Press Releases - January 2003

January

3 January 2003.

Budget Surplus Nothing To Boast About.

“The achievement of a 95 million euro surplus in the national accounts is not something to boast about,” according to Green Party spokesperson on Finance Dan Boyle TD.

“After allowing expenditure to cynically spiral out of control in the first five months of the year in order to fuel electoral popularity, a virtual freeze on expenditure was put in place my the Minister for Finance,” he claimed.

“In his mania to reach the original stated figures in the now fictitious 2002 Book of Estimates, programmes were abandoned sacrificed for other budget sub-headings where wilful overspending occurred. More responsible government departments were asked to set aside spending plans to cover the costs of more frivolous departments. All this done regardless of the effect that broken promises would have, and the likely damage wrought upon the most vulnerable in our society,” he continued.

“Charlie McCreevy should be embarrassed, if embarrassment was part of his emotional make up, at this bulimic approach to the public finances. Unfortunately this is a Minister who is more likely to crow than to lock himself away,” he concluded.

5 January 2003

Shrinking Pension Fund A Symbol Of Government’s Disappearing Credibility

“The revelation that the National Pension Fund has decreased in value by 763 million euro, has to be seen as another undermining of the credibility of this government and particularly its Minister for Finance,” according to Green Party spokesperson on Finance, Dan Boyle TD.

“This fall in value, eight times the sum the government wishes to boast of in achieving its 2002 Budget surplus, and 60% of the figure the government intends to put into the Pension Fund in 2003, represents a colossal abuse of limited public resources. Ever diminishing resources that would better used on improving the badly neglected infrastructure in this country,” he claimed.

“Because the National Pension Fund along with the Special Savings Investment Scheme, are Charlie McCreevy’s pet projects, we will hear no political responsibility be taken for this diminishing fund. We certainly will hear no admission of mistakes,” he continued.

“If we won’t hear explanations of error, at least the electorate should have the right to know what logic informs this Minister for Finance where vast sums of money are being pumped into a fund meant to meet future pension costs, but is achieving a value less than the original and continuing investment,” he concluded.

7 January 2003

GREENS CALL FOR RECONVENING OF DAIL

As the British House of Commons reconvened today, Green Party Chief Whip, Dan Boyle TD, has called for the reconvening of the Dáil.Green Party Chief Whip, Dan Boyle TD, has called for the reconvening of Dáil Eireann.

Mr. Boyle said that 'the fact that the British House of Commons reconvened today, is in marked contrast to our own Dáil which will not sit for another three weeks despite its heavy legislative programme'.

Mr. Boyle said that in 2002 the Dáil met on only 66 occasions. 'Dáil Eireann already has an unenviable reputation of being one of the least productive parliaments in the world. With the Dáil meeting so infrequently the Taoiseach's claim that he appears before the Dáil more than any other European Head of Government is ridiculous.'

9 January 2003

COWEN MUST REFER USE OF SHANNON BY US MILITARY TO THE DAIL

The Green Party will visit the Shannon Peace camp later today, pledging their support for the campaigners and calling on Minister for Foreign Affairs, Brian Cowen, to clarify the Irish Government's position on the use of Shannon airport by the US military.

Green Party Chief Whip, Dan Boyle TD, who will also be present as Green Party monitor at the Eoin Dubsky court hearing in Tulla District Court, County Clare, before visiting the Shannon Peace camp, said today, 'We are calling on the Government to come clean on the use of Shannon airport by US military and refer the matter to the Dáil. The Green Party believe that it is essential that the Minister agree to an open debate in the Dáil on exactly what he is intending to say and pledge on behalf of the Irish people. Issues of war and peace belong in the Dáil for decision, and should not to be taken unilaterally by Minister Cowen or the Government.'

'It is not good enough for the Irish Government to unilaterally and secretively pledge support to any war effort. It's time accountability on these issues of war and peace came back to the Dáil, where they constitutionally belong, and to the Irish people, who are strongly opposed to any military attack on Iraq.'

'When the U.S. attacked Afghanistan the Irish Government were not asked for assistance yet the Government unilaterally offered assistance and gave assistance without any reference to the Dáil.'

'Minister Cowen is now on record as stating that the UN Security Council would have no other option but to endorse an American-led attack on Iraq if the Council found that Baghdad was in material breach of the UN resolution on disarmarment. This position has neither been clarified nor agreed to in the Dáil or in the UN Security Council and the Irish Government has no mandate to support or vote for a military attack against Iraq in the Security Council.'

Since October 2001 the US air force has been using Shannon Airport as a low cost air-base with military, cargo and chartered passenger aircraft carrying US troops and military hardware passing through Shannon every day. Over a thousand such landings have occurred at Shannon over the last year. It is clear that Iraq is now the next target, with a US-led assault likely within the next month.

Mr. Boyle said that the Gulf War had caused over 200,000 Iraqi deaths with half of these being civilians. 'The Irish people have not given the Government a mandate to offer assistance to this war and I am quite sure that the electorate do not wish to be accomplices in the deaths, through war and starvation, of innocent Iraqi civilians.'

13 January 2003

GREENS QUESTION CYNICISM OF SOCIAL PARTNERSHIP PROCESS

Green Party spokesperson on Social and Family Affairs, Dan Boyle TD, has said that 'regardless of what trade union and employers subsequently agree, the process that has accompanied the latest wage proposals raises serious questions about the democratic nature of the social partnership process'.

Mr. Boyle said today, 'Of course the exclusion of opposition party input has long been a flaw of the social partnership process, but this now seems to have been extended to exclude some of the social partners themselves. The non-involvement of the community and voluntary and the farming sectors, underlines the extent to which social partnership is now a partnership where some 'partners' are more equal than others.'

Deputy Boyle said that 'by discussing, and seeming to agree on items of a social nature, the Government and 'superior' social partners are undermining the prospect of including other social areas in a wider national agreement.'

'Government involvement in this partnership now seems restricted to the triumpherate of Taoiseach, Tanáiste and the Minister for Finance. Add the three main Government figures of Bertie Ahern, Mary Harney and Charlie McCreevy to the respective heads of the employer and trade union groupings and we have the inner sanctum that is largely determining policy formation in this country, away from proper political scrutiny and accountability.'

'It will be for others to determine whether 7% represents a maintaining of living standards in line with an inflation rate that is mainly being fuelled by this Government's budgetary policy. However, most cynicism should attach to why this is an eighteen month agreement? A new agreement will expire to co-incide with local and European elections in June 2004, and presumably the start of public expenditure floodgates being re-opened in anticipation of the next Dáil elections.'

17 January 2003

5% INFLATION RATE AN OMINOUS BENCHMARK, SAY GREENS

The Green Party has stated breaching the 5% inflation figure is an ominous benchmark that is making the Irish economy ill positioned to counter the deteriorating effects likely to be felt in a worsening world economy.

Party Finance spokesperson, Dan Boyle TD, said today, 'Now we are achieving levels of inflation where people are physically witnessing a fall in standards of living, to an extent that most people's perception of inflation is that they experience its effects worse that what official figures are showing.'

'A government whose budget decisions have fuelled and sustained this inflation is not capable of properly dealing with its effects, without dramatically changing tack.'

21 January, 2003

Minister Wants Its Both Ways, Says Boyle

Speaking this lunchtime at a meeting of the Douglas Rotary Club, Green Party TD Dan Boyle said that the Minister for the Environment's obsessive interest in bringing about large scale incineration in Ireland, flies totally in the face of his expressed concern that Ireland is not meeting its commitments in relation to curbing greenhouse emissions. He was speaking as the Minister was making a visit today to the Cork area. Deputy Boyle had earlier participated in a protest at Cork City Hall on the arrival of Minister Cullen, organised by the CHASE anti-incineration campaign.

'The Minister seems to be developing an uncanny ability to be for and against the environment at the same time, obviously an important skill to have in a Fianna Fáil government,' Dan Boyle stated.

'In promoting a technology, incineration, that makes no economic or environmental sense, Minister Cullen, is looking for easy answers when instead he should be encouraging a fundamental reform of why unnecessary waste is being created, and why reusable and recyclable materials are being collected in the ways and the extent they should be,' he continued.

Deputy Boyle went on to say that the support of Cork Chamber of Commerce for a proposed national toxic waste incinerator at Ringaskiddy, Co. Cork, was particularly ill informed.

24th January 2003

MCCREEVY'S COHABITATION WITH INVESTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR 13% HOUSE PRICE INREASE CLAIM GREENS

'The biggest reason for the four- fold increase in house prices as reported today by the The Permanent/TSB Annual House Price Index is a direct result of new tax incentives granted to investors by Charlie McCreevy in the last budget' claimed Green Party Finance Spokesperson, Dan Boyle T.D. Mr Boyle went on to say that this increase 'makes it even more difficult for first time buyers to enter the market and consequently increases the numbers waiting on local authority housing lists'.

The Green Party has consistently critised the Government for adopting a housing policy which in many cases benefits builders, developers and estate agents rather than new home buyers and those waiting for local authority housing.'The series of tax breaks given to property investors by this Government has done more than anything else to pump up property prices over the last number of years. We need to claw back some of these tax breaks to bring more balance and equity into the system.' concluded Deputy Boyle.

26 January 2003

Making Social Welfare Payments Conditional, A Dangerous Road—Say Greens

Green Party spokesperson on Social and Family Affairs , Dan Boyle TD, has strongly criticised a proposal that child benefit and social welfare payments should be linked to whether parents allow their children to vaccinated with the MMR vaccine.

“Proposals of this type would place us on a very slippery slope. If accepted as policy by government, it could open all types of similar proposals being adopted. For instance it might be suggested that such payments be linked to whether or not people participate in elections,” Dan Boyle claimed.

“The government and the medical establishment would be better placed to address why fears exist about the MMR vaccine, and to offer vaccinations in different forms to allay some of these fears,” he concluded.

28 January 2003

GOVERNMENT SLIGHTS COMMUNITY PILLAR ‘SOME PARTNERS ARE MORE EQUAL THAN OTHERS’, - CLAIM GREENS

The Green Party has accused the Government of becoming contemptuous towards representatives of the marginalised in Irish society in the new national partnership negotiations. Green Party Social and Family Affairs spokesperson, Dan Boyle TD, said today,

'Any pretence that an all embracing deal is being sought, and not just a cobbled together pay deal, is well and truly exposed by the miniscule, inflation avoiding, social welfare increases that will see those depending on such increases fall further behind in the already grossly distorted distribution of wealth in the Irish economy.'

'Added to this Government inertia on improving access to health services, to housing, particularly social housing, and to further education, and we have the true extent to which this Government cares about disadvantage in Irish society.”

28 January 2003

GREENS UNVEIL NEW TEAM, OUTLINE PLANS FOR NEW TERM AND PLEDGE CAMPAIGN FOR DÁIL REFORM

The Green Party unveiled its new team today at a press conference in Dublin outlining their plans for the new Dáil term and pledging a renewed and vigorous campaign for further Dáil reform.

Green Party Leader, Trevor Sargent TD, said that the Party had just appointed its first General Secretary and enhanced its support team with the appointment of a parliamentary group secretary, two researchers and a press assistant.

'This is all part of an ongoing process of strategic restructuring which we started before our successful General Election results last May. The Green Party now has greater resources than before with six TDs and it is determined to use its funding to carry out research which will make our role in opposition radical, effective and constructive.'

'Our Green parliamentary team is now of a size and quality to put forward a coherent and effective challenge to each member of this reckless Government.

This Government's policies continue to widen the rich-poor gap and sentence the next generation to resource shortages, the vagaries of climate change and a failing eco-system. The Greens believe in becoming the change we want to see happen. That is why each Green TD has voluntarily vacated their Local Authority seat as part of our campaign to drop the dual mandate. We have also led changes by campaigning for a levy on plastic bags, by prioritising wind energy over fossil fuel generated power and by campaigning for a Guaranteed Basic income which led to the introduction of tax credits. Our new team and resources will now leave us in a position to give leadership in more policy areas.'

'In my own area as spokesperson for Agriculture, Northern Ireland and the Gaeltacht we will be carrying out major research on, and campaigning for CAP reform and for sustainable agriculture and safe food policies; will continue to play an active role in finding solutions for the impasse in the Northern Ireland peace process, enhancing and broadening our engagement with those involved in that process.'

Green Party Chairman, John Gormley, T.D., will continue to have responsibility for Health, Foreign Affairs and Defence in the forthcoming session. Mr Gormley predicted that Iraq would be the predominant issue in the coming months and said that the Green Party position had been consistent and unequivocal. 'Starting this week in the Dáil we intend to put the Government under enormous pressure.

We will be supporting the Independent's Private Members motion and using every parliamentary device to expose the hypocrisy of this Government.'

'We also intend to revise and up-date our European policy in light of the Convention on the Future of Europe, which will lead to another Irish referendum. On 8th February the Greens will hold a special seminar in Dublin on the issue, speakers will include Dr. Garrett Fitzgerald and Danish MEP, Jens Peter Bonde.

The seminar will be chaired by Senator Maurice Hayes. During this session the Greens will also be publishing a new defence policy document. In the context of the convention I will be preparing a paper for the Presidium on the subject of a European-wide referendum on the new European Constitution.'

'Health covers such a wide variety of areas that the best approach is to publish specific policies and we will begin this week this week by publishing our position paper on the Accident and Emergency crisis. We will continue by publishing a new position paper every month on areas such as the re-structuring of health boards, primary care, health insurance and risk equalization. I will also be publishing a major document on water fluoridation as partof my duties as a member of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children.'

Party Whip, Dan Boyle TD said that the Greens would be embarking on a renewed campaign for further Dáil reform which would include initiatives seeking more Dáil sittings, would examine proposals to reduce the size of the Dáil and would work toward making the chamber script-free. He said that the Party was sending out a challenge to all other political parties to follow the Green Party example and surrender their Local Authority seats now.

Mr. Boyle said that the Greens would continue to challenge the dodgy forecasting that has consistently underestimated tax receipts and would demand answers as to why the Government was overseeing the diminishing value of the National Pension Reserve Fund. We will also be exposing any attempt to link social welfare payments to what the Government sees as 'desirable' activity. 'A particular emphasis in this term will be the visit of the National Roads Authority to the Public Accounts Committee where I will be asking the agency to justify why certain projects were proceeded with and why costs have sky- rocketed.'

Paul Gogarty TD said that he would continue to highlight the current Government's shameful response to Education. 'I will be pressurising Minister Dempsey and indeed Minister McCreevy on the school building programme, on third level fees and on its commitment in general to investing in the next generation of adults. It has been pointed out by the INTO that it costs four times less to put a person fully through the education system than it does to keep them in prison, so it makes sense to invest now and reap the rewards later. The whole area of education of persons with disabilities will also be scrutinised. On Tourism I will proposing new initiatives for the farming community to allow access to land and to maintain byways for sporting and recreational tourism. We will also be looking at new ways of promoting Ireland and campaigning to ensure that our unique selling points from an environmental perspective are retained.'

'In relation to sport, I will be insisting that Minister O' Donoghue produce a nationwide audit of sporting facilities. The Green Party will also be campaigning for a new system of Public Public Partnerships over Public Private Partnerships for sport and educational facilities. This will involve targeted cooperation between the Department of Education and others and local authorities to build and maintain multi-purpose coordinated facilities that ensure maximum utility in terms of community involvement, educational facilities and security.'

Eamon Ryan said that in the area of Enterprise Trade and Employment 'the Greens believe that the increasing level of redundancies will call into question the enterprise policies of the current Government'. 'We will also be challenging the Government to make clear their negotiating positions within the European Council of Ministers in preparations for the upcoming World Trade Organisation Summit in Cancun in September. In the transport area we will be highlighting the current misguided policy of investing six times more in new roads as against new public transport systems.'

Mr. Ryan said that 'the main bulk of my research work will be carried out in conjunction with three policy areas that I have tabled on this years work programme for the Joint Committee on Communications, Marine and Natural resources'. 'The first report will involve an examination of how the 2003 Renewable Energy directive should be transposed into Irish Law and will be accompanied by a Green Party policy paper on the whole energy issue. We have also asked that the committee to carry out a review of the 1996 National

Forestry Strategy with particular attention to the economic viability of producing low value softwoods from exotic conifers. Later in the year we will present to the committee a policy paper on the sustainable development of aquaculture. This work should build on the role we hope to play in calling for greater efforts to protect the Irish Wild Salmon.'

'Finally I will be very busy over the next two months preparing for the 'No Logo' day on the 10th of April next. This is a campaign to highlight the pressure children and parents are under to by big name logo brands. We hope to work with every school in the country getting CSPE pupils to ask some questions about where our clothes come from, how they are made and whether it is cooler to set your own style or to be a slave to corporate marketing.'

Mr. Ciarán Cuffe TD said that, 'As the the Green Party's spokesperson on Environment and Local Government, as well as Justice, Equality and Law Reform, I intend prioritising the following areas: in Environment, promoting sensible and sustainable solutions to the housing and waste crises as well as ensuring that the Government follows our lead on getting rid of the dual mandate. In the area of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, reflecting on how we can improve policies on racism, migration and equality to compliment the multicultural society we now live in.'

29 January 2003

GOVERNMENT NOT DELIVERING ON 'RAPID' AND 'CLÁR' PROGRAMMES FOR DISADVANTAGED URBAN AND RURAL COMMUNITIES - Claims Green Party

The Green Party has accused the Government of failing to deliver development projects for disadvantaged urban and rural communities under the RAPID and CLÁR programmes.

Green Party Community and Rural Affairs spokesperson, Dan Boyle T.D., said today, 'Two years after the Government announced to great fanfare a programme of funding to frontload development projects to areas identified as being of greatest need, little evidence exists that the RAPID programme for disadvantaged urban projects and the subsequent CLÁR programme for disadvantaged rural communities, has in any way delivered.'

'Responses on each of these programmes put to each Government Minister by the Green Party have revealed that very little money has been allocated to specific projects in the disadvantaged communities.'

'Several Government departments admitted having spent no money on these programmes. One department claimed only to have a coordinating role. Other departments sought to have all expenditure incurred in the designated areas as being RAPID or CLÁR expenditure and most disingenuous of all in this regard were the departments of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and Education and Science, which both sought to present re-heated smaller funded programmes as being new initiatives.'

'This deceit is a further insult by a Government that tells people what they want to hear and does nothing after it secures re-election,' he concluded.