Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin today blamed wider society for a “lazy” consensus over how the country was run during recent years.
Insisting Brian Cowen and Bertie Ahern were not culpable either, he defended his right to call for radical political reform as he prepared to leave government after 14 years.
Mr Martin denounced as “ridiculous” the way Dáil business is carried out and said the current system of appointing TDs to the Cabinet was not in the interest of the country.
But he suggested he was not in a position to make any changes to how the Oireachtas worked while a senior Cabinet member for more than decade.
“As a new party political leader I’m fully entitled to bring forward radical political reform proposals,” he said.
“As a leader you are in a different position than as a member of a frontbench or a Cabinet.”
The Fianna Fáil leader said there was a wider consensus in society that the economy was going well and nobody challenged how things were being done.
So, to recap. We all partied. We were too lazy. We are where we are.