Mica Redress

Is No one a little bit suspicious that the government are refusing to have an investigation into this debacle?

Are they afraid to find out what really happened In our quarries? And decisions made by councils?

You'd think for such a costly mess, they'd want to try to get to the bottom of it and find out what exactly went wrong.

@jj880 Hi, from reading this thread over the past few days I believe you may be impacted by this issue? If you are, firstly I hope you find a satisfactory resolution and any impact is minimalised as much as reasonably possible.

I have a question about going to Europe as I’ve noticed you mention it a few times. Having done an admittedly quick google search, I cannot find any details about any court cases or anything with the European courts… can you provide some more detail as to who has taken the matter to Europe and what the courts here found before referring the matter to the EU?

This is a complex issue which I’m sure has many aspects but if someone is in court/going to Europe is suggests blame is being laid and from what I can see so far, there is no one entity to blame but more a number of entities who can take their share.

I’m sorry if these are obvious questions but I’ve never heard of the issue until stumbling across this thread after a few pints the other night and want to learn differing POV’s. Although I do remember seeing a few people protesting outside The Dail the other day about redress, I’m presuming this is what the protest was.

This is a frustrating time for both mica home owners and those who feel their taxes should not be going towards redress in this scandal. This should have been stopped and fixed long ago. The damage should be perhaps total in the 100s of millions and not 10s of billions which is where I think it's heading.

A few home owners did get together about 8 years ago. Their solicitor produced a letter that stated the main quarry in Donegal had no indemnity insurance and told home owners they had no case. The solicitor in question then demanded a huge amount of money to hand back all documentation gathered up to that point. After that they turned to local politicians who strung them along for years with promises of help. This resulted in the scheme that is now being argued over. It now transpires the quarry had to be insured to be used by Donegal Coutny Council. This has been brought to light through the support with the help of the vast amount of people now helping and researching this. Back then it was only a handful of families involved. As for me personally I had my suspicions about my house for the last few years but cracks only started appearing during the Summer hot spell of this year. My house is at the start of the road to ruin so I am keeping myself up to date. It must be remembered this has been going on for years in Donegal with no-one being held to account. Not only that quarries allowed to continue pumping out blocks. People sitting in crumbling houses watching lorries flat out with loads from the quarry that ruined their homes.

I have personal experience in a case a few years ago where the EU forced Ireland to stop using legislation found to be illegal under EU legislation and then ammend it after a high court challenge. It was related to a government body and not manufacturing but the process is the same. I will not reference the case details here as that will reveal my identity. I think I will take a break from this thread. My intention is not to offend and upset anyone here but I find it hard to stomach the whole situation. My belief is that to have any chance of a satisfactory outcome here it lies in Europe as I have been through the process before. Others are of course entitled to their opinions.

The poll was probably an online one on the website of one of the groups looking for this. About as reliable as a Donegal brick manufacturer.

I can't find the poll research.

Ok you sound genuine so I will engage. Upon the result of our high court case it was only a matter of weeks before the EU contacted the Irish government and forced them to cease all illegal activity and ammend legislation. The EU dont mess around. There was no room for any nonsense from the Irish Government like finishing up what they were doing under old legislation and filing for retention. It all stopped then and there.

If you have been following this thread closely you will have read there were mica infested blocks produced as recently as last August. I'm not up to speed on statute of limitations and warranty on concrete blocks but I think if a result comes from the High Court soon and the EU rules quickly there is scope for a lot more than ensuring future regulation alone.

The EU doesn't just "get involved" or "intercept" anything. An EU citizen can go to Brussels and get a meeting about their case. An MEP can help arrange this. If you have a legal expert that can point to the legislation that a member state has not followed the EU can step in. I think you are fishing now so Im not replying any more.

And only people who have any vested interest vote in those polls anyway.

No, that’s not how it works…. You can meet the EU all you like and discuss anything you want but if someone wants the EU to make a formal judgement on any matter, it won’t happen until it has been through the court system here. I cannot find any record of that happening…. Yet!

I may be mistaken but from what I’m gathering here is that campaigners met with an (Irish) MEP? This means nothing from a legal standpoint and the EU judicial system won’t take any matter on until it’s been referred to it by the courts here.

There is no details but generally Red C poll, means they have stopped someone in street or rang them up and asked them to participate in survey where number of questions will be asked, e.g. confidence in government, who would you vote for if election tomorrow that kind of thing along with other topical questions so the 71% would be correct at the time with small margin of error.

However, that poll was in June, a lot of people didn't even really know much about the issue then and definitely didn't know the extent or estimated costs, I'd be very surprised if a poll taken today would show the same result.

Anyone I have talked to agrees the governments needs to step in to help but that a 100% redress is too much and there needs to be limitations.

That article doesn't say that they actually met the Commission. They met Clare Daly, who is about as useful as a block of mica at this stage.

If?

Walt Disney made a fortune from films loosely based around the word if.

That poll was from June. Things have moved on since, and the revised cost is now public domain.

I would imagine, given the cost and less than endearing performances on TV that support has fallen.

No one was claiming large houses equate to sheds. You are twisting the narrative.

I'm sure they will do just fine without one person's support, but if they lose the general public then the campaign is dead. This isn't like a union campaign where public sympathy doesn't count a lot (but is still important) - it is absolutely everything here. The campaigners are essentially seeking charity, they have no leverage, other than booting two government TDs out at the next election.

If a narrative gets established that the campaigners want the state to build houses for them that a considerable proportion of them far exceed the national average in size then the campaign will fail. You have to remember that while this campaign for funds is going on, at same time there are many thousands of families in the rest of the State that can't afford to own any property are expected to pay for this.

For the campaigners, public good will is essential.

Yeah, I wasn't claiming that large houses equate to sheds though. A big shed is spacious. It's not luxury. That's not equating a large house to a shed no matter how you try to spin it.

The government have announced that they will be sending 3.5 billion euro north of the border for infrastructure projects over the next ten years. You're all against that too, I suppose?

I'm not demanding anything. The working group and the government are working together to come to an agreement. I support the working group's requests.

Typing 'FACT' doesn't actually mean that the sentence following the word is actually factual. It's merely your opinion.

Earlier you posted that people should be saying 'please' and 'thank you' rather than having a sense of entitlement. I will gladly say please to the powers that be if I had access to them. Saying please to some randomer on Boards achieves nothing.

The government didn't enforce the regulations and let the block suppliers pump out defective blocks. In my opinion, they should have been and are, therefore, on the hook. I know there are a few who think otherwise. That's fine.

Size alone is not what decides if a home is luxurious. A large empty room only becomes luxurious when it's filled with tasteful fixtures, fittings and furniture. Usually high end. That's not included in the redress scheme.