Category — Community & Amenity

The country simply can’t afford a high energy price agenda as part of a ‘green strategy’

Energy Minister, Eamon Ryan TD, should be removed from office by the Taoiseach if he continues to refuse to deal with energy prices, Fine Gael Energy Spokesman, Simon Coveney TD said.

Deputy Coveney was reacting to Minister Ryan’s proposals for a national plan to reduce energy usage.

“Reducing energy use is of course important but the highest priority for our Energy Minister at this time must be energy prices.

“The Minister won’t even acknowledge that there is a problem with high prices. Ireland is the most expensive EU country for electricity and in the top three for gas. It is not acceptable that our Minister for Energy is solely focusing on energy use and energy conservation, when there is a massive job to be done by him to reduce energy prices as well.

“The great weakness of this Minister is that his motivation is entirely coloured by climate change considerations when what is needed is a balance between competitiveness, affordability and environmental consideration. There are ways that Eamon Ryan can directly ensure that the cost of electricity and gas are reduced significantly in the short term yet he consistently refuses to even engage in the debate on prices.

“Companies are leaving Ireland and are directly citing energy costs as the reason for doing so. In his two years in office, I have never once heard Eamon Ryan say that energy costs are too expensive here. If he is incapable of concentrating on energy prices as part of a ‘green agenda’ at the same time as energy conservation, he should be removed from office by the Taoiseach. The country, our people and the economy can’t afford to have him there. It is as simple as that.

‘Significant energy price reductions should be a good news story for Ireland as international prices have fallen. The recent small electricity and gas price reductions are totally insufficient in response to changing international energy markets. I support the Minister’s efforts on energy conservation and reduced energy usage but his refusal to deal with energy prices is directly costing jobs and is imposing needless financial hardship on every household in the country. This must change or the Taoiseach should intervene and put a new Energy Minister in place.”

The mire in which successive Fianna Fáil Government’s policies, particularly in relying on property, have left us can begin to be remedied by putting in place an €11 billion investment programme that will deliver 100,000 jobs over four years, Fine Gael Environment Spokesman, Phil Hogan TD said.

The Fine Gael Environment Spokesman made his comments in Killarney while addressing the AGM of the Institute of Professional Auctioneers and Valuers.

“What happened in the last five years to the property market will, I believe, in time come to be seen of a textbook case of how not to manage an economy. However, the causes go far deeper with the failure of banking systems and the absolute disaster of overall Government policies leaving Ireland at our most perilous state since the 1930’s.

“The banking industry needs to be restructured with the issue of toxic assets reviewed. However, NAMA is not the way forward. I believe that the current NAMA model will lead to a bonanza for accountants and lawyers, maybe even for some auctioneers as they battle to maximise for their clients the value of assets being bought by NAMA. Fine Gael would rather see a system where the good performing loans are taken out into new banks and the existing banks have the responsibility of cleaning up their own mess.

“The fundamental requirement for the economy is to free up bank balance sheets to get lending flowing again. The Fine Gael plan will do that and will get credit flowing again.

“However, this is nowhere near enough to turn around our economy. We need to regain that spirit of innovation, build competitiveness and renew our infrastructure. And we need a jobs package. Fine Gael has spelled out how to do this in our Rebuilding Ireland document.

“In it we outline an investment of €11 billion over the next four years. And as a by-product of this investment there will be 100,000 jobs created in the short-term across the country. The funding of this investment would be done on a commercial basis so there would be no increase in the National Debt. We estimate that €11bn could be invested from a combination of the National Pension Fund, the European Central bank and a Consumer Bond. It beats an investment in bank shares.

“This upgrade of our infrastructure would increase our competitiveness, reduce our dependence on energy imports and create a cleaner environment. We will establish a new State holding Company – NewERA. The ownership of a wide range of existing and new State companies involved in energy, transport and communications will be vested in NewERA. Among the existing state companies that will be moved under NewERA will be the ESB, Eirgrid, An Post, Bord Gais, Bord na Mona, Coillte and the Metropolitan Area Networks (MANS). Some of these may be sold off as they become less essential to our economic well being nationally. So these could be sold off to fund further investment and development.

“In case you are bothered about bureaucracy, NewERA will be a holding Company and will employ less than 100 people. 100,000 new jobs will turn the tide of despair and hopelessness. €11 billion will create real investment and competitiveness.

“It is in everyone’s interest to get the property market moving again. At its peak, the investment market was worth €3 billion this year we will be lucky to reach €300 million. Through reform, dealing with the problem of oversupply and funding from banks we believe this can begin to happen. At the very least a VAT cut on the 13% rate needs to be implemented as this would, on average, reduce the prices of new houses by 10%.”

 FG Local Govt Plan will drive job creation and abolish quangos

Abolish/merge 95 quangos + freeze rates for 5 years

Fine  Gael Environment Spokesman Phil Hogan TD has  set out his  Party’s  plans  to  reform  Local  Government:  ‘Power to the People –
Bringing Local Government Back to the People’. This latest Fine Gael policy is another ambitious plan to completely shake up Government structures, and follows  similar  proposals  for  the  Oireachtas, healthcare and education reform.

The  Fine  Gael plan will see Local Government become the primary driver of business  support  and development at local level. It will involve 95 State bodies  being  merged  or abolished, saving millions of euros for taxpayers every year, and freezing local business rates for the next five years.

“Local  Government  must  play  an integral role in dragging Ireland out of recession  and  in  driving  job  creation. However, Local Government is in limbo,  if  not  in  crisis.  Local  Government has lacked a strong primary mission  for  decades  with  power and services being devolved to unelected ‘quangos’. Fine Gael will change all that. Our plan, ‘Power to the People’, will see:

Local  Government  become  the primary driver of business support and development  at  local level. This will involve ending the wide-scale  duplication  of  services  among  unelected  bodies and bringing them  under  one  roof in Local Authorities to create a one-stop-shop. Fine  Gael-controlled  Councils  will  freeze  local business rates for the next 5 years;  Ninety-five   quangos   merged   or  abolished:  53  bodies  will  be  amalgamated  into  Local Government with the complete abolition of 42  more. This will result in an administrative saving to the taxpayer of over €70 million a year;  In  planning,  separate  transport  and  education  plans  need to be  included  in  the planning process and in County and City Development Plans;  Fine  Gael will support a directly-elected Lord Mayor for Dublin City   for   a  term  of  five  years  from  2014  provided  that  relevant, significant powers for the Mayor have been decided;   Simple  reforms  in  the  structure  of  Local  Government to improve   services  to both the public and elected representatives, including a  special  customer service unit which will be uniform across all local  authorities based on best practice.

“We want to see savings and efficiencies rather than new taxes and charges . We  need  to  restore  trust,  services  and  responsibility  back to Local Government.  Putting  Local  Government  back  into  a  central role in the community  will  result in greater community cohesion, better services, and more  employment opportunities, all the while saving millions of taxpayers’ hard-earned millons.

Ballygarvan School boost

The long running campaign for a new primary school in Ballygarvan received a boost when a proposal from Cllr Deirdre Forde formally recommended disposal of 0.245 acres if land to Cork Diocesan Trustees. This land is required as part of the process to develop a new school, as the number of pupils has risen from 145 to 265 in the past decade and space is limited. Cllr Forde who has two nephews attending the school, said disposal was of immense importance.

Crosshaven
Cork County council are preparing a tourism strategy document, covering an area from Kinsale to Youghal. Crosshaven and the harbour are central to this. The provision of an integrated tourist product including development of the forts for access to the public along with the marketing of this facility will be central to the growth of Crosshaven. The increase in the population of Crosshaven, its proximity to Cork city and with the planned reintroduction of the Cork–Swansea ferry would given this area a huge economic boost.

Carrigaline Citizens Information Centre

The Carrigaline Citizens Information Centre is situated in the portacabin in the Owenabue Car Park on the Main Street of Carrigaline. The information centre is open Tuesday to Friday from 10am to 1.30pm and the telephone number for enquiries is 021 4376793.
This is a free confidential information advice and advocacy service.

Ringaskiddy still waiting for traffic calming

€10,000 has been allocated for traffic calming 3 years ago but there is no allocation from the National Roads Authority for 2009. A lot of industrial traffic uses the road and the main road through Ringaskiddy is wide and difficult to cross. With plans for a playground, traffic calming is needed in the area more than ever.

N28 Project

Following the decision by government to postpone the upgrade of the Cork to Ringaskiddy road, in favour of the major inter-urban routes, this project has slipped further down the scale. The decision has huge consequences for the entire region and in particular for the future viability for Cork Harbour and the industries based there.

Road in Passage Estate

The roads serving St Marys and St Josephs Terraces in Rockenham, are in dire need of resurfacing. The pedestrian crossing is also in need of upgrading with more markings and signs as it is a hazard. The matters have been referred to the Area Engineer for investigation.

Derelict property on Rochestown Road

Cllr Forde welcomed the action by Council to make secure a derelict property in a prominent position on Rochestown Road.

Home Energy Saving scheme

I am pleased to inform you that the scheme is now open for Homeowner applications. Full details about the scheme, including the application form may be found on the website at www.sei.ie/hes. You can also apply online.

Graffiti – immediate removal is the only solution

“Concerned people and community groups are desperate to help themselves but often do not know what they can do and how easy it can be. I worked with residents groups in the past doing graffiti clean ups and they were very successful and additionally they actually built community spirit too” Tom Solan, client services manager Safe Graffiti Removal Ltd, a former Graffiti Officer with London Borough Council, LBC.

The solution is DIY Graffiti Removal by the provision of graffiti removal kits. This acknowledges the fact that the Council, although supportive of community efforts, cannot do everything. The way forward is encouraging local interest groups to take ownership in the community.

Some prevention methods that help deter graffiti vandals from using walls:

Attractive To Vandals Not So Attractive To Vandals
Smooth Surface Rough Surface
Light-Coloured Surface Dark-Colored
Regular paint Anti-graffiti shield
Patched and dirty Clean and freshly painted surfaces

Tips to make it harder for vandals to get close enough to your walls to write on them:

Use Clinging plants such as ivy, on vulnerable walls. This breaks up the writing space and makes it harder for the paint to reach the wall.
Plant bushes in front of walls (make sure no windows or doors are too close!). This will make it harder for vandals to get close to the wall.
Erect fences between your business and public property. This helps people know where the boundaries are, and also makes it harder for graffiti vandals to get close enough to your wallsResearch has shown that the most effective way to prevent graffiti is prompt removal.

Studies show that removal within 24 to 48 hours result in a nearly zero rate of re-occurrence.

Safe Graffiti Removal is presently supplying graffiti removal kits to county council, local authorities, residents associations, schools. For further information, go to www.safegraffitiremoval.ie

FF Govt Used Retrospective Law to take Money off OAPs, it can do the same for €1m Bonus Banker

The last Fianna Fail Government introduced retrospective legislation to legalise nursing home fees for thousands of elderly people in long stay care institutions and should, according to Fine Gael Leader Enda KennyT.D., adopt a similar retrospective approach to force the return of the €1m bonus paid to Irish Nationwide boss Michael Fingleton.

The Fine Gael Leader went on to point out that an amendment (see note below) proposed by Richard Bruton to the bank guarantee legislation in October last, which was rejected by the Government, could have prevented the payment of this bonus payment and could now be implemented retrospectively to achieve the same outcome.

“After huffing and puffing for thirty six hours about the Irish Nationwide bonus payment of €1m the Government have reverted to type and responded with a whimper to the outrage caused by this obscene payment.
Commissioning a report, in a month’s time, to deal with this very immediate issue is a pathetic yet unsurprising response from this Government.  It has been said many times before but the truth remains that this Government are always one report away from taking action on any issues of substance.

“The core of this affair is that a €1m bonus was paid by a Bank after it had to be bailed out by the taxpayer.  At a time when we were told that banks had to try to rebuild confidence and capital reserves Irish Nationwide were depleting both with this payment. It is not right and it is not fair that when thousands of families are facing sky high rates for personal debt, enormous fees to switch from fixed to variable rate mortgages and live in fear of losing their home that a select few at the top of Irish banking act as if they exist in a vacuum.

“Instead of being paralysed by events the Government should remember the speed and decisiveness they showed when retrospectively making nursing home fees legal.  When it came to legalising nursing home fees the Government had no problem acting.  I’m now challenging them to act with the same speed and adopt the Fine Gael amendment from last October and retrospectively give themselves the power to block this obscene bonus payment.  Rather than kick the matter to touch they have the opportunity to act decisively and deal with the matter in a swift and decisive fashion.”

Agriculture  Minister  must spell out what EU meeting on dairy sector achieved

Fine Gael Agriculture Spokesperson, Michael Creed TD,  said the use of unspent CAP funds would not be enough to tackle Ireland’s dairy crisis and the Agriculture Minister must spell out what he actually achieved in his discussions with Commissioner Fischer Boel.

“Minister Smith has previously suggested that unspent CAP funds may be available to save the sheep sector.  Now there’s a suggestion from Europe that they can be used to assist the struggling dairy sector.  The reality is unspent CAP funds aren’t going to be sufficient to deal with the dairy crisis alone, never mind the sheep sector as well.

“The Agriculture Minister’s statements are getting longer and more meaningless by the day.  The latest missive outlines extensively the inner workings of the Minister’s mind on dairy sector supports and concludes that he had a ‘useful’ exchange with Commissioner Fischer Boel.  Since he tells us nothing of what the Commissioner actually said I’m not sure the exchange was useful to anyone besides the Minister.  We need to know what is actually being achieved to aid the ailing dairy sector and the Minister needs to come back from Europe with something more than a stream of consciousness and some vague noises about unspent CAP funds.”

FG secures crucial measures for ports and harbours across Ireland

Senator Donohoe improves flawed Govt Bill

Fine Gael has secured crucial changes to new laws on ports and harbours in the Seanad  which will ensure that local interests are taken into account in future plans for the facilities. The Party’s Seanad Transport Spokesman, Senator Paschal Donohoe has secured two amendments to the Harbours (Amendment) Bill 2008 before it is passed on to the Dáil.

“Fine Gael been successful in getting two vital changes made to the new Harbours Bill which will ensure that local interests are taken into account in future plans for all of Ireland’s ports and harbours.

“Junior Minister Noel Ahern accepted my two proposals that:    

 changes to ports or harbours must be consistent with local city or county development plans;
 And the need for public consultation in any changes has been placed on a statutory footing.

“However, I do not accept that there is any need to amalgamate ports or harbour in the immediate future. And I remain very concerned that the Government is still seeking to reduce the role of local representatives on port and harbour authorities, in yet another attack on local democracy.“As a maritime nation, Ireland’s ports are vital for commerce, fishing and travel as well as the burgeoning marine tourism sector. Fine Gael will continue to fight for the interests of our ports in order to ensure their long term future.”

Carrigaline Area Roads Committee – 16th February 2009

Update on Public Lighting Capital Programme 2005 – 2008

Carrigaline Area 1. 2008 Public Lighting Contract.

I am pleased to announce that Cork County  Council has gone to tender on a contract of nine separate public lighting schemes. The tender process has been completed and the Council expects to be able to award the contract in the very near future. This contract includes four separate schemes in the Carrigaline Electoral Area.

R611, Kilmoney Road to Pipers Cross

R851,ballycurreen Road

L-2460,adjacent to Alderbrook Estate

Carrigaloe Ferry to Monkstown.

If funding is available, the same procedure will be repeated for a second bundle of schemes to complete the current Capital Programme. The second Public Lighting Contract consists of 13 separate schemes. This contract includes four schemes in the Carrigaline Electoral Area.

Killumney Road,Tuairin Glas to An Caislean

R613, Church Road

L2454, Lehenaghmore road at Doughcloyne

South of Scairt Cross to Housing Estates

Individual Schemes

2. Monastery Road. ( These Lights have been erected).

3. Barry’s Road ( This scheme is under way).

4. Ballea Road.

This scheme has been awarded directly to ESB Contracts. The Civil works will be done by the Carrigaline Area Office depending on whether money will be available for the scheme.

Timber pole schemes.

All timber pole scheme contracts are awarded directly to ESB contracts as currently they are the only contractor trained to work on network wires. These schemes are ongoing.

Rochestown L2472, Coach Hill ( Order given to ESB. 3 no. 150W on new wooden poles. Residents’ objections have prevented installation)

Lehenaghmore L2454,( Lehenaghmore road, phase 1)

Scairt Cross L2462,