EU Commissioner Charlie McCreevy has called for an end to what he called 'Punch and Judy' politics in Ireland.
Speaking in Dublin today, Mr McCreevy said he could think of no time in our history as an independent state when setting aside party political differences would make more sense than it did today.
The former Finance Minister told the Leinster Society of Chartered Accountants that no government could take the actions needed to correct the economy without becoming politically very unpopular. He claimed there was too much at stake for the normal, business-as-usual politics to continue.
The internal markets Commissioner insisted that a consensus approach would lift the confidence of capital markets and reduce the cost of the debt which the country now has to raise.
He also described as a 'myth' the view that the international credit crisis had its roots in a lack of regulation, claiming the powers had been in place but had not been enforced by governments.
And he said that while some might like to tar and feather bankers and developers, we should not throw the baby out with the bathwater by losing sight of the fact that some of them will be needed to handle the many challenges of renewal that lie ahead.
IMPACT wants quick Government answer
Meanwhile, the head of the country's largest public sector union has said that the Government must respond by next week with a concrete response - not rhetoric - that will prevent a further haemorrhage of jobs.
Speaking at an IMPACT conference in Castlebar, Peter McLoone said that if the social partners failed to reach an agreement on an economic recovery plan, or if they continued to impose cuts, participation in negotiations would not stop unions from taking industrial action if necessary to protect jobs, pay, pensions and services.
