Every weekend in all our national newspapers the fierce competition between
the larger supermarkets competing with each other results in alcohol getting
cheaper and cheaper. Pages and pages of adverts with 6 bottles of beer for sale
for €7 and bottles of vodka for less than €15 take over our Sunday papers.
Below cost selling of alcohol is being used as a loss leader by the multiples in
order to attract more customers to their store but the insidious effect of this is
fuelling the culture of home drinking which will have long term effects on the
changing culture if Ireland.
More importantly I am extremely concerned about the growing culture by young
people of “home” drinking. Teenagers and young adults can buy bottles of
vodka for €15 and are drinking them with no cause for concern. If we do not
address this issue immediately we will have major alcohol related issues and
problems in the future.
I will be seeking a ban on below costs selling of alcohol in these type of outlets
or the increase of excise duty on these sales to reduce the availability of very
cheap alcohol.
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Monday, January 10, 2011
Financial time bomb waiting to explode in the face of the next Government
A New Year and for some that new pay-packet awaits them at the end of the month. Those without a pay-packet will probably be fully aware how deep the recent budget has dipped into their pockets already. Many of those lucky enough to still have a job will be waiting with bated breath to feel how much lighter that pay-packet will be, however some workers will not be affected at all. Self Employed people will actually benefit.
Over the past few weeks this issue has been discussed and debated over the airwaves and has been strenuously defended by Fianna Fail Ministers saying “these are the very people who shelter much of their income in the form of pension contributions and this relief has been taken away”.
They can sit back knowing that any payments they make into their pensions can be paid by their company and if by chance personal contributions are made at the moment, these can be redirected as company payments. This is because under the Fianna Fail 4 Year Plan only personal payments will be hit and the real affect of this will become very apparent after the four year period when the final phase kicks in reducing personal relief to a maximum of 20% however any payments made by the employer will not be touched. And these are the Fat Cats that this Government would have you believe will be affected by this changes.
This exemption granted on employer contributions could also potentially encourage a practice known as “Salary Sacrifice” which is frowned upon by the Revenue Commissioners however how will this be monitored. It is also possible that future bonuses and pay rises will be taken as an employer contribution thus avoiding the tax charge and I would suspect that a vast amount of future schemes established will be on the basis of company payments only.
Within days of the National Recovery Plan being announced, one of the top accountancy firms, PWC, said on their summary “In the light of pension restrictions Employers will need to reconsider their entire reward structure and assess how pensions can best be delivered to employees”.
One unexpected move in the Budget was the reduction to employer PRSI relief on employee contributions. This was reported immediately after the budget as making it more expensive for employers to pay into pensions for them employees. This in fact is incorrect. The reduction in employer PRSI relief only applies to employee payments not employer. Employers will continue to benefit from reduced PRSI because their staff personally save for their retirement. But what employers will find when some of their staff choose to cease their personal payments, the employer will lose their entire PRSI relief. At least some staff will have this choice, not so in the public sector as pension contributions are mandatory.
It is very difficult to make an accurate comparison between Public Sector pensions, the contribution rates differ, some can retire after 30 years, some even benefit from free added year. Let’s just look at the Civil Service for now. A decision was made in 1995 to alter the pension rules and anybody joining the service after April of that year was required to make actual direct contribution from their salary towards their pension benefits. Payment into the Spouses and Children’s Scheme applies to all. In addition they were required to pay an increased rate of PRSI. However, to cover the additional costs for these staff member, their salaries were increased. A post 1995 Civil Servants salary is calculated as being 20/19th of their pre 1995 counterparts. Although the take home pay for the average Civil Servant was similar after all deduction, the actual direct pension contributions differed. It is these direct pension contributions that will be hit by the reduction in Tax and PRSI relief under the Fianna Fail 4 Year Plan. The average post 1995 Civil Servant will pay approximately 66% more in Tax and PRSI then their pre 1995 colleagues.
As the Public versus Private Sector debate continues, this will now create a further issue of controversy.
There are many ways this Government could have tackled the pension issue, in my opinion they choose the worst possible solution. There is no element of fairness in these measures whatsoever and is a financial time bomb waiting to explode in the face of the next Government if not addressed. There may be a number of inequities in the current system but restricting the relief in the manner they are proposing will not solve the problem, it will enhance it. The measures have been designed by the top tier for the benefit of the top tier but will be paid for by the average worker.
Over the past few weeks this issue has been discussed and debated over the airwaves and has been strenuously defended by Fianna Fail Ministers saying “these are the very people who shelter much of their income in the form of pension contributions and this relief has been taken away”.
They can sit back knowing that any payments they make into their pensions can be paid by their company and if by chance personal contributions are made at the moment, these can be redirected as company payments. This is because under the Fianna Fail 4 Year Plan only personal payments will be hit and the real affect of this will become very apparent after the four year period when the final phase kicks in reducing personal relief to a maximum of 20% however any payments made by the employer will not be touched. And these are the Fat Cats that this Government would have you believe will be affected by this changes.
This exemption granted on employer contributions could also potentially encourage a practice known as “Salary Sacrifice” which is frowned upon by the Revenue Commissioners however how will this be monitored. It is also possible that future bonuses and pay rises will be taken as an employer contribution thus avoiding the tax charge and I would suspect that a vast amount of future schemes established will be on the basis of company payments only.
Within days of the National Recovery Plan being announced, one of the top accountancy firms, PWC, said on their summary “In the light of pension restrictions Employers will need to reconsider their entire reward structure and assess how pensions can best be delivered to employees”.
One unexpected move in the Budget was the reduction to employer PRSI relief on employee contributions. This was reported immediately after the budget as making it more expensive for employers to pay into pensions for them employees. This in fact is incorrect. The reduction in employer PRSI relief only applies to employee payments not employer. Employers will continue to benefit from reduced PRSI because their staff personally save for their retirement. But what employers will find when some of their staff choose to cease their personal payments, the employer will lose their entire PRSI relief. At least some staff will have this choice, not so in the public sector as pension contributions are mandatory.
It is very difficult to make an accurate comparison between Public Sector pensions, the contribution rates differ, some can retire after 30 years, some even benefit from free added year. Let’s just look at the Civil Service for now. A decision was made in 1995 to alter the pension rules and anybody joining the service after April of that year was required to make actual direct contribution from their salary towards their pension benefits. Payment into the Spouses and Children’s Scheme applies to all. In addition they were required to pay an increased rate of PRSI. However, to cover the additional costs for these staff member, their salaries were increased. A post 1995 Civil Servants salary is calculated as being 20/19th of their pre 1995 counterparts. Although the take home pay for the average Civil Servant was similar after all deduction, the actual direct pension contributions differed. It is these direct pension contributions that will be hit by the reduction in Tax and PRSI relief under the Fianna Fail 4 Year Plan. The average post 1995 Civil Servant will pay approximately 66% more in Tax and PRSI then their pre 1995 colleagues.
As the Public versus Private Sector debate continues, this will now create a further issue of controversy.
There are many ways this Government could have tackled the pension issue, in my opinion they choose the worst possible solution. There is no element of fairness in these measures whatsoever and is a financial time bomb waiting to explode in the face of the next Government if not addressed. There may be a number of inequities in the current system but restricting the relief in the manner they are proposing will not solve the problem, it will enhance it. The measures have been designed by the top tier for the benefit of the top tier but will be paid for by the average worker.
Tribute to Deputy Mary Wallace on her retirement
I would like to pay tribute to my neighbour Deputy Mary Wallace on the announcement of her retirement from politics.
Mary has served the people of Ratoath for nearly 30 years and has particularly delivered for Ratoath in terms of educational provision. We have some of the best schools in the country thanks to her commitment and hard work in this area.
On a personal note, it is sad to see another woman leaving the political stage. Greater political involvement by women in decision making in Irish politics will help Ireland progress as a society. In an economic downturn it’s even more important that everyone is treated fairly, and to bolster the recovery we need to engage the talents and abilities of all women as well as men
As the only woman declared to contest the Meath East election, and also the only candidate living in the South Meath area I urge all of the constituents in South Meath to support me as we need to ensure we keep a local TD.
Mary has served the people of Ratoath for nearly 30 years and has particularly delivered for Ratoath in terms of educational provision. We have some of the best schools in the country thanks to her commitment and hard work in this area.
On a personal note, it is sad to see another woman leaving the political stage. Greater political involvement by women in decision making in Irish politics will help Ireland progress as a society. In an economic downturn it’s even more important that everyone is treated fairly, and to bolster the recovery we need to engage the talents and abilities of all women as well as men
As the only woman declared to contest the Meath East election, and also the only candidate living in the South Meath area I urge all of the constituents in South Meath to support me as we need to ensure we keep a local TD.
Friday, January 07, 2011
Wednesday, January 05, 2011
Byrne in danger of becoming “Old” Fianna Fail
With the release of such a trite statement today from Deputy Byrne, belittling Fine Gael’s sincere attempt to listen to the electorate I am genuinely disappointed if this is the way he plans to impress the electorate over the next few months.
I foolishly expected he understood peoples’ frustration with old style mocking politics - we are looking for the positives in Irelands future. I thought he might actually be the New Fianna Fail we keep hearing about.
As deputy Byrne well knows the reason we are in the economic mess we are currently in, is due in no small part to the fact that Fianna Fail stopped listening to the Irish people years ago – he might take a leaf out of Fine Gaels Book rather than disrespect the initiative.
People up and down the country are already receiving their payslips showing the new USC (universal service charge) deduction, the increase in tax deducted from their weekly wage and they don’t deserve this trite attitude from Fianna Fail.
Tuesday, January 04, 2011
HSE - Disingenuous and Dishonest
Cllr Regina Doherty stated today during a debate at Septembers Full Council meeting that
the HSE were both disingenuous and dishonest in their treatment of staff and patients of Our
Ladys Hospital in Navan last week.
The HSE stated that “the decision has been made in the interest of providing the highest
quality of service to patients and following expert clinical advice” The innuendo they have
spread as to the “quality “of service on offer in Navan is an absolute disgrace. If you are going
to make a statement that affects the livelihoods of people then you better make sure you can
back it up.
The inference is that because the number of acute /emergency surgical procedures are small
then the “quality” of service is not as good as other hospitals. Well I have written to the
HSE tonight requesting the number of emergency surgery cases from Navan, Drogheda and
Connolly for the past year. When we compare and contrast these statistics against each other I
believe the real truth behind the decision will emerge.
We have a right to a full and honest explanation as to the real basis of their decision. The HSE
along with Minister Dempsey promised that there would be no downgrading of services at
Navan – they lied. The only thing worrying Minister Dempsey on LMFM this morning was
the re-deployment of staff under the Croke Park Agreement, not the wider effect of a reduction
services from Our Ladys – well maybe its time for Minister Dempsey to be re-deployed
the HSE were both disingenuous and dishonest in their treatment of staff and patients of Our
Ladys Hospital in Navan last week.
The HSE stated that “the decision has been made in the interest of providing the highest
quality of service to patients and following expert clinical advice” The innuendo they have
spread as to the “quality “of service on offer in Navan is an absolute disgrace. If you are going
to make a statement that affects the livelihoods of people then you better make sure you can
back it up.
The inference is that because the number of acute /emergency surgical procedures are small
then the “quality” of service is not as good as other hospitals. Well I have written to the
HSE tonight requesting the number of emergency surgery cases from Navan, Drogheda and
Connolly for the past year. When we compare and contrast these statistics against each other I
believe the real truth behind the decision will emerge.
We have a right to a full and honest explanation as to the real basis of their decision. The HSE
along with Minister Dempsey promised that there would be no downgrading of services at
Navan – they lied. The only thing worrying Minister Dempsey on LMFM this morning was
the re-deployment of staff under the Croke Park Agreement, not the wider effect of a reduction
services from Our Ladys – well maybe its time for Minister Dempsey to be re-deployed
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Steeplechase Relief Road in Ratoath to Open
“I warmly welcome the announcement that the inner relief road at Steeplechase is to open shortly. This will bring a large amount of traffic out of Ratoath Village and make it safer for pedestrians and cyclists alike.”
“ This particular are in Ratoath is steeped in history and I think a suitable name should be given to this road. I have written to The Ratoath Heritage Group to inform them of the road opening and asked them to put on their thinking caps to come up with a suitable suggestion for the road name.”
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Recruitment ban lifted for Traffic Wardens
Cllr Regina Doherty, Chairperson of Meaths Joint Policing Committee has today welcomed the lifting of the recruitment ban to allow Meath County Council replace the recent loss of 3 Traffic Wardens to our South Meath Schools.
“ With the recruitment ban in place and the loss of staff members over the past year we were left in a position where 3 of our schools in Dunshaughlin and Rathregan were left with no Traffic wardens to assist children and parents alike crossing the roads. The lifting of this ban allows us to recruits new people to these positions and return to a safe environment for our school going children.”
“ I would like to pay particular tribute to the MCC outdoor staff who assisted in filling in for these roles over the past year, it is a credit to them for their commitment to their jobs and to the people of South Meath.”
Safety at Meaths schools is particularly relevant to the JPC as one of the objectives of our work plan for 2010 is to improve safety outside Meaths schools and Traffic Wardens are paramount to this.”
Meath County Council, Local Politicians and Chambers of Commerce join forces to market South Meath
At a meeting hosted by Meath County Manager, Tom Dowling, a decision was taken by MCC, Ashbourne, Ratoath and Dunshaughlin Chambers of Commerce and local politicians, to join forces with a view to promoting South Meath as a perfect choice for new business to invest and set up.
“The past few years have been spent investing in the infrastructure required by investors. The M2 and M3 are now fully operational, our close proximity to Dublin city and the airport provides accessibility with ease, our broadband capabilities are top of the range for business users and our highly educated residents/workforce are ready to be tapped in to. All that’s left for us to do is to sell our product – South Meath”
“To that end we have agreed to join forces with Kevin Stewart and his Economic Development Team in Meath County Council to seek presentations with Enterprise Ireland and the IDA to promote our area and their area of choice when bring suitable investors to Ireland”
“I am quite sure that once we have the opportunity to sell our area to these promoting bodies that we will see positive results in the form of new jobs for the people of Ashbourne, Ratoath, Dunshaughlin and Dunboyne.”
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Gaelscoil Ráth Tó appoint first teacher and announce new home
Cllr Regina Doherty has warmly welcomed the appointment of Ms. Tricia Ní Mhaolagáin to the position of first teacher at Gaelscoil Ráth Tó. We have finalised a deal with Ratoath Community Centre who are renting us accommodation there for our school for its first year. The school will be opening on Monday 30th of August.
“We are all getting very excited now as everything is coming together as planned. We have our teacher, our pupils and now our accommodation – all we need is for the Minister for Education and Skills to give us recognition from her department”
“We are still accepting registrations for the 2010 academic year, which can be sent to us at gaelscoilrathto@gmail.com. Also, as we are receiving no state funding this year we are on a major fundraising drive so any donations or assistance are very welcome.”
“We are all getting very excited now as everything is coming together as planned. We have our teacher, our pupils and now our accommodation – all we need is for the Minister for Education and Skills to give us recognition from her department”
“We are still accepting registrations for the 2010 academic year, which can be sent to us at gaelscoilrathto@gmail.com. Also, as we are receiving no state funding this year we are on a major fundraising drive so any donations or assistance are very welcome.”
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