Outrage is being expressed by North & South Tipperary County Council’s following news that Fine Gael Minister for Environment & Local Government Mr Phil Hogan, has written to all County Managers, to announce that he is cutting their budgets by between 5% and 15%, depending on the success of the household charge collection in the county.
To these outraged Tipperary County Councillors I say: “Stop worrying lads, slow down, you will give yourselves haemorrhoids. According to the said Mr Hogan, who recently spoke at the MacGill Summer School in Glenties, Co Donegal, soon every aspect of local government will see major change. He believes public services should be delivered through locally based bodies rather than centralised agencies and he is updating these structures to increase efficiency and give more value for money for the people they serve. Something like the promised efficient HSE I expect, which is the envy of the western world. It is extremely likely that he will be cutting the number of Authorities & Councillors, so why worry since a good number of you are going to have to live with just one job. He will be strengthening the role of Local Authority Audit Committees to provide better oversight, which means local government must now look to provide new ways of generating income other than handouts from the government’s central funds, already provided by the taxpayer.
Accountability For Taxpayers Money?
Smile, the above video comes directly from Phil’s website. You see lads, a five man trip led by Mr Hogan recently, to a one-day European Council meeting in Luxembourg, cost us the Taxpayers €9,000, & if you are used to staying in luxurious five-star hotels like “Le Royal,” a round of drinks will cost you €47. (By the way, for the benefit of you uncouth taxpayers, a “Hamam,” as advertised on this hotels website is the Turkish variant of a “Steam Bath.”)
Six meals during Mr Hogan’s visit to Brazil cost Irish Taxpayers €842.66 in one of the city’s famous steak houses. (Independent.) Mr Hogan’s department have spent almost €92,000 travelling around Europe and the rest of the world, since he took office in March of last year, and to be fair to the man with this type of necessary expense incurred, sure drastic reductions in Co Council budgets are only to be expected, household charge or no household charge.
Anyway sure Phil wouldn’t penalise us over non payment of household charges. Did he not state in relation to his own personal outstanding service charge of €4,320, in respect of his own personal apartment in Villamoura on the Algarve, quote; “Would you pay a charge if you were unhappy with the service? Did he not state on January 21st 2012 in the ‘Sun,’ newspaper, on page two to be exact, that he admitted his Household Charge was “Unjust.” My Dictionary defines ‘Unjust,’ as “inequitable, partial, unfair, prejudiced, biased, undeserved, unmerited, unjustifiable, lacking in justice or fairness.”
Just stop your whinging and get on with the tasks in hand, health is better than wealth. Let’s play chess with Phil, Move One; Potholes not fixed – Car Taxes not paid.
While you are playing chess tell Phil to return the Derrynaflan Hoard, the Faddan More Psalter, the Book of Dimma and the Two-Mile- Borris Viking Hoard, stolen from Tipperary, to boost Dublin City’s tourism economy, at the expense of Co.Tipperary.
“Me thinks ye Co. Councillors are a ‘soft bunch,’ and it is no wonder AIB are closing five of their rural bank branches here in North Tipperary alone.”
He should travel around the country to encourage the people to pay up. He is walking the poor into the earth. He will be remembered.
Funny how the play icon on the video makes him look like he is a supervillain with an eye patch.
There are two people that will be remembered for all time.
Maeve Binchy RIP And Phil Hogan.
But for completely different reasons.