Page "Liam Cosgrave" Paragraph 17

The Cosgrave government's tough anti-terrorist laws alienated the public, as did its tough austerity measures ( Finance Minister Richie Ryan was nicknamed ' Richie Ruin ' on a satirical TV programme, Hall's Pictorial Weekly ).

Marginal income tax rates came to 77 % one year during the Coalition's reign.

The electorate had not experienced unemployment and hardship of this nature since the fifties and the Government became quite unpopular.

Combined with the Donegan affair and the hard line approach to law and order, the economic difficulties were quite damaging to Cosgrave and Corish's popularity.