Speaking after Fianna Fáil TD Thomas Byrne reeled out a succession of policies borrowed wholesale from Fine Gael on the Pat Kenny show this morning, Fine Gael Enterprise Spokesman Leo Varadkar TD called on Taoiseach Brian Cowen to follow suit and adopt Fine Gael’s Recovery Through Reform policy for economic recovery.

“One of Fianna Fáil’s up and coming TDs, Thomas Byrne, has conceded on national radio that Fianna Fáil got it wrong on economic policies in the past and is getting it wrong now. I welcome Deputy Byrne’s concession that benchmarking was a mistake and that the national pay deal cannot be afforded in the midst of a recession. …[more]

You know the proverb – Don’t count your chickens before the eggs have hatched – anyway, I couldn’t resist it last night.  I sat down with my Nealon’s Guide and worked out what would happen if the Red C / Sunday Business Post poll was reflected in a General Election.  For the record, the poll has FF at 26%, FG at 33%, Labour at 15%, Sinn Fein 10%, Green Party 6%,  PDs 2% and Others/Independents 8%.  …[more]

This article was originally published in yesterday’s Sunday Independent.

UP UNTIL last week, the only people who had actually felt the impact of recession were those who lost their jobs and a small number of business owners.

Budget 2009 has changed all that. Ordinary people are starting to understand the human consequences of a shrinking economy. These will be felt in our pockets, in our businesses, and in our schools and hospitals. …[more]

Image via WikipediaPublic sector exempt from Lenihan’s call to patriotism

New figures showing a big hike in public sector employment this year give lie to the Government’s Budget proposals to cut back on civil servants in order to drive down State spending, Fine Gael Enterprise Spokesman Leo Varadkar TD has said.

“One of Brian Lenihan’s big promises in Budget 2009 is to cut back on the number of public servants. Yet the big hike in the number of people in public sector jobs this year suggests this is just another empty Fianna Fáil promise. …[more]

Unreformed FÁS to retain budget of €1 billion

Fine Gael Enterprise Spokesman Leo Varadkar TD has welcomed the Government’s decision to copy and paste Fine Gael’s own policy published in April by merging or abolishing 41 State agencies.

“I welcome the Government’s decision to copy and paste Fine Gael’s policies and to abolish some of the useless and expensive Quangos which it has created. This should be the first step in a wider rationalisation process.
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The RTÉ website has Questions and Answers show I was on last night up on their website today. It can be accessed here. Other panelists were Minister Barry Andrews, Dearbhail McDonald of the Irish Independen, Gerry McCaughey, a Green entrepreneur and Colm McCarthy from the UCD School of Economics. The budget and the banking crisis dominated the show.

I’ll be on Q&A tonight on RTÉ One at half ten. If you’d like to make a comment during the show, their comment line is 1850 584 984 or by email qanda@rte.ie.

Govt fingered on competitiveness as Ireland languishes in 22nd place – Varadkar

The World Economic Forum has pointed the finger of blame firmly at the Fianna Fáil Government for Ireland’s poor performance in the latest Global Competitiveness Report, Fine Gael Enterprise Spokesman Leo Varadkar TD has said.

“Ireland is stuck in 22nd place in the World Economic Forum’s competitiveness rankings with the Fianna Fáil Government taking the lion’s share of the blame. The report is scathing about the ‘three Is’ which are holding Ireland back: inadequate infrastructure, high inflation, and inefficient Government bureaucracy. …[more]

Image via WikipediaBorrowers deserve full benefit of lower interest rate

Fine Gael Enterprise Spokesman Leo Varadkar TD has called for the European Central Bank’s (ECB) 0.5% interest rate cut to be passed on to homeowners in full, and said banks will be saving €1.3 million every day that they fail to pass on the lower rate.

“This co-ordinated interest rate cut from the ECB, the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of England is very welcome and will provide much-needed relief to hard-pressed homeowners. However, it is essential that the new rate is passed on to homeowners as soon as possible, as homeowners with an average €250,000 variable rate mortgage would benefit by €105 a month. …[more]

Image via WikipediaI sent out a constituency newsletter on Monday, to various constituents whose emails I have, providing an update on various activities in the Dublin 15 area.  If you’d like to sign up for this newsletter, please send me an email at leo.varadkar@oireachtas.ie or by filling in your details on the contact page.

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