Post your questions for Paul Gogarty TD here.

On the PSO levy, the CER says that it's a formula laid out by the EU in it's directives, I've looked at the directive and I can't see a formula. It uses words like apportionment and charge to customer, but it doesn't determine the basis of apportionment. In gas legislation the PSO levy method of apportionment is at the direction of the Minister so I would say it's the same for electricity.

So the minister is imposing a flat charge which Dan Boyle said on Frontline the Greens were against, as it didn't adhear to polluter pays principle.

There was nothing to stop Ryan imposing a levy based on consumption, they can say it's only a €5er but based on consumption many would be paying higher, and would be harder to justify.

I would like to know why the greens as part of government allow special interest groups such as IBEC and the Trade Unions have such influential say in how we run our country when these lobby groups are merely small sections of society and they are elected to represent the all the citizens. These groups have far too much influence as they each try to get more resource for their area (or keep them in present times) even though they know the country on the whole, would be better served by cutting resources in some of these areas.

I would also like to know why the government has insisted so far in cutting capital projects over reforming the public sector which is long overdue anyway. Removing the inefficiencies of the public services would be a much more beneficial approach in current times. Capital expenditure on infrastructure creates jobs in the area worst hit by this recession and more importantly helps make us more competitive by making transport of goods faster, cheaper and greener. We have worse infrastructure than many of our neighbors/competitors and so I feel this would have been a much better area to keep spending and reform public sectors immediately rather than waiting until there were no other options as the present government has done as they are one poor decision away from calling the IMF.

As the Greens are basically a party that believes in infrastructure investment, why have they not been trying to preserve this expenditure and push for reform of public services which would make us more efficient and therefore more competitive again and much more likely to lead to economic recovery than cutting capital expenditure to avoid taking on trade unions which we are going to have to take on anyway in the coming years to return to a balanced budget?

I would also like to know why the public aren't getting the information we need/want in relation to NAMA and throughout the financial crisis that the government are demanding the people of the country pay for government policy failure and bankers failures. Sure since it is our money (to the tune of an annual wage per person in the state even those without jobs) we are entitled to this information and borrowing this money in our name for these special interest groups without giving us the reasons why is basically theft of our wages (and most likely our childrens wages).

I would also like to know what the green parties position and plans are to reduce the cost of freedom of information requests and make them more readily available to the public. This is important as the government is again trying to stop/make extremely difficult for the citizens that pay for everything get information they want on the way their money is being spent.

Do you think that the Greens stint in government has been a success, and will be viewed as a success in the long run?
Because, from what I can see, their agenda seems to be putting people off Green and environmental topics. If some environmental topic is mentioned, it is often lambasted as another one the Greens wild ideas that will cost us more money. I think more could possibly be achieved if thee Green Party were less 'in your face' about some of their policies, and concentrated on promoting long term projects like securing our energy needs and providing cost-effective alternatives to how we currently consume, instead of introducing things like a carbon tax in the middle of a recession when the majority of people have to use petrol, with no alternative, or focusing on minor things like the stag hunting ban which just turned a lot of people off the Green Party and anything associated with them, and made them look petty.
Do you think the Greens current way of doing things is the right way, or do you think the party could pursue its goals in a different of better way, and how so?

Did you ever regret becoming a TD? That's my question!