FG Bill would force Govt to implement key McCarthy recommendations

Government Ministers would be given a four week deadline to cut prices of vital State items like TV licences, State exam fees, A&E charges and passports under plans being debated tonight (Tuesday) in the Dáil. Regulators would be given three months to do the same for their areas like ESB, gas, bus and train fares, tolls and airport charges.

Fine Gael Enterprise Spokesman Leo Varadkar TD has prepared emergency legislation which would force the Government to impose 5% cuts on its own prices, and for Regulators to reduce their own charges. This would save the average family around €400 a year.

“Thanks to this Government, people have seen their incomes and benefits cut, and their taxes hiked upwards. Many have lost their jobs. The crisis in the real economy stems from unemployment and declining competitiveness. This crisis is doing the most damage to our society, but is being ignored by the Government. If Fianna Fáil and the Greens can use emergency financial legislation to cut pay and benefits, surely it can use the same mechanism to cut its own charges?

“Last year the Government actually increased its own charges by 6.7%, while prices across the economy fell by 5%. It’s easy to forget the extent to which the Government controls prices in the economy through direct charges, indirect taxes and through it regulators:

 

• TV licence (€160);
• Driving licence (€25);
• Passport (€80);
• A+E charge (€100);
• Inpatient charge (€75);
• Junior/Leaving Cert (roughly €100); and
• Third level registration (€1,500).

“The price of petrol, diesel and home-heating oil prices consists mainly of taxes levied by the Government including excise, VAT and the carbon tax. And the Government’s regulators set most bus and train fares, most motorway tolls, electricity and gas, telephone charges and postage, and airport charges. Despite recent reductions, our household electricity prices are above average in the Eurozone and are among the highest for medium-sized industry.

“Fine Gael’s Bill requires all Government Ministers to present to the Dáil within four weeks a plan to reduce all charges set by them by 5%. And with regard to prices set by the government’s regulators, this Bill requires that Ministers require regulators to publish their own proposals within three months.”

New laws to rein in State boards

New laws to rein in directors on State bodies like FÁS and the HSE will be debated in the Dáil, according to Fine Gael Enterprise Spokesman Leo Varadkar TD.

Deputy Varadkar will present a powerful Fine Gael Bill to change the way that State boards are appointed and ensure they can be held accountable by elected representatives in the Oireachtas.

The Public Accounts Transparency Bill aims to put an end to scandalous spending practices at bodies like FÁS, and to make powerful bodies like the HSE more accountable to elected representatives.

Deputy Varadkar said: ‘More than 7,000 positions on State bodies are appointed directly by the Government. This has allowed a culture of cronyism to flourish, and also means there is no guarantee that the people appointed to powerful State bodies have the appropriate qualifications’. …[more]

Fine Gael Front Bench Spokesman, Leo Varadkar TD has today (Sunday) published a new bill that aims to end the practice of unqualified ‘political cronies’ being appointed to State boards and public bodies.

The ‘Public Appointments Transparency Bill’ (PAT) will enhance democratic scrutiny of appointments by the Oireachtas and make State agencies and public bodies more accountable to the people.

“For too long cronyism has been at the heart of appointments to State bodies. One needs only look at some of the plum appointments over the last number of years to see a wealth of unqualified candidates appointed to State boards and public bodies. …[more]

On Thursday 3rd April I highlighted in the Dail that the Dept. of Education has not honoured it’s commitment to three schools in Dublin 15.

Full Dail transcript below:

3 April 2008

Deputy Leo Varadkar: I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to raise this issue. Everyone who follows the news will be familiar with the problems being experienced in rapidly developing parts of Dublin and other cities where the provision of school facilities has fallen behind the rapid increase in population. …[more]

Today and yesterday, the Dáil is debating a Fine Gael motion expressing support in the Mahon Tribunal. I was one of the Fine Gael speakers, and my speech is available below. The full debate will be up on the Oireachtas website in the coming days.

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As Fine Gael Spokesperon on Enterprise, Trade and Employment I introduced the Fine Gael motion on the Competitiveness of the Economy. Please find my speech below. The debate, including speeches from a number of my Fine Gael colleagues can be found online on December 4th and December 5th.

  …[more]

On the 4th and 5th of December, reflecting the change in economic circumstances and Ireland’s decreasing economic competitiveness internationally the Fine Gael part proposed the following motion.

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