Kenny dismisses coalition with FF 'wreckers of the country'
The Taoiseach Enda Kenny has ruled out a coalition with Fianna Fáil, who he has described as the "wreckers" of our economy.
In a clear message of his intent to campaign for a general election, Mr Kenny said: "Well, every election begins the day after the last one, and clearly you are going to have an election in the Spring 2016, which we have already committed too.
"In fact, the programme that I have set out, which I conducted originally with Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore, and which was revised following the reshuffle of government and the change in leadership with the Tánaiste Joan Burton, is predicated on going out until the Spring of 2016. There are 96 issues in there that we need to have implemented and we are working towards that."
"So, in due course, the people will have their opportunity to vote for a government that has made some very difficult choices to pull our country out of the economic swamp in which it was. They will have their choice, and the choice they will have is to back a party that has done that -- the Fine Gael party and the Labour Party (have done that) -- and make their choice as to where they want our country to be."
In clear electioneering speak, the Taoiseach added: "I want (our country) based on innovation, based on enterprise. I want it to be the best country in the world to do business, in which to raise a family, in which to grow old with a sense of dignity and respect."
He said the people will have the choice between parties that have pulled Ireland out of an "economic swamp", and those "who put Ireland over the edge".
"But, be clear on this, we are not bringing back the wreckers of our economy, those who put our party over the edge, and required the Irish people to partake in what they said was the cheapest (bank) bailout in history; €64bn. So, the Fianna Fáil party wrecked our country, wrecked our economy, and there's no place for them in government."
"I think that when people come to vote in 2016, they are going to look at what's happened, they're going to look at what the options are, and I think that the vast majority of people will say, 'well, what mandate did we give the Fine Gael/Labour government', 'what did we ask them to do', and what they asked us to do was to fix our public finances, and to put our people back to work."
"Interest rates are down from 15% to 1.4% for bonds today, we've had 29 months of a continuos fall in the live register, and we will have our deficit wiped out by 2018. We will have created over 100,000 new jobs by the end of 2015, and if that's the choice of the people, then we are the party in government to lead that government and continue that good work in Ireland's interest."
