Mícheál Martin says the government is committed to people from all regions of the country, not just his own.
The Taoiseach was responding in the Dáil to questioning from Waterford independent TD, Matt Shanahan.
Deputy Shanahan says he has watched Cork flourish, where regions like the South East have not.
He pointed to a number of projects, but particularly to the area of healthcare.
"Cardiac Care will be the telltale of the performance of this government," Deputy Shanahan said.
"We need 24/7 (Cardiac) Care delivered as per the promise you gave in 2016," he added.
He asked Mícheál Martin to deliver this in order to bring the South East in line with other regions as his final gift as his tenure as Taoiseach comes to an end.
Responding, Mr Martin said the South East has prospered during his time as Taoiseach - as well as during his previous government positions.
He used the SETU as an example stating that he is the one who acquired the land the university is built on in the 1990's.
"At the time, there was a lot of people questioning the wisdom of that but in the long term proved, if I do say so myself, a fairly farseeing measure," the Taoiseach said.
He added that employment in the South East has grown by 8.6% in the last year, with 79 IDA companies employing roughly 1,500 people.
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