I’ve long said it is not good enough to simply want power for the simple reason of having power. You must want to do something with that power and have clear and powerful enough goals to inspire others to entrust you with it. I’ve been working on some policy ideas with a few other like mindeds but I might talk more on that another day.

For now, here are a few simple things I think the government could and should be doing if it is to recover its standing among the people.

Patently transparent and open government
I remember knocking on doors one night last Spring, in the early days of the local election canvass and meeting a friendly face. It was an aquaintance of mine, a social contact in Naas and like myself, an IT professional and a commuter, a friendly face. We talked socially and business wise for a while then moved onto brass tacks of politics and the economy. He accepted the harsh measures in recent budgets, even admired perhaps the Minister in charge, but then dropped the bombshell. “Your partys problem is corruption” he said. I was genuinely taken aback. Sure there were tough and unpopular decisions but I could defend those, and he accepted them. But there was a hangover he said. Too many on the take. For all my belief that those days were in the past, and that the days of brown envelopes were well and truly gone, there is still a huge perception amongst the public, and not unjustified, that implicit, if not explicit corruption still continues. That decisions are made and policies set according to who is in the know, if not the payroll of the corporates and developers. This notion and any suggestion of it needs to be firmly and finally addressed before the party is to recover. Perhaps there was undue influence in the past from FF friendly corporates? Whether it did or didn’t happen before, it cannot, or even a perception of it cannot be allowed to happen today. Decisions must be made openly and transparently with full rationale. If they are unpopular we will take the hit.  If they win favour we will take the plaudits. But we can champion them without compromise knowing they are there for all the right reasons.

Zero Tolerance for Carpetbaggers
On a related theme we have scored, or allowed to be scored, more own goals against the party than the opposition have ever placed in the net. Perhaps naievely I really believed the day of free loaders in Fianna Fáil had gone. It may not be as overt now with no bank drafts or brown envelopes changing hands, but loans from Fingleton or expense scams are a sordid modern equivalent. This kind of sqaulour should be rewarded with an absolute zero tolerance policy and offenders turfed out upon their ear to face the full rigour of the law or the corú as appropriate. Those that betray the public or the party trust should be treated accordingly.

At least some application of moral hazard
Though many accept the need for some form of banking rescue, what has really grated is the apparent dichotomony betwen little and large. The householder in negative equity whilst the bank is being bailed out. Whilst I believe this to be a simplistic and not entirely accurate picture I hold a view that those who make a decision should be culpable for it, beit the householder or the bondholder. If you can’t do the time, don’t do the crime and the same should apply to lenders, big and small. I am familiar with the concept of ‘too big to fail’ and I am aware every western democracy bar Canada has seen banking support schemes of some nature but I am deeply uncomfortable with the absence of moral hazard. I believe those that take risks must stand to gain from them but the converse must also hold true. We need to see at least some form of moral hazard being applied to those at the top as well as at the bottom of the pile.

Internal review and democracy
The party needs to look to its structures for internal reform and policy development. It grated many, many members that the Green grass roots got more say in the Programme for Government than many of our backbench TDs did. This is wrong and is not the way to run a modern political party. And it is not the way to attract and retain the membership needed for what could and should be a team of all the talents. There are great people in the organisation already. We need to function as a whole greater than the sum of the parts.

Communicate and explain decisions
Policies need to be sold as well as made. Talk to the people. Communicate. Explain what is being done, why it is being done, how it is being done. And do so in a language people will understand. The Taoiseach has got better at this recently and I would have expected some upswing on the strength of it. He was good on PrimeTime last night and I think he should keep doing this and more of it, and get the rest of the cabinet out to bat also.

Review of Anglo
Probably the most toxic decision of the last twenty four months has been the horrendous sums to be ploughed into Anglo, a bank that even its supporters feel can have at best limited shelf life with perhaps a remant hiving off into a form of corporate credit union. NAMA, I can accept, the figures can even add up, but twenty plus billions into Anglo is a hell of a price to pay for sovereign reputation. I’m not an economist, I’m not a financier (notwithstanding an M.Sc. in financial maths) and I don’t claim to have all the answers. Unlike many commentators perhaps, when the Minister says something, I believe it unreservedly, so I trust him on this also. But I am concerned when so many commentators, academics and what appears to be informed opinions are positioned against this, to ask is there really no other way? A clear succcint and final explanation or even better, an honest and open review of this would help dispel a lot of the really bad karma that surrounds this right now.

Northern mobilisation
For many this may not be an issue, may not even be on the radar. But it matters to me. It’s partly why I was attracted to the party, as the leader of nationalist opinion on the island. We have members enlisted in the North. We have cumann established and eager to get going. We have had expressions of interest from sitting representatives. We have some fine young activists really pushing this hard. And still we are not there. Why the inertia, why can we not put our money where our mouth is on this one and mobilse for real in thirty two counties. Shockwave  – we might lose elections. Well we’re not going to win any with no candidates.

Rant over. I do broadly agree with most govt policies but there are some that rankle, and the political presentation at times rankles even more. Deal with the offenders, listen to own membership, re earn the trust of the people and return to greatness once more.

Build that shining city on that hill. And let the beacon light a way where now there appears none…

It is possible to support a party without supporting its leadership. It is possible to support a party without supporting a government led by that party. Neither would be a normal situation but these are not normal times. I suspect there may be a number within the Fianna Fáil family falling into one or both of the above camps at present. A little like Catechism it can be argued that one is either “in or out” and that an a la carte approach is not possible. For my part I continue dining at my preferred restaurant but I do reserve right of judgement on the set menu.

Some good people were promoted yesterday and I am very plased for them. Dara Calleary, whom I know from old, is an intelligent, erudite and hard working politician. Very glad to see him moved up the chain. Pat Carey is another good performer ; a different mould but again capable and articulate – slightly surprised to see him in Gaeltacht affairs (as an urbane city gent) but like all good professionals, one must adapt and change as required. (Which incidentally, is exactly the skill our own commander in chief needs to develop.)

No problem with Tony Killeen and good to see a fellow yellow belly (Sean Connick from Wexford) move up the ranks. Batt O’Keeffee will be a safe pair of hands in enterprise and his robust approach may well bring a hardnosed effectiveness to the various negotiations involved. Bully boy tactics from Mick O’Leary and co won’t be expected cause Batt too much bother.

As for the curate’s egg… I am not about to commit complete hari kiri but .. for my liking .. very conservative… very cautious .. very late. Vacancies were filled and and a swap or two was made. It would appear minimal change was desired. Which is not what I felt was needed. I like Noel Dempsey, I like Dermot Ahern and I like Brian Lenihan (who is doing a fine job, better than many in the full of their health). But on the subject of health, there are many many Fianna Fáilers that could do at least as good if not a far better job than the independent TD from west Dublin. Likewise I would not have put the Tánaiste into Education and I would not have given the greens their power grabbing new junior. There is plenty of talent on the backbences and it appears under the current regime that is where it will stay. I would have thought this was not a time for making the minimum substitutions necessary; rather a time for throwing out the rulebook. I regret this may come to be seen as a lost opportunity up to and far beyond the next general election. Lord, help me to be hopeful.

Sometimes I’ll cross post, sometimes I won’t depends on the topic. This weekend, it’s a bit of fun, Halloween scare the (big) kids kind of stuff, check out my latest post here – http://www.irishelection.com/2009/11/could-fianna-fail-be-the-john-and-edward-of-irish-politics/

Within FF there was excitement, we’d liked Bertie, loved his focus on the North and his unalloyed Republicanism, but the halo was losing some sheen each day with a thousand rain drops one by one dulling the sparkle and it all became too much in the end. We accepted whilst he had done great things, he was from a different time and at this stage it was best all round to now move on and make a clean break.

And so a new hero was born. Brian Cowen the straight talking Offally man stepped forth. A man who liked a pint in his local and who knew one side of a GAA pitch from the other (played intercounty himself at one point) we remembered his thundering performances at Ard Fheiseanna, his grá for the cupla focal, there was a past skirmish with Paisley and there was the way he grasped the nettle in the dying days of General Election 2007 seeming to singlehandedly recover the campaign and propel the party to an unexpected poll topping performance. His own name attracted 18,000 votes on the ballot paper in his own Offally, biggest vote of the election for any candidate. On a policy and cerebral level his articulation of reform, his targeting of public service efficiencies, his espousal of Europe, his disinterest in the politics of spin and the preference for direct honest engagement. Here was a dyed in the wool Fianna Fáil man, one who would restore our faltering fortunes, a focus on historic values and righting the wrongs of past administrations, our own and others. No brown envelopes, no baggage, just a straight shooter getting down to business. We were looking at a thousand year .. reign!

Alas it has not transpired that way. What exactly has he done wrong? Losing Lisbon was a bad start of course and the honeymoon was over. Clouds gathered on the markets at home and abroad over the next Summer until the fall of Lehmans in September 08 heralded a new era in the world economy. The housing market had been stalled from almost a year before when McDowell uttered his now infamous words on stamp duty which ultimately went on to define and dog the GE07 campaign, with FG and Labour egging on any concessions to the housing crescendo, amidst calls for raised spending and cuts in taxes, promises which seem as alien now as they were foolhardy then but which is all forgotten in the pasts of time.

Amidst a daily weakening market domestically and internationally the new government, still barely a Summer in office, brought forward the budget in an attempt to quell the tide and show some steel. A tough budget followed in October when the first cracks in the government’s style showed. Amidst funding cutbacks and unpopular tax levies, a measure to withdraw automatic entitlements was met with sheer unmitigated fury. Thousands marched on the Dáil in a form of public unrest not seen for decades. Pensioners wrath was a force to be reckoned with and the country seemed on the brink of crisis as each day grew more unruly than the next. In retrospect, whilst is did mark a policy shift (from automatic entitlement to means tested benefits) it would have been very foolish for a government to fall on the back of removing automatic entitlements from the more wealthy of our pensioners.

Anyway, weakened but still afloat the government lurched on. In February we had an emergency budget, in the context of national accounting it was very necessary and again the government targeted a sacred cow. Public service pensions, generous to a level long since obsolete in the private sector, with guaranteed payments and an index linked defined benefit (regardless of fund performance) were targeted for greater employee contributions. Call it a tax, an increased levy, there were technical reasons for how it was applied (primarily to safeguard the income of existing retirees whose benefits are linked), the measure was justified, necessary but provoked a populist backlash. Overnight the public sector walked out of Ballybrit and into Cirque de Soleil (ie they shifted from Fianna Fáil to Labour) and the next poll showed us on 20-something percent.

No worse there is none but indeed it was to come. A rough locals, a tumultuous Summer and back to business this past few weeks. A reasonable month or two for the government (or so I thought), no particular scandal (Our Ceann Comhairle’s excesses aside although this does not seem to have entered public consciousness to the extent that it should). The government had begun to show some mettle, the tough decisions were being taken (Budgets I & II, public sector levy, Lisbon guarantees, NAMA) the NAMA legislation had been aired with all in the spirit of consultation and improvement. Whilst modern day FG played politics with the legislation, not one but two elder statesmen of the Fine Gael party (Garrett Fitzgerald and Alan Dukes) came out in favour of the government approach. Opposition plans from the populist Labour to the ‘oppose for opposition sake’ FG plans aside, informed sentiment appeared to be reconciling to the idea. A few bad days at the office for Enda Kenny caught short on the detail and a few better days for An Taoiseach beginning at last to communicate with his people.

And yet we turn a corner, turn a page to find 17%. At this stage it seems many want change for changes sake. The policies are no longer important, the principles are no longer important, the people want change and that’s about the long and the short of it. I hope we get through these nextfew months. Get Lisbon under our belts and allow us proceed with Europe. Get NAMA up and running with amendments as necessary from Green party and other parties interested in improving the legislation. Get the December budget out of the way with whatever necessary pain that may entail. Into the new year, lets start afresh in January. A reshuffle at that stage, some new faces in cabinet, more talent from the backbenches and perhaps a rapprochement for others (John McGuinness for example). Survive the winter league, get new blood out training in the Spring, put our best team on the pitch and look to the Summer with hope.

“Hookie”’s commentary I find hot and cold at times, (he must be adamantly anti-FF going by his new years eve outburst), was talking in the aftermath about people banging the steering wheels as they caught the drivetime details on the way home.

I wasn’t banging any steering wheels on Tuesday, as I said I remain personally sanguine about these things, in the national interest and all the rest, but I was certainly banging the steering wheel and profaning wildly in the car the following morning. The reason for this was not not the previous days medicine but rather the virtual two fingers given to Ireland Inc by ratings agency Moodys literally the day after the budget when they downgraded Irish soverign credit on the money markets. We went from AAA to AA+ which may add up a billion extra to our borrowing costs which will in turn strain the national finances and potentially lead to more taxation etc etc in a vicious circle. Just how a body of unelected unaccountable financial analysts can wield such power over soverign nations is almost immoral. The rating could not have taken into account the budget details as it was anounced as the markets opened and just as Irish bank shares had begun to rise they turned again thanks to our friends in the ratings game. Completely inappropriate release date and potentially damning for a sovereign nation.

The budget itself was tough as expected but very much progressive. “From each according to his means, to each according to his need”. The government had 4 possible options – 1) Cut welfare 2) Cut public sector pay (again) 3) Borrow More 4) Tax more and spend less… It went for 4. Politicians own pay was one of the first items to be addressed with a range of allowances and pensions scrapped instantly, several remaining capital loopholes were closed, efficiency reviews and early retirement scheme was introduced in the public sector whilst the welfare bill will be audited for abuse cases but largely remains static with payments remaining at current levels (which include a 3% increase in October and a 4% rise in purchasing power since equating to a 7% rise overall).

Lots more including the ‘bad bank’ idea, an exports fund, flagging of possible future measures and more. If things do turn around some of these future steps may not be necessary. There weren’t too many surprises pretty much everything had been flagged in advance and detailed in media, and could have been a lot worse.

The opposition are of course making some noise so far do not appear to have any substantative complaints. They were invited to make submissions and of an approximate 6.5BN hole to be plugged the FG proposal would have salvaged 4 whilst Labour appeared to scrape together a measly 1.5 savings plan. So their numbers don’t appear to work but that’s the beauty of opposition they don’t have to.

Lastly on a practical note, here’s a handy tool to work out how it affects you.

Setup was awry as there was an opening statement and soapbox provided to one side of the motion (that the Seanad be abolished) yet no counter statement or soapbox to the other side, yet the numbers were skewed hugely to the other side. Would it not have been better have equal representation for both sides of the argument and allow them make equal and opposite opening statements?

That aside, there were questions asked about the role of the Seanad and many answers given. Donie Cassisy, the leader of the (upper?) house gave quite a robust defence of the legislative scrutiny performed by the senate and how each bill was read through the chamber line by line before passing into law. Tales of long nights and early breakfasts were involved. Worthy stuff although one must wonder whether a team of constitutional barristers could do the same job at potentially less expense.

Otherwise the principal argument seemed to be the volumes of worthy work performed by Seanad members, as Senators from the four corners recounted tales of enterprises saved, industries revitalised, local interests protected, all through the auspices of the various Senators, whom it must be said all came across as decent, hard working and dedicated servants of their communities and committed to public service. However that then begs the point as to how exactly this correlates back to their work in the Senate. There are undoubtedly good people, doing a good job, but very little of this particular function is likely to be found under Senator’s job description and quite probably not even performed in Leinster house.

There are a number of populist but misleading arguments doing the rounds of course, the common chestnut of hours or days worked a week being a good one. Donie Cassidy gave an excellent and illustrative answer when he pointed out how people could accuse the broadcaster, and host, Pat Kenny of doing twelve hours work a week but the reality is there are a hell of a lot of hours put in outside the public eye. And equally so for the Senate. In a more general sense there is almost an obsession at present with politicans, their earnings and their hours, to the detriment at times, of proper debate on the substantive issues of the day. Leading by example is important of course, and the cabinet took a self-imposed 10% pay cut last October, quite likely more is to come in next months’ budget but we’ll reserve judgment until then in any case. But all that aside, even if the entire Oireachtas were turfed out on their Louis Copeland clad behinds onto the cold tarmac of Kildare street, apart from bringing a perhaps temporary blip in public good humour, it would do very very little to dent the hole in the public finances, and is really an irrelevance in a form of media blame game. (I will also confess of course, to a personal grievance, in that Councillors are paid very little, and candidates not a shilling, but it doesn’t stop people tarring ‘politicians’ all with the same brush, whatever colour or level one might be at)

Back on the Senate subject, the government parties appear committed to bringing through a reform package, according to Green and Fianna Fáil spokesmen on the show, and that should make interesting reading. One concept that was highlighted also was that most members of the Senate are elected by county councillors (and being canvassed by them will be interesting if I make it that far) but must first be nominated by a nominating body which includes many diverse institutions across commerce, healthcare, industry, agriculture, and the social partners. Securing the nomination is the first step then one must get elected. There was a suggestion that perhaps these nominating bodies could also aquire votes in their own right, perhaps a block vote, or a number of delegates and these could then be mandated by conference or decided in line with member interests. That may be an initial move which would not represent a huge shift from the current system but would instantly confer more democracy and representative status upon the members thereby elected.

That this Ard-Fheis commits to the comprehensive provision of public transport, both rural and urban, as an efficient environmental alternative to private transport, and further calls on the Government to increase the level of public transport service provision so that it becomes the obvious first choice for commuters and passengers. (Sallins Cumann, Kildare North) Related Motion: (Wexford CDC)

Opening

Minister, Teachta Daila, Senators, A delgaidi, etc etc,

It is a great honour to address this Ard Fheis. It gives me great pleasure to propose this motion on behalf of Sallins cumann, Kildare North and as a Wexford man living in Kildare to note that a similar motion was submitted by Wexford CDC. I shall endeavour to represent both in my address.

Intro

Baroness Margaret Thatcher once said “Anyone who is still using public transport by the age of 30 is a failure”

Delegates as an Irishman, a Republican and a Fianna Fáil activist it gives me great pleasure to disagree most vehemently with Thatcher on yet another issue…

I propose tonight that public transport in Ireland should be elevated to a position of service excellence which renders it the automatic first choice for commuters and passengers.

I believe public transport to be the most effective, environmentally friendly way to serve cities with large distributed populations such as Dublin and surrounds.

Furthermore I believe effective public transport an essential component of community infrastructure in rural and outlying areas weaving the social fabric of human interaction and preventing social exclusion for old and young alike.

Transport at national level must serve the needs of the nation, facilitating commerce, tourism and leisure journeys and providing an integrated network of joined up journeys across our land.

Delegates this government has seen unprecedented levels of investment in transport infrastructure.

Transport 21 sees €31BN Euro committed to a comprehensive level of transport provision and infrastructure building across the land. Along with this unprecedented level of investment I believe we must also strive to excel in service delivery, ensuring that passenger expectations are not only met but exceeded to the point where public transport becomes the obvious first choice.

Commuter

At commuter level we have seen unprecedented economic growth drive the population of the Greater Dublin area to record levels. The rail network has been overhauled and re-developed to meet these demands. Stretches of previously moss-covered tracks have reopened and formerly rural stations car parks are now full to capacity catering for the thousands of citizens daily commuting to work in the capital city.

The huge popularity of these services is a welcome development but forms a challenge for existing infrastructures and we must strive to ensure service provision of the highest standard.

Park and Ride facilities are required at all commuter stations and I am happy to report significant progress within my own constituency with Naas and Sallins due to open, Hazel hatch and Leixlip parking facilities opening ahead of schedule.

In addition to park and ride facilities the feeder bus service should be enhanced and expanded.

National

At national level the existing rail network continues to improve. Hourly services from Dublin – Cork with spanking new rail cars form the flagship of the new fleet.

The massive engineering projects of T21 hold great promise for future connectivity and a fully integrated transport network. The Interconnecter in particular is a vital piece of transport infrastructure which will serve as hub enabling both commuter and national journeys navigate the centre of Dublin from Southern and Western onto Rosslare and Northern lines

I call upon the Minister to ensure every priority is given to this valuable project and that it delivered with full alacrity…

Spencer Dock – first new station in over a century – benefiting Maynooth Line

It is essential contention can be avoided between national and commuter services to avoid bottlenecks, a development which is already underway in my own constituency of Kildare North, where progress on the Kildare Route project to four track the line along the commuter corridor is well underway.

I would call upon the Minister to examine similar initiatives on other routes particularly on the Wicklow/Gorey/Arklow commuter services where contention with the DART network currently poses challenges for timetabling and journey times.

In the context of social capital and connecting communities it is highly desirable to enable efficient, smooth and pleasant journeys along regional routes. The Celtic Tiger has brought a merciful end to forced emigration but economic mobility still sees many people living far from home and away from extended family. Fianna Fáil has always embraced family values emphasising the role of both immediate and extended family and comfortable, efficient service options for regional and national journeys will help bridge geographic gaps arsing from economic mobility.

Equally commerce and tourism derive significant benefit from national route development.

Local/Rural

At local or rural level the challenge of social inclusion can be addressed through provision of local transport and I welcome such innovations as the Rural Transport Initative and call upon the Minister to work with his colleague in Minister O’Cuiv in Community, Gaeltacht and Rural Affairs to extend this pilot scheme – to the areas of Kildare North and Wexford at least

End notes

Restate environmental benefits of public transport – aesthetics, emissions, less congestion etc
Pay tribute to private operators driving raising bar – AerArann, Private Coach Operators
List areas for improvement – reliability, comfort levels, frequency, ..
Road Safety –

That this Ard-Fheis calls for the implementation of measures that would provide for greater participation in local democracy. (Sallins Cumann, Kildare North)

Opening

Minister, Teachta Daila, Senators, A delgaidi, etc etc,

It is a great honour to address this Ard Fheis.

Intro

In proposing this motion I intend to address a twin track of public representation and more generally citizen involvement in public institutions and volunteer sector as a whole.

Public Rep versus Private Employment

Delegates I put it to you that current structures preclude large sections of today’s society from involvement in local democracy be it at elected representative or volunteer activist.

Pressures of Modern living including commuting, raising a family, increasing demands of the workplace make it difficult for all but the most motivated individuals to find time for participation in community activity.

Furthermore we risk alienating a significant pool of talent from the ranks of public representatives if we fail to recognise the conflict that exists between private employment and public representation, certainly at local authority level.

The duties of local representation encompass a significant weekly workload, an availability of contact and access to constituents as well as journalists and other stakeholders as well as regular meetings to conduct official council business usually scheduled during business hours.

However council business is still largely regarded as an honorary or part-time occupation certainly for remuneration purposes.

Town Council is regarded as entirely a position of honour whilst after expenses county or city councillors take away perhaps one fifth the salary of a senator certainly not a living wage.

All of this poses great challenges for any individual who must combine private employment with public duties both through financial necessity and because the nature of their occupation does not lend itself to availability during business hours.

As a consequence demographics of the body politic are not fully reflective of the greater public, the majority of whom are 9-5, PAYE workers, as only certain professions can accommodate the demands of public service.

Arguably it also denigrates the representation of citizens where advocates must juggle demands of external employment with public representation as priority conflicts are not easily reconciled –

This also leads in many cases to a dilemma of double-jobbing –
And in a crisis who comes first – the boss or the constituent?

Delegates I believe the remuneration levels for councillors should be revised and made reflective of the workload and demands of the position. If we are to attract candidates from the broader demographic spectrum this is a necessary step.

In the meantime I believe there are certain measures which could help reconcile the conflict –
Council business, certainly official meetings, could be made analogous to Jury Service or training with the Reserve Defence Forces for example which currently enjoy special status.

Legislation mandating the release of employees attaining positions in public service to mandatory leave facilities akin to parental leave legislation could be enacted.

Citizen Involvement

Broadening the argument to general citizen involvement an overlapping series of initiatives could be piloted to enable greater participation in community or council activity for both elected officials and general citizen involvement.

Whilst there is no substitute to face-to-face meetings for key decisions or introductions, web technologies offer many possibilities for remote conferencing and for online collaboration reducing the dependency on meetings and physical presence.

Individuals on a team can participate at times of own preference, collaborate on documents, posting opinions to web boards, using internet technologies for both remote meetings and to bring together offline contributions.

Also as corporate social responsibility grows in importance in the private sector, employees could be encouraged to participate in community activism with support from employers. Similar programmes already exist towards many charitable activities such as the Junior Achievement organisation where employers allow employees time to work in

There is no reason this could not be rolled out to community and local government participation.
Public sector employers could lead by example in this regard.

Other options may include financial allowances such as tax credits for involvement in public service duties.

Conclusion

Delegates let us recognise the increasing role and workload our councillors perform and let us adapt to the demands of changing modern society. I propose that councillors should enjoy sufficient remuneration to be freed from secondary occupations and in doing so that we acknowledge the huge contribution they make to local and community process.

We would also enable a currently under-represented generation and demographic to embrace the political process.

I believe this would enhance our party, our councils and our communities in the process.

Opening

Minister, Teachta Daila, Senators, A delgaidi, etc etc,

Intro

Modern society sees concentration of population around our capital cities and similar conglomerations around our other urban centres.

To meets the demands of housing accommodation within concentrated areas many developments have embarked upon a high density model with X units to an acre for example to maximise use of space and deliver affordable housing within confines of space and location.

Delegates however I now call for a review of planning guidelines and a concerted effort to ensure quality of housing is not allowed to suffer under pressures of rapid development.

Many issues emerge from our recent residential developments.

In some cases parking facilities are found to be inadequate. Complaints, Lorries, truck bays.

Sound-proofing is another significant issue that is frequently raised. Too often shortcuts in construction lead to technical faults in barrier walls which lead to unacceptable levels of noise pollution in many modern homes.

Privacy is always a challenge in high density developments. Open plan developments are becoming common on newer estates as private gardens are replaced with shared spaces and…

I believe this is contrary to the Irish psyche. As if proof were even needed for Irish obsession with land the success of allotment scheme Naas UDC…

In this scenario incidents of anti-social behaviour can be magnified and in the absence of adequate planning safeguards can lead to a Darwinist society

Confusion over standards, leniency over implementation

I believe revised planning protocols are now necessary to address these issues.

Parking – Lorry Bays

Sound Proofing – Proper controls, enforcement and inspection

Houses built in 70’s this not an issue

Open Spaces – proper delineation of boundaries

In the middle of all this we have an opinion poll. FF are on 22% – a historic low. Like most members I’m pretty disappointed by this but not hugely surprised. The public sector pension measures were never going to be popular with those affected; people are not sadomasochists. People are angry and to a certain extent nervous of what’s around the corner. Like most workers out there I’m not expecting any increments or bonuses this year, and will consider myself lucky if that’s all I have to worry about. It’s not easy. Jobs are being lost hand over fist in the private sector.

The last couple of days have been pretty much worst case scenarios for the government. The ILP / AngloIrish transactions beggar belief. The recap scheme was followed by BoI doubling its bad debt write off the very same day. Brian Goggin (BoI CEO) came on the news to tell us he would “only” earn “just under 2 million” next year. Are these people for real? The government need to kick some ass and quick. Heads have started to roll but more needs to come. And it can’t be just about public hangings. Jesus was fed to an angry mob. Get the right heads rolling and fast..

Back to that opinion poll. I think though the government have been under pressure they’ve actually turned a corner in the last fortnight. But they’re not sellling the message. I guess it’s hard to steer a ship and man the radio at the same time. But someone needs to do it or the vacuum will be filled elsewhere. It’s already happening – I used to like Gilmore – I’ve praised him on this blog before – but I cannot believe his performance over recent times. It’s the worst kind of economic populism (Burton too). It’s easy to throw out soundbites and beat an empty drum. And it’s so hypocritical. Only a few months ago Gilmore and his apparatchiks were readying to steamroll a ‘New Labour’, Blair style reform package, through the NEC (Labour central council), stimying the grassroots and unions and centralising control in a new centre right leadership. Just ask a Labour activist about the ‘commission on twenty-first century labour’. But hey presto its in the trashcan since the winds of change started blowing – who needs ideology eh? Yet the poll suggests it’s working for them. I think it’s very dangerous. We are entering a 1930’s style era economically – and we all know how that one worked out.

I close with a quote from a favourite poem (Yeats Second Coming) – seems pretty apt in current climate:

Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,

The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.

And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?