Will the Taoiseach justify to the House and country the decision to spend in excess of €50 million on the purchase of a new Government jet at a time of great economic uncertainty and austerity? It is a time when primary schools are being run down, accident and emergency wards are dilapidated, the extra gardaí promised to fight crime have not arrived, many carers are struggling to cope and our cities are grinding to a halt. Every week brings new killings, assaults and thefts and new revelations about our crumbling health service, and confirms that the nation was conned last May.

Perhaps the Taoiseach thinks that was worth it because he and the Government can forget about betraying the people while sitting in leather-lined seats and gilded jacuzzis at 30,000 feet. Up there, he will not have to worry about rat-infested school buildings, sick people without hospital beds or the scandal of homelessness which blights our towns and cities. This happens while the Taoiseach and Government preach austerity to the rest of us. Is the nation to tighten its belt while the Government wraps a €50 million Charvet shirt around itself?

This is nonsense.

The Taoiseach should justify to the House and country the Government decision to spend this money on itself rather than on the people.

There are a lot of votes in that.

Deputy Kenny raised a number of questions. On crime, the Government's achievement in bringing the number of gardaí to an all-time high of approximately 11,900—

There is a murder every day. Dublin is the murder capital of Europe.

Allow the Taoiseach to reply, please.

This is a huge increase in the level of Garda resources.

It is not safe to walk the streets of Dublin.

This is Leaders' Questions.

We have moved from providing €599 million to almost €1 billion to the Garda Síochána. I congratulate the Garda on the excellent job being done to deal with crime, although I accept that there is crime and drug related crime. The Government's national drugs strategy for the coming years has been set out and builds on experience in this area.

On the health services—

The health services are crumbling.

—the Government has brought in the biggest ever capital programme, including 700 additional beds—

In what hospital?

—and 11,000 additional staff. The Government continues to provide extra resources. Deputy Kenny asked about the schools building programme. Over €330 million has been put into the education system.

No jury would accept that defence.

The Deputy also asked about the Government decision to look at the most feasible way of dealing with the ministerial aircraft service. Two aircraft are currently used, the Beechcraft which is over 15 years old and has not been much in use in recent years, and the GIV which was leased for a decade and bought some years ago. The overall cost of the GIV, between leasing arrangements and the buy-out cost of €9 million, was over €40 million. Several issues must be considered with regard to the ministerial aircraft which, because of age, landings and miles travelled, needed to be changed.

Ireland will hold the EU Presidency next year and 25 countries will be involved in that. This is the most globalised country in the world with regard to trade, according to the recent A T Kearney globalisation report, and is one of the biggest exporters in the world. Ireland depends on trade and exports, and on travel as a means to talk to our trading partners.

The Government considered the best possible means of disposing of the additional aircraft. It was decided to dispose to the smaller seven-seat Beechcraft in 2001 but the market conditions were not right at that time. They are right now because the global situation means that there are thousands of aircraft on the ground. The cost of a new GIV has been considered but the best way to do this has not been decided, whether to buy outright, lease or make lease-purchase arrangements. The NDFA, with the experts in the Department of Defence, will consider the matter.

We will have to deal with 4,000 meetings during the Irish EU Presidency next year, including over 50 Council meetings. The Government will find the most cost-effective way of doing this and I look forward to that.

There is nothing like a straight answer to a straight question.

I have never heard so much waffle in my life. The Taoiseach justifies this on grounds of age, landings and the amount of miles. None of these justifications was given by the Minister for Defence this morning in a most arrogant contribution to the nation. He spoke about being practical and pragmatic, and about trade missions and the world trade talks.

Exactly.

I co-chaired those in 1996 and flew commercial airlines to Singapore, in the same way that every other Minister did. A €50 million jet is not necessary to go to the world trade talks.

The Deputy does not know that.

Entrepreneurs are not brought on Government jets to trade missions, they go courtesy of Enterprise Ireland or IDA Ireland, as it was known. The Taoiseach has not explained the options, whether air taxi, the lease of a jet from a commercial airline or another source. Will he publish the interdepartmental report given to him in respect of this matter? If something is broken down, one fixes it and gets on with that.

The Deputy should start by sorting out Fine Gael.

He might be hoping for a few by-elections.

The health service has been broken down for 15 years and the Government has done nothing about it.

Allow Deputy Kenny to conclude.

Patients must make a 400 mile round trip for radiotherapy and cancer patients are waiting for hospital beds. Some children have to wait eight years for treatment.

Deputy Kenny is out of order. He has gone well over the minute allotted under the Standing Order.

This is a most arrogant Government.

A sum of €5.4 billion is being spent this year on the capital programme, including €1.4 billion on roads, €500 million each on education and health—

What of the disabled person's grant? This is an insult.

—and almost €1 billion on environmental infrastructure.

The Taoiseach's friends are doing well.

When the GIV was leased and purchased, it cost about €44 million. That is a 14-seat aircraft but there is a problem in that it cannot operate at full fuel capacity when there are 14 passengers aboard. The more people on it, the less fuel it carries and the more stop-overs it must make.

That is terrible.

The Opposition can laugh but that is the reality.

Allow the Taoiseach to speak without interruption.

Increased landings affect the condition of the aircraft.

The Taoiseach should ask Hans Blix to have a look at it.

A 45-seat aircraft can be purchased for approximately €40 million.

The Emperor Bokassa had 45 of them.

The Government has not yet decided whether the aircraft will be leased, purchased outright, purchased second hand or otherwise. The options will be considered. I assure the House and, most importantly, the public, because the House is not too interested, that we will proceed in the most cost-effective manner possible.

Will the Taoiseach consult Michael O'Leary of Ryanair? He will provide a low cost solution.

Only the leaders of the three groups are entitled to submit a question to the Taoiseach. I call Deputy Rabbitte.