Letters to the Editor: Coalition is all about jobs for the boys
Taoiseach MicheĂĄl Martin and TĂĄnaiste Simon Harris introducing their newly-appointed Ministers of State, or junior ministers, at Government Buildings in Dublin on January 29. Picture: Brian Lawless/PA
Talk about jobs for the boys. Only six of the 23 new junior minister positions are going to the girls/women.
The appointments also have a distinctly country and western look to them, only three (all Fine Gael) representing Dublin constituencies. Fianna FĂĄil gets 10 of the positions, Fine Gael eight, and there are five for the Independents.
While FF and FG may have the majority of the posts it is the five Independents who will dominate the colour of this government. There are two Galway men, a Midlands man, a Kerry man, and a sole Sligo woman.
All five of these are strong personalities in their own right. Kevin âBoxerâ Moran, from Westmeath, makes a comeback, having served as a junior minister under a previous Fine Gael government supported by Independents. He will be a junior minister with responsibility for the Office of Public Works.
Another comeback kid is the Independent TD for Galway West, SeĂĄn Canney. He is being given responsibility for international and road transport, rail, and ports within the Department of Transport. The Galway man is also one of the four junior ministers designated as a super junior minister, a position which carries with it the privilege of being allowed to sit in on Cabinet meetings but not having the right to vote at them.
The other Independent who becomes a super junior is another Galway man, veteran TD Noel Grealish. Heâs being given responsibility for food promotion, new markets, and research and development within the Department of Agriculture.
A newcomer to the ministerial ranks is Kerry TD Micheal Healy-Rae. He becomes a junior minister in the Department of Agriculture with responsibility for forestry, farm safety, and horticulture. With his colourful personality and knack for publicity, Healy-Rae is likely to become one of the dominant faces of this new government.
The sole female junior minister from the Independents is Marian Harkin, TD for Sligo-Leitrim. She will be in the Department of Higher Education with responsibility for further education, apprenticeship, construction, and climate skills.
With the appointment of 23 junior ministers, to add to the 15 Cabinet ministers already appointed and the position of the ceann comhairle, it means that of the 96 TDs supporting the government, 39 of them (or just over 40%) will have the benefit of holding an office, and the pay that goes with it, in addition to their position as TDs.
If we look at the 10 Independent TDs who agreed to support the Government, the rewards are even better. Five of these are being appointed as ministers of state, with two of them acquiring the added status of super junior minister. Counting in the position of ceann comhairle, it means that six of the 10 Independents who agreed to support the Government (or 60% of them) will occupy an office in addition to their job as TDs.
Assuming there are no hidden deals, we have to admire the altruism of the four Independents â Michael Lowry, Barry Heneghan, Gillian Toole, and Danny Healy-Rae â who have sacrificed themselves for the greater good of their six office-holding colleagues.
In addition, these four deputies have had to endure the added opprobrium heaped on them by the opposition who are adamant that they wonât even agree to let them sit beside them. Such altruism, in this day and age, is surely to be admired.
From one parent of a young family to another, I implore the attention of TĂĄnaiste Simon Harris to an enormous health and safety issue that has encroached on the people of Ireland. An issue on which our current actions, or lack thereof, will impact the future health and safety of the children and young people of Ireland. Despite the concerns raised on a local level, our government â the one that we have just re-elected, appears to be ignoring it.
Just a few days ago, a fire broke out at a lithium-ion battery plant in Claregalway. Three schools, along with businesses, and other properties, had to be evacuated. Five firefighters were hospitalised.
The local community is unsure if it is safe to return to the area. Senior government officials have not yet addressed this incident appropriately.
There is no regulation on battery energy storage systems (BESS), yet almost all of Ireland is earmarked for âgreenâ energy projects.
Large multinational companies are invading as they profiteer from the lack of regulation, largescale grants from Europe, and grants from our own government.
Thousands of acres of land are currently under planning. The alleged payouts to landowners appear too good to be true.
My local community in Newmarket, Co Cork, along with several other communities within a 10-mile radius alone, are fighting for our concerns to be heard.
For me personally, it is a BESS proposed for the field next to our farm. A lithium-ion BESS on a site that is in close proximity to houses, schools, a medical centre, a nursing home, and a town centre; and not in close proximity to emergency services if a problem occurs.
A site on the side of a hill with watercourses running through it. With narrow access roads. We do not have an option to move to Farmleigh or any other location should our security concerns heighten.
Yes, we need to address climate change and yes, reliance on electricity grows. However, it should not be to the detriment of our health and safety. If all these projects go ahead, what is the impact on our farming? Our tourism? Iâm not sure fields that shine all day and night will have the same draw as our current lush green landscape.
The frantic planning applications should be paused and proper regulation should be completed first. County council plans must be reviewed and appropriate parameters must be included to avoid putting human life at risk.
As parents, we know prevention is better than cure.
Why did Simon Harris accept such a very bad deal from Fianna FĂĄil?
It should be an equal partnership. Fianna FĂĄil and Fine Gael had an almost equal number of votes, although FF has had the luck to win 10 more seats. In every other coalition, the smaller party got more ministries than their numbers warranted.
How did Fine Gael negotiate such a bad deal for itself? Fianna FĂĄil has won an advantage on every issue, in no area did Fine Gael get a win. MicheĂĄl Martin getting first go as taoiseach and for three years is an unfair win for Fianna FĂĄil .
Then I see Fianna FĂĄil is to get an extra ministry and two extra junior ministers; that is an excessive prize grab on the part of the party.
Fine Gael also followed Bertie Ahernâs policy of wanting to be propped up by a bigger number of Independents than are necessary. SeĂĄn Lemass ruled with a minority, he knew the two Independents would not bring him down.
This time, with 16 Independents, the chance of them all voting against the Government at the one time is a million to one
The grubby deal with Independents has sullied the reputation of the Government. It would have looked far more open and honest if the Government had ruled on its own.
Yes it would have meant far more listening to the opposition and a lot more work for the whips, but the Government took the comfortable option rather than walk the hard road.
I believe the Government should cancel the deal on the grounds that the people are against it
A number of years ago, former taoiseach Leo Varadkar claimed on RTĂ radio that he and his Fine Gael party were supporters of the hard-working âpeople who get up early in the morningâ.
In other words, he had less time to care much for other unlucky people who didnât get up early because they frequently didnât have any regular- hours job to go to.
But things change over time and sometimes they can change for the better like with the advent of work meetings at home on Zoom, where employees can discuss their work with their other fellow work colleagues back in office.
So it no longer holds true, I believe, that late risers should be forever frowned upon for being lazy, when even people with disabilities and other unemployed people too can have a successful job such as designing a new product and its logo from their very own bedrooms.
So the words which William Shakespeare wrote 400 years about working from a bed hold true today that people can ârise to play and go to bed to workâ.
