Image via WikipediaMyself and my colleague Cllr. Eithne Loftus are holding a public meeting on Tuesday the 7th of October at 8pm in the Crowne Plaza Hotel at the Blanchardstown Shopping Centre (the new tall building). The meeting will address the issues of transport in the Dublin 15 area and will be  addressd by representatives from Dublin Bus, Iarnrod Eireann and the RPA (Metro West) who will give you a progress report on their plans for the area. All are welcome.

I am currently distributing a leaflet on transport issues throughout the constituency. The leaflet can be accessed here.

ISEQ at 11 Year Low on foot of Latest Heavy Losses

The shocking collapse of Irish shares today, where the ISEQ index shed 13% of its value, was yet another disastrous day for those preparing for retirement, other small investors and thousands of bank workers according to Fine Gael’s Spokesman on Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Dr. Leo Varadkar T.D.  He went on to say that the collapsing values of Irish bank shares confirm that investors no long believe assurances from this Government about the health and solvency of financial institutions here. …[more]

I was on the Week in Politics show on RTE1 last night, discussing the ongoing financial crisis, and the C&AG investigation into FÁS. The show can be accessed here.

Officials Rebuff of Redundancy Plan Shows Minister Out of his Depth

The embarrassing rebuff by his own officials in the Dept. of Finance regarding his proposed public service redundancy programme is the latest, and perhaps most embarrassing, gaffe from a Minister for Finance who is clearly out of his depth, according to Fine Gael’s Enterprise Spokesman, Leo Varadkar T.D. He went on to say that Minister Lenihan appeared to have little appetite or aptitude for the job he has been charged with. …[more]

Fine Gael Spokesman on Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Leo Varadkar TD, today (Wednesday) called on the Tánaiste to ensure that the C&AG investigation is not limited, as she requested, to the Corporate Affairs Department of FÁS. He also called on the Tánaiste to publish the terms of reference of the inquiry.

“The Tánaiste’s decision to request a C&AG inquiry into financial irregularities and mismanagement in FÁS is welcome. A slow response is better than no response at all.

“However I am very unhappy at the Tánaiste’s response to my question in the Dáil today in which she suggested that the investigation would be limited to the Corporate Affairs Department of FÁS alone. I am also very concerned at her indication that the terms of reference will not be agreed or published for several weeks. I am extremely concerned that the Tánaiste stated in the Dáil that she asked the C&AG to give the finished report to her and then allow her to present it to the Dáil. The C&AG is an independent office and any report should be made public to everyone at the same time. …[more]

C&AG Annual Report Highlights Weak Financial Control in Quangos

The Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment has effectively expressed no confidence in the FÁS leadership, according to Leo Varadkar, Fine Gael Spokesperson on Enterprise, Trade & Employment following the announcement by the Tánaiste that she intends to request the Comptroller and Auditor General to launch a special investigation into FÁS expenditure since 2000. Enda Kenny raised the issue on financial mismanagement within FÁS with the Taoiseach in the Dáil on June 25th. (See note to Editors below dealing with Minister Coughlan’s about-turn on the FÁS issue.) …[more]

At the September 8th meeting of Fingal County Council, a report was provided on the recent flooding in the Fingal area and in Dublin 15 on the 9th, 10th and 12th of August. I have uploaded the report, and it is available from this link.

For more than a year, successive Ministers for Enterprise, Trade and Employment – Ministers Martin and Coughlan – have first procrastinated, then hidden behind European Law in refusing to bring into force legislation which would ban credit card surcharges says Fine Gael Spokesperson on Enterprise, Trade & Employment, Leo Varadkar TD. An answer provided by the European Commission to Fine Gael, however, confirms that there is no obstacle to banning such charges. This completely contradicts Minister Coughlan’s assertion that it was European Law which prevented her from acting on the matter.

“Credit card surcharges are an unjust and unfair charge on consumers. There is next to no transparency on such charges, they are frequently only added in at the end, and are quite simply a rip-off. Failure to outlaw these unjust charges, from anyone who puts consumers first, is inexplicable. …[more]

I was on Morning Ireland last Thursday talking about the current economic crisis. The interview can be accessed from this link.