It was not my intention to intervene in this debate. I share very much the sentiments expressed by Deputy O'Sullivan in his intervention. While sitting here looking and listening, the reason for this debate here this morning struck me very forcibly. It is because there is nothing else which divides the people in Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. Deputy Kelly is quite correct in that assessment. When there is no fundamental difference, in political, economic or social terms, between the two major parties, it is inevitable that a debate will deteriorate into the kind we have heard this morning.
Undoubtedly, Fianna Fáil have been totally irresponsible in the management of this country's financial affairs. I believe sincerely that they have done irreparable damage to the future of the country and, in particular, of its children. As far as the political scene is concerned, what is wrong is that we have not matured politically as a country. We have put down the guns, but the two major parties are still fighting a Civil War. Because there is no fundamental difference between them, there has been no political advancement. It has been retarded by the sad incident which took place about 60 years ago. People must realise that there is a right and a left—some on the right being extreme and some a little more centre—to political, economic and social issues and that there is a left approach to these issues, a socialist approach. A look at the other European countries will show that, though they are not in full health, they are very healthy by comparison with us. That is because they recognise that there are two distinctly different ways of approaching these issues. We have not realised that.
We are talking about personal assassination. This is a substitute for real politics, because we have no real politics. The Irish electorate had better wake up to that fact very quickly. Character assassination does not come just from this side of the House, it comes from within Fianna Fáil's own party at times. Sniping is going on, engendered not for the good of the country, although I did hope at one stage that it was, but by animosities and rivalries within parties, differences which could be kept within bounds.
I supported a public statement by a former Tánaiste about three of four weeks ago because I thought it in the national interest to do so. However, many people on the Government side are telling the people week after week that the policies being pursued by the Fianna Fáil Party are extremely detrimental, to say the least, to the best interest of this country, but when the division bell rings, they walk into those lobbies. They must have political hernia by now, wondering which side they are on. That must stop.
There are serious economic issues before us, but they can be solved if serious political thought is given to them by the politicians and particularly by our electorate. A man's personality is not important, whether he is a glad-hander, slapping people on the back, shaking people's hands, kissing the babies and chatting up the women. Those things are not important. We must mature as a country and realise that what is really important are the policies to be pursued in the future and advocated by the different parties. Until we reach that day, the kind of debate which we have had for the last hour will continue as a substitute for real politics.