The Elder Statesman
Interview with Dr. Garret FitzGerald
Former Taoiseach (Prime Minister) of Ireland
Garret FitzGerald was the seventh Taoiseach of
Ireland. He led the country for two terms: July 1981
to February 1982 and December 1982 to March
1987. Widely regarded as the greatest leader of the
Fine Gael political party and one of Ireland’s great
statesmen, he successfully navigated the country
through one of the toughest economic periods in its
history.
A fact very relevant for this publication is that Dr.
FitzGerald actually wrote the first IDA publication
that promoted Ireland in the international
marketplace fifty-two years ago.
I asked the former Taoiseach about the differences
between the financial reality as it exists now in
Ireland and the situation with which he was faced as
leader of the country during the 1980s.
“There are a number of differences between
the situation in the early 1980s and the current
economic crisis that Ireland faces.”
“First of all, in the 1980s, the situation did not
involve the banks. They were solvent, working well
and did not pose a problem. In addition, no housing
boom preceded those difficulties. The previous
government had increased public spending by 2.4
times, thus trebling the national debt. The situation
had spun out of control, such that we had to
announce two very severe budgets, the first in July
1981, followed by another in January 1982”, explains
FitzGerald, “My concern was that the less well-off
would not suffer. Inflation was rampant at that time,
at about 20%, so I increased social welfare by 25%
and those on social welfare were actually better off
by the end of that year, as inflation came down”.