General Irish politics discussion thread

So everything is alright because the public forget?

Your disdain for the public and proper accountability of government is noted. We can see what matters to you.

CC intervening to save Paschal again. He talks down the clock in order to evade.

Now now. You are the one saying failing to declare/drink driving/running the country off a cliff (Paschal and the 2 Cowen's) is ok as long as the electorate forget. Not I.

No ding dong neccessary, here's exactly what you said:

In other words - Everything will be ok because the electorate will forget. Who really cares about infringement of the rules.

Looks like the man putting up posters is small beer compared to scamming a State-funded institution. So much so that they changed their rules to stop hiring to political parties. Leaving a bad smell in their wake is par for the course with Sinn Fein.

Looking forward to the updates from Sinn Fein on this.

One of the queasy sinister things for Irish politics to emerge from all of this is carry on of the main stream media.

The Irish Times asked SF about the 7000 pound shortfall in their submission to SIPO 2? years ago, but decided to hold that story from us until under declaration became an issue for the sitting government party.

They are political players on the field, instead of independent journalists bringing the truth without fear or favour.

What?

How is reporting that a party verifiably didn't submit to SIPO a SLAPPS issue? What grounds would there have been to sue? Nonsense response.

They chose to hold the story and when it was politically oppurtune they published it. If SLAPPS was stopping them in 2020 then it would have stopped them a week ago.

But they DID publish it at a politically opportune time (for the coalition government).

They have also published a whole raft of articles about SF that would be more damaging than an article about something that was verifiably true.

You are not doing much for your credibility here.

It doesn't.

That SF had not correctly submitted to SIPO was verifiably true.

Therefore no case would succeed in court if they had simply reported it.

The question arises, are the mainstream media holding back damaging stories on the government and the opposition in order to influence our politics?

The Village and The Ditch's work suggests they may be and THAT is sinister and worrying.

This is 'chilling' (for Irish politics) journalism on display again from the irish Times.

Having sat on a story about SF until a government minister was under scrutiny Collins is now trying to use what has tumbled out of that as a way to stop scrutiny...of it seems, government ministers. There was nothing 'groundless' in the scrutiny of Donohue. Nor in the scrutiny of other parties, if there is a case to answer, then answer it they should.

Anybody who wants a proper regulatory watchdog should see this as a sinister development.

If you breach regulations you should be held to account whether you are in opposition or in government, that has to be the landing zone.

The MSM are all out in general promoting the idea that because SF have come under scrutiny that that vindicates a senior member of government. It doesn't and never should.

Eoin O'Broin's complete lack of understanding of all things housing comes to the fore once again.

Of course, only 3% of all planning applications are judicially reviewed. Very few house extensions or sheds in the back garden will ever be judicially reviewed.

The judicial reviews happen over the big developments that are most badly needed. I wouldn't be surprised if 50% of these developments were being judicially reviewed, but it is far more than 3%.

Clueless and ignorant are the words that come to mind when listening to O'Broin.

Good to see that Labour are considering pursuing this. English has treated accountability very shabbily and should come into the Dáil to face3 scrutiny.

Absolutely enormous. I've already seen the figure of €12bn mentioned in relation to it. Not a single family that was fobbed off or refused redress will forget this come election time.

A rake of names have also been mentioned in relation to it, including serving government ministers, Labour ministers from times past, as well as PDs, FF. Also members of the judiciary.

IF TRUE I wonder if it could be considered a conspiracy to evade the law? Now that would be an "appalling vista".

Varadkar going for the 'I didn't know' defence on this. Sounds familiar.

A bit of context is required before people start getting up on a soapbox complaining about this.

This was widely covered at the time. The issue was whether those with a medical card were entitled to have all their costs paid in a private nursing home, no matter the standard of the private nursing home. Their claim was that the State was liable to pay even if they were in the most luxurious nursing home in the world. That is patently a nonsense and no government or State would be liable in that situation.

As Varadkar says, there was never a test case, there was never a case that went to court. Grandiose overblown claims of €12bn coming from Twitter links and no substance hardly merit discussion.