The supposed inability of "the political system" to accommodate a star only adds to the gloom, frustration and near despair in some quarters. The political system when it comes to economic reconstruction is not fit for purpose. Cheerleaders for Fianna Fáil are only delighted to join in the chorus about the defects of "the political system".

Let's be clear - our political system is in need of refurbishment. But the depth of our economic crisis is not due to the political system. We are in the mess we are in because of the Government. The reckless mismanagement of the economy in the four or five years before the crash is the reason for our downfall. Not the defects in our political system.

George Lee was the best economic commentator since Justin Keating's agricultural programmes in the sixties. He was able to make economic data accessible for the typical viewer and communicate his analysis often with passion. However reporting on economic trends is not the same as advancing economic prescriptions in Dáil Éireann. George Lee made no seminal speeches. He did reflect the undoubted anger amongst the electorate. But he left no economic blueprint behind.

And he was mistaken if he believed that one could turn the economic tide after eight months on the opposition benches.

The Labour Party is committed to real institutional reform. Our spokesperson Brendan Howlin, TD will publish a paper on this area in the coming months. I have recently published a Bill to restore Inquiry by Parliamentary Committee and I have re-introduced our Whistleblowers Bill. I am sceptical about the school of reform that starts out wanting to halve the number of TDs and hand over the Cabinet to Michael O'Leary and Peter Sutherland.

Michael O'Leary and Peter Sutherland are very good at what they do. But those who believe that all we need do is amend the political system so that we can import a select number of businessmen to run the government are likely to be disappointed. Politics, public affairs and the business of governing is not quite as simple as that. Not long ago The Irish Times invited half a dozen captains of industry to set out their respective prescriptions for economic recovery. After each of them had sold off the ESB, cut wages and halved the number of TDs they had run out of ideas.

Maybe after a balanced debate on reform of our institutions we will end up halving the number of TDs. But we would need to be careful about which half we keep on.