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 Taoiseach Brian Cowen has stated, with not so much as a blush, that the Government’s revised €39bn Capital Investment Programme will lead to 270,000 jobs being provided between now and 2016. However, overall spending on infrastructure is being cut by up to 40%, when compared to the 2007 National Development Plan.
Announcing his plan, the Taoiseach confirmed that Metro North and the €2.5bn Dart Underground will go ahead in Dublin.
Nice one Dublin, and whilst we accept that investment of this kind is welcome, using current estimates, we must keep in mind that it costs €200,000 to construct a simple bus stop.
We continue to over developed and over balance our east coast, while neglecting most of the rest of Ireland. It seems that despite the country being in ruins, Dublin must continue to be nurtured, and rural Ireland must “Eat the crumbs which fall from the masters table“, (Matthew 15:27). In rural parts of Ireland you can damaging your car by taking a short drive on our roads, but we are told there is no money to repair them. In Dublin there is a Railway service, there is the Luas, there is a Bus service, there are Taxi’s, but now they require an Underground as well. Dublin does not need an Underground, Thurles does need a ring road, but it would appear that Fianna Fail are borrowing to buy the next election and the gullible Irish electorate will fall for it again, if there are three successive declines in the unemployment figures in late 2011 and early 2012.
There will, we are informed, be more capital investment in Water Services which really means “lets get those water metres in place, and get our €350 minimum from every household, in water charges, to prop up the City of Dublin, County and Local Councils“. This whole plan fails to realise that people can only spend money if they have it. Soon 80% of all incomes will disappear in stealth taxes before each taxpayer is allowed to pay the “candle maker” and the “shoe maker”.
Continue reading Infrastructure Investment – And The Award Goes To Dublin
Dublin! Dublin! Dublin! everything appears these days to be centred in and around Dublin. A plague on our Capital city say the dwellers from “Beyond the Pale.”
It now appears that this city formally known as “The Pale” is being promoted as a place for “Fun and Craic” in a new solo run using €1 million of our Tourism campaign funding.
 "The Pale" The word “pale ” (An Pháil) derives ultimately from the Latin word palus, meaning a stake, used to support a fence and from this came the figurative meaning of boundary and eventually the phrase “beyond the pale” as something outside the boundary of an area from Dundalk to Carrickmines Castle, Dublin known today as gullible “Rural Ireland.”
Minister for Tourism Mary Hanafin TD said that this new radio and online campaign by Tourism Ireland would be seen by an audience of over 12 million, British tourists. She correctly states that Britain is the largest single source market for visitors to the island of Ireland and provides more than half of all visitors to the island. This campaign will involve direct marketing and social media initiatives, as well as promotions with tour operators and air and sea carriers. It will capitalises on the British market and intensively promote Dublin to the British holidaymaker.
Frank Magee of Dublin Tourism states: “The capital city attracted 1.5 million visitors from Britain last year, which resulted in five million bed nights, but losing its market share in Britain. Dublin has been the driver in Irish tourism, bolstering the Irish figures in recent years and there’s a realisation that if Dublin doesn’t do well, Ireland doesn’t do well.”
What a load of verbal diarrhea Mr Magee. Ireland’s false reputation of being an expensive holiday destination is spread by Tourists who spend too much time in Dublin drinking €3.50 cups of coffee served by staff who do not speak English .
Come on down to Tipperary folks if you want a holiday offering value for your money. Thurles is the ancestral home of your head of state, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, and it is here you can experience friendly relaxation, carefree fun and craic, your children can run wild and run free, the air is clean and you can find your car still parked where you left it the night before.
It would appear rural Irish taxpayers, for far to long, have been the silent and subservient suppliers of ‘money on demand’ to support Dublin tourism, so let us keep things in perspective remembering that in 2009 the Irish Hotels Federation represented almost 1,000 hotels and guesthouses throughout the whole country, which in turn employ over 59,000 people. It seems only proper that those beyond the Pale should like their fair slice of the tourism promotion cake.
How Much Money Was Spent Promoting Our Capital City Dublin In The Past Ten Or So Years?
€5m for “The Monument of Light” or “Spire Of Light” erected in O’Connell Street, better known by the names: ‘The Spike’, ‘The Stiletto in the Ghetto’, ‘The Erection at the Intersection’, ‘The Poker next to Croker’ and ‘The Stiffy in the Liffey’. At the time of its erection on O’Connell Street in 2003, the Spire Of Light was described as “self-cleaning”, but Dublin’s city council now concede that its maintenance cost €205,000 last year and will increase to at least €218,000 this year, and thats before they pick up a discarded chip bag.
Continue reading Dublin – A Plague On Your City Says Rural Ireland
 Gleeson Group, the Borrisoleigh, Co.Tipperary based drinks distributor, has acquired the Gilbeys wine business from Diageo in a deal understood to be worth close to €6 million.
The deal was signed off on in recent days and followed approaches from a number of potential bidders. It is understood that Gleeson Group will continue to use the Gilbeys name and that all staff working at the wine firm will transfer to the new owner. Gleeson Group owns and distributes a number of well known brands including Tipperary Water, Finches soft drinks and Bavaria beer.
The firm did a refinancing deal earlier this year, which gave it a €25 million war chest for future acquisitions.
A spokeswoman for Diageo confirmed the transaction had taken place, but refused to comment on the details of the transfer, since the deal was subject to the regulatory approval of the Competition Authority, a process that is expected to take up to three months to conclude.
Diageo, which owns Guinness and Baileys, has had previous dealings with the Gleeson Group, which is owned by the local Cooney family. It sold Finches to the group in 2004, followed by its United Beverage wholesale business in 2005.
Industry sources state that the Gleeson Group previously controled about 2 per cent of the wine distribution market prior to the deal, while Gilbeys controled about 13 per cent.
Sales at Gleeson Group fell by almost €20 million last year to €230 million, and pre-tax profits were down by 10 per cent to €2.7 million. No dividend was paid to the Cooney family, compared with €2.5 million in 2008.
On Saturday 19th June Thurles Credit Union held its first Members’ Cash Draw for 2010/11 in the Banking Area at Credit Union House, Parnell Street.
Acting Mayor of Thurles Councillor Michael Cleary attended the draw as guest of honour. Attendees who witnessed the draw included Credit Union Members, Directors, Supervisors and Staff.
The original Members’ Car Draw commenced in 2001, and to date there have been 65 major prize winners.
 Following a review of the draw, the Board of Directors decided to amend the draw to a ‘Cash Draw’ as the vast majority of previous winners opted to take a cash prize instead of a car. Credit Union members approved this change at last year’s AGM. Almost 4,000 members have now registered for the Members’ Cash Draw in 2010/2011.
Pictured here at the June Members Cash Draw were (l to r): Anne Tynan (C.U. Director), Paddy Crowe (Supervisor) , Councillor Michael Cleary (Acting Mayor of Thurles), Frank Connolly (Credit Union President), Donal Scannell (CEO Thurles Credit Union) and DJ Darcy (C.U. Director).
Acting Mayor Michael Cleary drew the winning numbers for the 4 cash prizes and winners have been announced as follows:
Michael and Christina Grainger, Corbally, Thurles, were the lucky winners of the first prize of €10,000.
Miriam O’ Brien, River Street, Killenaule and Mary Ryan, Fennor House, Urlingford both won cash prizes of €1,000.
The final cash prize of €500 went to Helen Condon, Gleann Ri, Holycross.
Congratulations and well done to all involved.
 The recent announcement of a proposed Casino for the village of TwoMileBorris, Thurles, Co.Tipperary, could be closer than we think, if the present Government were to release details of their proposed intended changes to the Gaming and Lotteries Act .
This outdated legislation, The Gaming and Lotteries Act of 1956, is a major hurdle which currently prevents Ireland from putting in place a proper regulatory regime that would help this country to become a major E-Commerce hub for, in particular, the global online-casino business.
A major review of the present Gaming and Lotteries Act, which began in mid 2009, is now complete and a decision from the Government on intended changes is slow to materialise. A recent speech by An Taoiseach Brian Cowen TD given to the horse-racing industry, recently, suggests the industry would receive financial support into the future, through taxes on online betting, so what is the plan and why the delay in these recessionary times?
Properly implemented and governed, the introduction of a new Act has the potential to create some 5,000 to 8,000 new jobs for e-commerce professionals, web developers, accountants, business analysts and mathematicians. Properly legislated and implemented changes to this Act, introduced immediately, would mean that if Ireland were to capture a mere 5% share of the present global online Casino business, it would immediately represent an Irish sector worth at least €2 billion.
Any changes which would open up this present outdated legislation, must first ensure that those vulnerable, including young people, are protected and that measures are formulated to ensure gambling is kept free of criminal elements, through its business being both fairly and transparently conducted.
Any changes to the present 1956 Gaming and Lotteries Act should include a new strong regulatory body, be free of all / any government interference and should also have under its umbrella, control over the present National Lottery, proceeds of the latter which appears presently to be the gift of government ministers. Irish National Lottery Sports Capital Grant Allocations in the past, appear to show a clear bias towards the geographical areas represented by the Minister for Arts, Sports and Tourism and the Minister for Finance. This bias is the result of the procedures by which the funds are allocated.
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