That One Teacher

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Norma Foley, a teacher at Presentation Secondary School, Tralee, County Kerry and  new Fianna Fáil Minister for Education arrives for yesterday’s cabinet meeting in Dublin Castle

In fairness.

Meanwhile…

Oh.

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28 thoughts on “That One Teacher

  1. Rob_G

    “Different people have differing opinions on the same person” – truly earth-shattering news.

  2. Toby

    Maeve used to be good craic. Now she is insufferable. Preachier than any parish priest and hawking her shame and ire for shekels.

  3. Jonickal

    “She’s a conservative anti-choice politician who has no real experience of education on a macro level.”

    Does the fact she’s pro-life inform her views on education at a macro level or did you just want to throw that in there to get a dig at her on a separate unrelated issue?

    1. Clampers Outside

      She got an ‘F’ in the Leftist purity test, and that’s all that counts, clearly.

      1. dylad

        Her dad was a Fianna Fáil lifer who took the bullet for having an offshore Ansbacher account (so basically stole from the state), so I would guess she has something on a lot of them.

  4. seanydelight

    Teachers are largely a crowd with no experience of the world other than a class room and the pecking order of it.

    1. Vanessanelle

      Agreed

      But Teaching in Ireland has (well used to anyway) a special contractual condition attached to permanent contracts that allows them to enter politics or other public service gigs, ie President of the GAA, without vacating their permanent contracts.

      Basically their jobs were covered by temps, and in some cases the TD pocketed the difference in the permanent scaled salary and the temps pay, and also retained their pension rights

      Our new Taoiseach is one of those
      and so was Enda Kenny,
      Along with Michael Noonan, Brendan Howlin, Marys Hanafin O’Rourke and Mitchel O’Connor,
      Right across the Dáil to include the late Tony Gregory

      It is only in the last ten years or so, like since the 07 crash, and the recruitment freezes, and public sector pay cuts, that some of those mentioned above actually either resigned their posts or gave up their pay rights.

      Like Enda Kenny’s job was performed by a Temp for over 30 years

      Anyway ye all know this,

      So back to Norma
      She has much more in common with Micheal Martin than any other cabinet appointment
      Whether she was a good teacher or not I really don’t care
      What I do care about is that she has a family history of tax evasion and ‘resting funds’ away from scrutiny

      1. Col

        Is there a bit of a conflict of interest having a teacher as Minister for Education? The job is not meant to be Minister for Teachers.

        1. Vanessanelle

          No more than having a practicing physician with a number of health care related business interests, in fairness. And the voter decided what they wanted to do with that risk.

          The conflict I see is Norma Foley’s relationship with Probity and her undeniable connection to wholesale tax evasion

          You might think that’s a matter for her party and her Constitutents to adjudicate her fitness to represent them as a TD, and I would agree with that
          However her appointment to Ministeral Office deserves unquestionable ethics and a higher standard the rest of us are entitled to.

          I would also add, that this particular Ministery would have benefited with continuity of Leadership
          Particularly around schools reopening, facilities, available manpower and pay, and the Leaving Cert Predictive Grading
          All still to uncertain and vague imo

          As a prochoice woman I would also flag her prolife agenda as a risk, but that is a personal issue that I’ll be paying particular attention to

          1. Cian

            Has Norma Foley herself done anything improper? Or are you suggesting that we should punish the child for the sins of the father?

            If your Mam had links to some dodgy financial dealings should you be barred from anything in finance?

          2. Vanessanelle

            Well tis like this Cian

            When offspring and other close blood connections seek to follow in their footsteps,
            Like keep up the Political Family line – shur’ let’s just say Dynasty for the craic like

            In the same Constituency
            In the same Party
            And using the same party workers and supporters

            Damn right they should also bare the sins
            And be accountable for them

            And as for my game – since you introduced it yerself like

            I am already required to meet a range of higher standards than any Government Minister

            Fitness and Probity
            Ethics and AML Risk and Compliance
            And let’s not leave the annual CPD steeplechase out either

            So what my Mother did
            Or anyone else you want to bring up
            Yeah no problem – bring it on
            And come on in
            One of those Ministers can actually trigger an unannounced investigation, and come into my office without permission
            Or a warrant

            In fact three separate Ministers lead departments that have oversight over my livelihood

  5. Conor

    FYI her father was involved in the Ansbacher Bank scandal and held an offshore account with them.
    Ironically he was part of the public accounts team set up to investigate tax evasion.

    So she’s not exactly a fresh faced politician.

  6. Johnny Keenan

    What! Maeve Higgins is a writer. I suppose she might as well be, as there is no money in comedy atm.
    I’m Spartacus!

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