Category Archives: Politics

from the Dail to the White House and back via Downing Street and elsewhere.

 

Independent TD Clare Daly confirmed she drank a “hot whiskey” before she was arrested on Monday night after performing an illegal turn on a south Dublin road.

Results of a sample she gave at the station are awaited. She told RTÉ she was a little surprised that information had been “released” without charges having been brought or confirmation obtained that she was over the limit.

Ms Daly played a prominent role in a recent campaign for a public inquiry into allegations of corruption in the removal of penalty points from driving licences.

Hmm.

Just…hmm.

Daly says she drank ‘hot whiskey’ before drink-driving arrest (Mary Minihan, Irish Times)

(Laura Hutton/Photocall Ireland)

Minister for Communications Pat Rabbitte yesterday delivered more good news for Ireland with the announcement that some of the largest wind turbines in the world may be built  across the midlands.

Speaking about the proposed project, he said “I think there is a mutual interest here for both countries, adding: “Ireland doesn’t want a wind farm at every cross roads; we don’t want that”.

However

Richard Tol, professor of economics at University of Sussex and formerly with the ESRI, said he felt that the whole scheme was “crazy” and would not work in the long term, adding:

“From an Irish perspective this is not selling the family silver; this is giving it away. There is no money staying in Ireland that I can see. But from the British perspective it is a good deal,”

Oh..

BBC Audio.

Previously: Ireland to build ‘Giant’ wind turbines to power the UK (BBC News)

(Sam Boal/Photocall Ireland)


Our code monkey Karl has just released a preliminary calculator for Budget 2013.

Sez Karl:

There is already a vague shape to what will be announced in another austerity-laden budget. Joan Burton has been making noises about changing (read: increasing) employee and employer PRSI rates. An increase from the current rate of 4% to 5% would result in an extra €293.96 on the tax bill of someone on the average industrial wage.

Another proposal is that a parent earning over €100,000 would have their child benefit taxed.  At that level of earnings though it makes minimal difference with just €688.80 a year for a single child clawed back. Given that successive governments have failed to implement this don’t hold your breath.

And another big change is the full implementation of the property tax. The rate has yet to be announced, but 0.5% of the property’s value has been mooted by the IMF.  You can be hopelessly optimistic and set the rate at a low of 0.05% (paying €50 per €100K of value) to an eye-watering high of 1% (paying €1,000 per €100K).

As more rumours surface, I will factor in the inevitable misery onto the calculator. Enjoy.

Check you income here: Budget 2013 Calculator

With the successful landing of the Curiosity Rover on Mars, the inevitable comparison between its cost and what has been poured into the banking system was made in the letters page of the Irish Times:

As a final aside, we could have had an Irish space programme and a viable base on the moon with all the associated financial, technological and investment spin-offs for the money that, with a stroke of a minister’s pen, we “invested” in bailing out our failed banks.

For a change though, someone has crunched the numbers. WorldbyStorm from The Cedar Lounge Revolution did some quick calculations:

The EU bailout saw €17.5 bn from the NPRF. Then there’s the ‘loans’ from the EU, IMF and UK/Denmark and Sweden which would account for €67.5 bn. Sundry other costs can be thrown in. So let’s say we had €100bn.

That’s a lot of cash, but Apple currently has approximately that in cash reserves right now so it’s not an impossible number to reach especially over a number of years. So what would that get you?

There’s a web page here which suggests that it cost $100bn at 1994 rates to land on the Moon. But even accounting for inflation we wouldn’t necessarily have to follow all the steps. For a start we could double up some of the missions and vehicles, perhaps by moving straight to a three or more person capsule and eschewing either the Mercury or Gemini elements of the program.

Now here’s the thing – Space X has developed, built and launched a reusable spacecraft that docked with the ISS for the paltry sum of $800 million. There’s already plans to build a version that could make it to  Mars. So a chunk of the R&D has already been done. Their model of providing resupply services to the ISS would also be a source of income to plough back into the program.

But what about some of the other practicalities of skilled people to actually run such a program or even build anything. As it happens, Ireland is already involved with the ESA since 1975 and has an active (if small) space industry. It’d need to scale up, but that would provide jobs and direct investment that paying off bondholders doesn’t.

Just think. For less than the bailout, we could gather up all the architects of our current situation and bundle them into a capsule bound for Mars and still come out ahead. We could even televise their one way trip for even more money.  All in the name of science.

An Irish Space Programme and an Irish Base on the Moon! What do you mean we spent the money already? (Cedar Lounge)

We’re blaming fornication.

[Senator] Catherine Noone (FG), above, said the use of the pill should be a last resort. The rise in sales seemed to indicate that it was being used as a contraceptive.
Young women in many instances were putting themselves at risk of contracting sexually transmitted diseases, she said. The use of the pill also had many side effects in terms of reproductive health as well as all sorts of problems down the line for women in the younger cohort.
Perhaps consideration should be given to raising the price, which had been cut from €50 to €15 last year. She believed that a rise in price should be accompanied by an accompanying awareness campaign.

Oh.

Responding to what he termed her “extraordinary suggestion”, John Crown (Ind) said it was akin to attempting to reduce the incidence of abortion by “increasing the waiting list to 10 months”.

Seanad Report (Jimmy Walshe, Irish Times)

Previously: Michelle Mulherin: She So Forni

Thanks Lars Biscuit

 

 Minister Sherlock Extends Olive Branch To Simon McGarr (Silicon Republic)

Context

Privatisation of public services is “the road back to autocracy” that will leave a hollowed-out state bereft of anything to attract the support of citizens, President Michael D Higgins declared in London last night.

President Warns Of Privatising Assets (Irish Times)

The Government is to announce a list of State assets to be sold later today and outline how much will be raised.The announcement will be made by Public Expenditure and Reform Minister Brendan Howlin.The list of State assets for sale is expected to include parts of ESB and Bord Gáis.

Govt. To Announce Sale Of State Assets (RTE)