That is what the Government did in this budget. No matter how hard the Tánaiste tries to spin - no doubt he will try to do it again - he said he had the backs of the students of Ireland. He has double-crossed them. It is another broken promise. The third one is on childcare costs. Speaking to the Irish Independent in October last year, just a month before the general election, he pledged to deliver €200 per month childcare and to do so quickly. Here is what he said: "I actually believe the cost bit we can deliver q…

That is not good enough, but it is what the Tánaiste did. Does he get why so many workers out there are so angry with what the Government has delivered in the budget? Does he understand that they feel really let down by the litany of broken promises?

Seriously? Does the Tánaiste really believe that?

The Tánaiste speaks about honesty. I will read back his words from before the election-----

-----so maybe he does not put much credence in it.

Wait until he hears what Fine Gael promised the people. It was to increase the higher tax-band threshold, raise the point at which a worker enters the higher tax-band by at least €2,000 each year.

That is what Fine Gael promised.

It promised a plan-----

----on childcare costs within 100 days.

The Government has no plan. Fine Gael has broken promise after promise because that is what Simon does.

He says what needs to be said at a point in time-----

-----and then forgets all about it. The families of scoliosis know that and now the workers right across the State know what he is all about.

Two and half million workers have been abandoned in this budget. I put it to the Tánaiste, at a time when the Government made tax breaks available to investors, banks, developers and landlords, why did it consciously decide to leave workers worse off in this budget? That is shameful.

What it has done is shameful. It has broken its promise. Can the Tánaiste explain-----

-----why he made a pledge that it would lift the burden on workers and decided consciously to favour developers-----

-----investors and landlords over the people who are out working and building our economy?

Fine Gael promised to abolish the USC. Does the Tánaiste remember that?

It was to abolish the USC.

The Government made a choice on tax to give €2.5 million of taxpayers' money-----

Why did you break your promise?