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EVERY WEEKDAY EVENING, The Journal brings you the five biggest stories of the day.
1. #DUBLIN AIRPORT The Minister for Public Expenditure has warned the Dublin Airport Authority (daa) that scenes at the airport last Sunday cannot be repeated in the run up to the bank holiday weekend.
2. #FUEL PRICES Taoiseach Micheál Martin has warned that there are “rocky” times ahead for consumers due to higher prices on fuel after the EU slapped sanctions on both Russian oil and gas.
3. #HOUSING CRISIS The ongoing housing crisis is one of the “longest and most severe” Ireland has ever seen, housing campaigners have said as the number of people homeless hits 10,000 again.
4. #SPECIAL EDUCATION Minister Josepha Madigan has said that the Government is exploring “every possible opportunity” to provide children with school places amid reports that the plans for special education centres had been shelved.
5. #KERRY A collision between a coach and a truck transporting a crane has left a man hospitalised with serious injuries.
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The only people who can be trusted with power are those that don’t want it.
Come election time Alan Kelly has been quite clear that the Labour Party promotes the concept of water charges! Noted
I am sure Connolly would have been a big supporter of the privatisation of the country’s water supply cough
@Avina Laaf: how do whats left of the labour remain so detached from reality,, ”we (lab) didnt get our message across ” you most certainly did get your message across mr comical kelly,, it was nothing like your message given to us prior to getting into office,, the message we got from labour in government was loud and crystal clear thats why labour lost thirty tds,, be gone comical kelly and take the other labour hypocrites with you,,
“They need billions of investment and yet people will be jumping up and down when a crisis happens or when they see that beaches are closed or rivers are polluted. Water and waste will never be on top of the list. It is never sexy enough in terms of political issues when it comes to hospitals, schools or investment in capital works.”
And he is right in what he says here. When county councils were not using monies allocated for water on water – his party had little to say even though they sat on cocos. Looking at he past is easy. The solution \ the future – Hogan was let loose with the thoughts people would eventually back down. What exactly did he bring in ? One of his original photo ops was himself and Tierney up in Ringsend with a promise of more openness from IW & the department. Did he deliver that ? No. So what did he deliver? He allowed IW to keep borrowing and them money to find the accounting system around water. This man has a vested interest. Like many I have no issues paying for water but not IW.
Kelly’s a goner as soon as Enda is finished. A spoof at best.
As he says we will be back to the same place with water charges, maybe we should call it sewage charges. Those who did not pay need to be made to pay otherwise there can be no respect for the law ever.
Don’t be so stupid Labour party lying in ruins FG or FF have not got the stomach or any party members stupid enough to take on the people political suicide
connolly would have supported water charges and property tax. afterall he was a socialist not a populist begrudger.
@Jeremy DeChad: Ring fencing allocated money even a flat charge per household to be used in water. So many options. No – they invest a billion plus in a billing system. – think of the % of your bill that is needed to support this system. Not water. When more people don’t pay than voted for you then you either have got on wrong or are beholden to someone or both. Labour were against water charges and when Hogan had created a mess that was getting out of control – he had to be sidelined. Thankfully Labour had someone with a vested interest to take the mess. He made it worse.
@Patrick Gough: What has Connolly got to do with this exactly? Just use your Michael O’Leary swimming pool one.
Is this what it takes to stay off the fake news site list? We’ve already had a similar load of twaddle about regina doherty. There is nothing that labour can say to justify their treatment of lone parents nor their vindictiveness concerning iw protesters. No labour rebrand will change the fact that clery’s, zero hour contracts, foodbanks, nama, an accommodation crisis & the eviction bill were brewed on their watch.
Why are you giving this little man air time?…obnoxious dictator…that nobody wants
A man full of sound and fury signifying nothing.A man that was thought to have so little talent no body would second him for leadership.
A man who still hols the notion the world is flat.
In short a gobshote !!
Ha ha ha !
Nobody wants … he got elected what does that mean? Yes that is democracy, suck it up.
It’s wasn’t a joke to him when he was in a position of power and he freely tried to ram down the necks of people his and his parties choices and hid behind eu rulings when it suited them too. Not once did he fight for the people of this country and now he’s trying to portray himself as a man of the people, someone who we need to fight on our behalf. Get lost Alan your “power is a drug” has shown your true colours
His brother is involved with the privatisation of water on the international scene ……… that’s skirted over nicely
Imagine sitting at your desk and looking at “over a dozen framed photos of yourself”can it get anymore bizarre?
Et Hitler liked photographs of himself every where too.
And stalin, gaddafi and saddam. Probably all Kelly’s heroes
That he still defends Irish Water sickens me. He would keep a giant diseased ape in his house that eats money from his pockets if it was his job to keep it. Some things just need to be shut down Mr Kelly.
…interesting when the water systems break down through lack of infrastructure investment resulting in water shortages and pollution people might appreciate that it does cost money to protect and preserve the resource. Ak47 shows a good sense of practicality and is probably right. To blame him for the Water issue over the last two years is wrong and misses the point. His was the Junior partner in Government; that is what the electorate determined. In terms of cabinet collective responsibility the Government of that time should shoulder whatever blame or success it attained.
Michael, the legislation passed in 1998 giving funding to the water services from central taxation combined with 5% of ALL motor tax is more than enough to fund the current water system. The millions upon millions spent by Irish water on consultancy is the embarrassing part. As for Coke head Kelly he has a cheek insulting the Dail, he’s the biggest embarrassment in there.
Hello .. 1998 ancient history, that money is being used / wasted on the HSE, pay and ridiculous pensions and jobs for life in the public service all supported by anti water charge idiots as well.
If it is “more than enough” to fund the current water system then how come the system is so out of date and in need of upgrading? It will cost billions to solve the problems in the system at the moment and that money has to come from somewhere.
Paul. maybe just maybe he, and every other government in the world, is right. We should pay for everything we consume..food beer petrol water. It works in most countries from Sweden to Venezuela. could it be possible that we are out of step?
@Micheal S. O’ Ceilleachair: It will cost billions to solve the problems in the system at the moment and that money has to come from somewhere.
So step 1 is to invest up to 2 billion in a billing system ? Expand the logic a bit here. How much will it cost per household per year to support the billing system over the next 15 years say. Include an upgrade of all meters. 5 million on postage. 80 million on IT consultancy to start-up. BG got the gig because they had the IT infrastructure and the expertise – but of course they sold it. I have asked the pro-IW commenters many times ….
Could the journal be any softer with this plank in an interview… Way ta go journal, you look bad also..
Who’s Alan Kelly I never heard of him?
He’s the expert guy on the subject of ….. ‘absolute joke of a dail’
Just go away…..and take the Labour Party with you !
Nasty, obnoxious, self-serving little troll of a man. Typical MeFeiner, past his sell by date.
A disgrace to politics and thats saying something…
‘The 41-year-old also believes Labour will do quite well in the next general election.’ – Deluded!!!!
Why are you bringing up this walking vomit. Why do you think anybody cares about this has-been.
He’s a pure bully boy, he wrecked the taxi business also !
Your sentiment probably echoes the lads that complained when cars were introduced to replace horses…
Seems to be plenty of taxis around
I thought the taxi drivers wrecked the taxi business.
@Swords Budget Cabs: Taxi drivers traded on their plates and stopped enough supply to cater for demand. A bit of give and take was all that was needed.
Is that a recent picture ?
He’s a pure ignorant pig , him and that Joan Burton , pure pigs !
He needs to go find a job he is good at, and take his small man syndrome elsewhere. Politics is not for him as he just doesn’t understand its basic workings, otherwise the public wouldn’t hold such obvious contempt, he is a dictator and national embarrassment. Alan just be quiet and go get a career that suits your level of intelligence.
He was re-elected just a few months ago: how do you square that with the nonsense you’ve posted above?
@Denito: “He was re-elected just a few months ago”
So what? Enda Kenny has been elected to the Dail for 40 years, with no noteable achievements in all that time. (And before you say “he became Taoiseach”. Really all that was the political equivalent to musical chairs).
@Denito: , He gained the final seat, that was some performance for a Government Minister that believed that he was invincible.He was hanging on by a thread for several hours, pouring loads of sweat out of him, and filling the nappy . Obviously he is as ignorant as a pig, because he believes he is still on the correct road. He is a bully in the Big Phil mould.
Just when I thought I couldn’t dislike this man anymore I find out he’s a United supporter. Game over Alan
As a Minister for the Environment, Kelly made the housing crisis much worse than it previously was and he caused much misery.
Kelly refused to listen to the voices of opposition to water charges and took a highly belligerent approach.
Lelly lacks principle, judgment and any notion of looking after the less privileged.
The slurry kid still talking s,,,,e
Lieber and kelly does’nt have a future
You cannot totally support the policies of a fascist, neo-liberal party in government, do the boot-boy job for them and say you’re a member of a party that supports the working class.
Alan Kelly worked for his brother while minister. Worked for vested interest. Never worked for the country or its people.
We continually elect people that despise the people who elect them.
“While Kelly still maintains that Labour in government managed to achieve a lot (naming the marriage referendum and legislating for the X case as examples) he admits the party perhaps didn’t inform the public “just how bad things were”.
“In relation to how we communicated and related the decisions we had to take, we certainly didn’t do as well as we should,” he admits.”
Another example of how crap journalism is in this country. Alan Kelly was allowed waffle unchallenged. Labour “didn’t communicated” well, or they made mistakes” bullshit Labour lied, shafted their electorate base. Also, just like Simon Coveney negotiating rent deals and him a landlord, Alan Kelly’s brother buying water infrastructure around the world and again nobody seem to mind there wa a huge conflict of interest here.
The undisputed chief arsehöle of the lot of them, which is saying something. Totally delusional.
hard hitting interview there <——-well done the journal dot ie
Ak47………total w@€nker
How did has been get a page in the journal it’s ruining Christmas there are real stories out there Carrie fishers heart attack and poor George Micheal rip
Get him out!!! Oh wait a sec……
You post this propaganda and then wonder why people are turning to social media for their news.
No interest In anything this man has to say. Hopefully he won’t see power again.
As a Minister for the Environment, Kelly made the housing crisis much worse than it previously was and he caused much misery.
Kelly refused to listen to the voices of opposition to water charges and took a highly belligerent approach.
Lelly lacks principle, judgment and any notion of looking after the less privileged.
Psychopath
Does he even know what the real meaning of labour means .I don’t think so people have told the government he was in that we will not pay for water twice .he obviously still obsessed with it but frankly the Irish people can’t afford them..which a real labour party would be screaming at the government and would have brought the government down over them as people are living in poverty and losing there homes because of the increase in all bills .mortgages that were changed for no good reason ..be a real leader in your party and stand up to fg .but u didn’t do that in government
Working people can’t afford accommodation in large part due to this lad’s incompetence
Never thought I’d be agreeing with kelly, re joke of a dail. But it’s quite similar to the last dail as well, the only difference I see is the same shower of incompetent public wasters sitting in different seats.
Still waiting for proper functional Internet and broadband access after these jokers in successive gov have been promising to roll it out for umpteen years now.
Labour have nevet represented the working man,they flood the market with cheap labour and drive down wages Look what Blair done to the UK and Hollande to F rance and Gilmore and Burton to Ireland
Why is ‘criticism’ automatically equated to ‘abuse’? Kelly is asked how he dealt with criticism, and then we get countless paragraphs outlining how he dealt with various abuses, the actual subject is never returned to. Perhaps it’s beyond his capability to understand that people can have legitimate criticism of his actions while in Government.
Kelly sums up our country and our plight exquisitely. Ambitious and misaligned, transparently ego driven men of little imagination and no ability to inspire. Kelly should never have gotten the idea that he is more than an apparatchik, sent out to ram home water charges any way he could. Look at him now, still spoofing and blustering and hoping to Christ he can keep the show on the road. Give it up Kelly, you have zero recognition outside of your backwater town, for good reason.
“My mother is involved in everything in the community. My father has a great sense of social justice, a great sense of fairness…”
So, what happened to you then ??
I don’t hate many things but Kelly is one of them. Utter $c^m
Please go away
Anyone else think this sounds like the mitigating circumstances a defence lawyer might read out in court when the accused has 7565217218619 previous convictions?
‘Their home burned to the ground in the mid-1970s when Kelly’s mother was pregnant with him – a hardship that he and his family remained conscious of throughout his years growing up.’
This article seems a bit like the deluded interview he gave a few months ago, just toned down a bit.
Liebour will be never be back in government Alan and i also think you may be in for a surprise with the new office you will get, if figure it won’t be in the Dail. The thing is you and liebour did such a piss poor job and compounded with lies and fraud to the people is jail ye should be in but we the people will settle for the political oblivion in which ye will forever more reside.
Hes a popular fellow isnt he?
Santa presi for failed Irish politicians and parties ….
All politics is local .. and there’s nothing more local than people’s wallets.
To win voter support taxes must comply with principles of taxation (in a word fairness):-
- No 2-Tier Taxes .. LPT (owner families taxed but not state housed), Car Tax (pre 2008 v post 2008), Water (Urban v rural)
- No Regressive Taxes .. LPT, Car Tax, Water, VAT on first time buyers .. fails “ability to pay” test.
- No Taxes on “Life Essentials” , Food (incl water), air, shelter, clothing, sanitation, health, personal transport, ed …
- Comply with Canons of Taxation .. must allow for inability to pay..
Else we are all moving quickly to political and social unrest .. more Brexits, Trumps, Le Pens …
Progressive, appropriate, moderate and fair taxes are acceptable to fund public services.
Taxes which fail the 4 Frameworks of Good Taxation Policy should be abolished. Broadening the tax base is not acceptable when they fail basic canons of taxation rules .. such as “ability to pay”! … no more daft Labour taxes.
Italy abolished its hated LPT on family homes in Dec 2015.
Sweden abolished its hated inheritance tax . TD knocks on the door on the death of a relative demanding tax.
France abolished its annual Motor tax in 2001. Personal transport (car) is a basic need in modern world.
What a knob end he is
Wasn’t there a supposed conflict of interest in what he was doing with irish water and a family member ?
Either way this guy is dangerous, lies and pig ignorant stubbornness a potent mix.
In my view the man is a physical embodiment of all that is wrong with Irish politics. Thankfully most have seen through his crocodile tears and hiss attempts to get public sympathy by playing the victim card.
“My father had a great sense of social justice and fairness” Well, that’s one apple that fell a very, very long way from the tree.
He’s a twenty-four carat plonker and power freak…
Must be stuck if a has-been gets words. Typically Irish. Like RTE – interviewing their own ‘stars.’ Cringy.
He’s lucky he doesn’t live in America, I would imagine Aimish and Quakers would even be tempted to beat him up…
Of course Alan Kelly needs to continue talking Shtie, he was one of the Clown Prince’s of the last Dail along with Big Phil. He doesn’t have a brain in his head, he has learned nothing in five years. He is in the wrong party of course, the few labour TDs that are there don’t want him, he barely got elected on the last seat, and he cannot shut up. He is really a Blueshirt.
This corrupt simpleton needs to see the inside of a courthouse into his connections with the filthy corrupt fake water “company” that the general public successfully managed to crush.
Bad attempt at the “straight-talking, every-day man” line. Kelly is a thoroughly unlikeable, obnoxious, odious little man who’s not clever or politically cunning enough to conceal it.
Ah no, he’s all wrong. We got on fine when we dumped our waste water in the rivers and in beaches. Sure who uses beaches anyway only bloody foreigners? And so what if there’s a few brown trout in the water and on the beach, never done us any harm, so it didn’t. And the water was free.
He is right that this is an absolute joke of a Dàil. You however Alan are the joke in this article.
Didnt read the article went straight to the comments. More fun down here and the journal knows it. Lobs a hand grenade of an article and sits back.
I wish the whingers and cowards on here would go away. A politician who stands by his convictions is to be admired much more than the populist parasites who care nothing for their environment.
Says the lad whinging……if you don’t like it princess then don’t read it, while u May believe that about aka47 Kelly, the majority hate his guts and he’s given plenty of reasons to hate them as well
It’s sheep like you that gave us this joke of a Dail.
@Broadoak: “A politician who stands by his convictions”
Did you miss the Tesco campaign ad Kelly was elected on? How did you miss that?
@Pat Gavin: Best Dail in a while. How many laws have been guillotined through? Remember IW had 3 hours in Dail Eireann. THREE HOURS. The sheep are the ones who voted for it.
You’re better off turning off the comments now, this vile pig doesn’t deserve the steam of a cow’s piss.
Regardless of whether people like Alan Kelly or not, we know where he stands. There are very few in Dáil Éireann about whom the same can be said. If people thought the water charges choice through they would opt for hefty family allowances coupled with significant charges for use over and above the norm. The so-called ‘free water’ is paid for by the PAYE sector for the greater part, the tax-dodging wealthy make a small contribution and, because of their lifestyles, pools, jacuzzis, etc. enjoy disproportionate benefits. Our working-class hero TDs are laughing at us and will continue to do so while we demand the ‘right’ to subsidise the wealthy. Keep telling it like it is, Alan Kelly. I’m not a Labour fan, I used to vote SF & FF, whatever about SF, FF will never again get a bite from me as I cannot abide liars and thieves.
Appreciate your courage
@Tomás Ó Briain: “If people thought the water charges choice through they would opt for hefty family allowances coupled with significant charges for use over and above the norm. ” … this is the position Kelly is moving to and wants you to take. This requires a billing system which will be costing between 1-2 billion investment plus support annual operational costs plus interest plus the hundreds of million of LPT wasted. What % of the annual cost is overhead? 30 a month I would estimate.
“because of their lifestyles, pools, jacuzzis, etc. enjoy disproportionate benefits. ” …. you know what – an additional levy on an annual cost and bingo – you get the money minus the army to run the billing system.
Kelly is telling as he, Teneo and FG want it.
Is this fake news ? . sure this is madness its Alan Kelly for god sake .. a total fraud.
☝
And he would know with been an absolute tosser
What a sickener
Strangely enough no mention of that meeting with Brendan Ryan and his pals?And shortly after said pals getting a very lucrative government contract?Another puff piece by The Irish Journal yet again.
The future is the IMF and their pals?
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/christine-lagarde-convicted-imf-head-found-guilty-of-negligence-in-fraud-trial-a7484586.html
So he was raised on a subsidised farm and his parents actually had to go out to work.Pass the violin as the made up fairytale of tipperary hardship and they couldn’t pay their water bill and the bailiff cut the water off.It’s not easy to be a government spoofer!
Would you trust a addict ? .would you trust someone addicted to power ? Like all addicts A.K.47 Kelly craves the next fix ,power for him is his fix , He will be remembered as a failed minister Every time i hear or read about him i have to remind myself he is a Labour .T.D. ,because he sounds like the most right wing blueshirt ,He and Labour are just another right wing party , Sold out to ministerial power and pensions ,.
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