RSS FeedGovernment Wash Hands Of Awkward Issues
Posted by Senan
As Bart Simpson would say, "Nobody saw me do it, you can't prove anything"! Brian Cowan today again reiterated his view that former FAS director general Rody Molloy's 'golden handshake' was above board, citing some obscure employment law. And Mary Harney has come out to distance herself form the €70,000 given to HSE head honcho Professor Brendan Drumm; insisting that if the board decides so, then the man must be doing a 'fantastic job'. Ministers...long deep breath...the issue is not the contractual entitlement; it is the disproportionate remuneration against a backdrop of cuts and suffering of the lower level workforce and ordinary citizens. All this also in the same week that John O'Donoghue made a hasty retreat from public life in the light of embarrassing expenses claims. He won't be the last. The travails of the current government are well known at this stage, but really, are they so completely disconnected from the reality on the ground, that they think these kinds of decisions will be let fly?
My initial reaction to the new program for government that Fianna Fail and The Greens agreed last week was positive. University fees would not be introduced and teacher jobs cuts were off the table. Also, some green initiatives such as water charges and incineration caps would be looked at. However, after having some time to digest the deeper details, and having read the Sunday newspapers take on it, I'm worried again. In particular I'm worried that in the upcoming budget we may be hit with several new stealth taxes (and maybe even an increase in the non-stealth ones) in order to pay for some Green pie-in-the-sky stuff. A few weeks ago Brian Lenihan categorically ruled out any further income tax burden on the workforce (on the Matt Cooper Today FM show). But I don't necessarily believe him, and in any case, the stealth taxes can be just as damaging.
So, more squeeze to come in the next budget, and 2010 will likely see base interest rates from the ECB begin to rise again. This will lead once again to a choke on the economy and in particular on retail activity. Great fun!
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