihan was forever suggesting that the worst was over, or that a corner had been turned, only to be proved wrong.

With projected growth rates for the economy next year being slashed, and the eurozone still mired in crisis, it would have been foolish for the Taoiseach to attempt to portray a sunny picture.

People can see for themselves the state the country is in, and can hazard a good guess as to how many years it might take to recover.

So Mr Kenny avoided fake optimism, and opted for grim realism. He outlined what the budget would entail and how the Government would put jobs at its centre, and spoke about this week’s crucial EU summit, and how European leaders must implement “clear decisions” to address the crisis.

The speech, for the main part, dealt with generalities rather than specifics, as was to be expected from a relatively short address.

Mr Kenny overlooked some inconvenient truths: for example, he said the Government had imposed losses “on some bondholders” but failed to mention the failure to burn senior bondholders.

He talked about cutting ministerial pay, but said nothing about the Government breaching its own pay cap for political advisers in numerous instances.

He said the Government would do “all we can” to protect children, but omitted the Coalition’s intention to cut child benefit for third and subsequent children in the budget.

The specifics will come today and tomorrow, as Public Expenditure Minister Brendan Howlin and Finance Minister Michael Noonan outline spending cuts and tax hikes respectively.

After that, the public will truly know the score. We’ve now seen the therapist, but the treatment awaits.