Dáil Sketch: Money may have been spent with all the speed of a computer delete button on health technology projects, but Taoiseach Bertie Ahern urged deputies to look on the positive side in the Dáil yesterday.
In the face of renewed Opposition pressure, he said: "We do not have a national debt higher than that of Ethiopia. We have one of the lowest in the world and we should be proud of that." But Opposition deputies were not impressed.
Meanwhile, Fianna Fáil backbenchers continued to wear their moonlight on a tombstone expression, largely silent, as they are nowadays, when the Government faces the latest charge of wasting public money.
Mr Ahern's observation was all too much for Fine Gael Mayo deputy Michael Ring, whose verbal onslaught resembled a Croagh Patrick volcano.
"Is there a machine that can draw up the P60s to get rid of the Government?" he asked. "The Government is weary and dreary."
Minister for Defence Willie O'Dea trained his political rifle in Mr Ring's direction. "The Opposition would be dreary and scary in government," he said.
Mr Ring replied with a political hand grenade. "Government members will not get jobs as consultants because they do not consult with anybody," he said.
Perhaps it is all a matter of concepts, whatever exactly that might mean. Labour leader Pat Rabbitte noted The Irish Times had quoted a spokesperson for former minister for health Micheál Martin that he had been "announcing a concept" when he launched the e-portal system which "disappeared after €3 million had been spent on it".
This, said Mr Rabbitte, was an example of the Government's capacity to use "weasel words", adding that he wanted to know if there were many "other such concepts". Was it like the concept of electronic voting? Mr Martin, on the extreme right of the Government benches, looked uncomfortable as the Labour leader upped the ante.
He wanted to know how many people were involved in the e-Cabinet project, "apart from the 15 computer geniuses present". Mr Martin must wonder how many more ghosts from his time in "Angola" lurk in its corridors and filing cabinets, not to mention computers.
Tánaiste Mary Harney, seated next to Mr Ahern, looked impassive. The remaining moonlight seemed to be fading from the backbench tombstone.
The Taoiseach struggled on, noting that no action could be taken against consultants until the Government had a report on what had gone on.
Many consultancy firms were doing a good job, he said, and they should not try to tar everyone as having made a mess of things, since that was not correct.
But what of the hapless backbenchers? Are they about to tar the Cabinet for having made a mess of things, be it correct or otherwise?
