Hello, Thanks for clicking my new website. Many people have suffered huge losses due to bad government – lost their jobs, lost their savings, lost their homes. We must now make the future of our families secure again. To do that, we need to transform the way we do things in Ireland. We are pledged [...]
The top priority for a new Fine Gael government is to get people back to work and stop forced emigration. Young people have been the main victims of the economic crisis. Two out of every three people pushed out of work are under the age of 30. We are losing our youth to emigration. Fine [...]
New Politics New politics can put the interest of the citizen back at the centre of government. • Abolish severance payments for Ministers • Abolish the entitlement of Ministers to state cars • Cap app political pensions, only payable at 65 • Cut the pay of Taoiseach and Ministers • Require all expenses to be [...]
Fair Care – Making our Health Services Work Even with resources scarce, we can still focus on fairness. The acid test is how we help families cope with crises in their lives. FairCare is our fundamental reorganisation of the Irish health system based on three fundamental principles: Treat all patients equally: ending the distinction between [...]
Smaller, Smarter Government We need a smaller government that is effective and fair. Talented people in our public service are trapped in a system that fails them. We must break up the rigid structures and harness that talent. It is those who depend on public services who are the victims of waste. • Revolutionise the [...]
Fix the Public Finances We must cut our cloth to what taxpayers can afford. Piling on more and more new taxes won’t work. By cutting waste and inefficiency we can protect frontline services. • Focus on world-class efficiency in spending so income taxes don’t rise. • Streamline administration – eliminate and streamline up to 145 [...]
IMFBrian Cowen would have you believe that the Government was pursuing perfectly sustainable policies until an international tsunami washed onto our shores. The IMF has buried that pretence. It estimates that 93% of the hole in our public finances is due to bad domestic policy, not troubles imported from an international recession. This is the highest estimate yet. Continue Reading
This was a speech I gave at the Impact Regional Conference:STATEMENT TO THE IMPACT CONFERENCE
FRIDAY 22 MAY 2009
Catastrophic policy errors have catapulted Ireland into the deepest economic crisis of our generation. It will test us to the limits. At least 20% of the value of our National Income will be wiped away. As a community we have choices. If those of us who are strong enough, protect ourselves from any change, then 20% of our population will have to take a 100% fall in their incomes. It will be those – who become unemployed, those forced to emigrate, those whose homes are repossessed – who will make the adjustment. Continue Reading
This was a crisis Budget. It demanded a major change of direction to re-invent how the government does business. It had to rein in the cost of running government to prevent the imposition of crippling taxes. It had to offer initiatives which would break the economy out of the frozen embrace which is now killing employment. This was no mean challenge. For once, there was a mood that everyone was willing to step up to the plate and make an effort.
