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 A Judge in Clonmel Court has ruled this morning that the former Fine Gael TD and Minister Michael Lowry should now stand trial on five charges relating to Income Tax matters.
Justice Tom Teehan gave his verdict on a number of applications made by Mr Lowry’s defence team at Clonmel Court this morning. Latter had previously argued that Mr Lowry could not get a fair trial.
Council for the State Mr Remy Farrell had made the claim that a jury in Co Tipperary could be biased, objectively or subjectively, having given Deputy Lowry their first preference votes during past General Elections. Mr Lowry’s legal team had claimed that their client had no liability for the alleged taxes being sought and this fact was backed up by two sets of expert accountants.
The sixty year-old independent Tipperary TD and native of Holycross now faces five charges, including knowingly completing incorrect tax returns on a number of dates between 2003 and 2007.
Judge Teehan, who rejected the defence arguments, has directed that the trial will now go ahead before Dublin Circuit Court at a date as yet to be agreed.
In a televised address last night, US President Barack Obama outlined the executive action he plans to take, which will offer work permits to millions of undocumented people, potentially including thousands of Irish people, some natives of Co Tipperary, latter who ‘live in the shadows’ and are currently unable to return to this country for fear of detection by Deportation Enforcement Officials.
Today Mr Obama will sign into law a series of measures that will protect these illegal immigrants from deportation and indeed the video hereunder is well worth viewing in its entirety.
The executive action he outlined in the video shown above falls into three groups: changes to enforcement, a new temporary legal status for illegal immigrants and new visa categories.
Under these new plans, those who are deemed to be in the US illegally for at least five years, who have children who are either US citizens or legal residents and who pass a criminal background check, will be entitled to full protection from deportation. Enforcement officials will only deport those convicted of serious criminal offences and not those previously arrested for minor offences.
Former undocumented persons will also be allowed to apply for a work permit if they register for taxes and social security.
There will be new visas for students who complete science and technology degrees and for entrepreneurs who have sufficient capital funding and are in a position to create employment.
These new changes are expected to come into force from early next year.
Tipperary Fine Gael TD Mr Noel Coonan fears that Ireland faces “an ISIS situation” if the more extreme elements of the Water Charge Protests are not “nipped in the bud.” Mr Coonan also claims that protesters in Dublin are “like parasites” and said, quote, “they live off country people as they have never acknowledged the role of country people.”
Gardaí are now understood to be investigating claims that a death threat was made to Mr Noel Coonan following these comment by him in the Dáil yesterday. This leaves currently two leading Tipperary politicians, currently living in fear for their lives and as such must surely influence Fine Gael leaders into the calling of a General Election.
Aside from this most regrettable threat, but in relation to the provision of clean drinking water one must ask the question; is this the same TD who, when in opposition and Fine Gael’s Spokesperson on CAP Reform and who in January 2011, called on the then Minister for Agriculture to lift restrictions that prevented farmers from spreading slurry during the rainy season, which eventually would end up in our clean water sources? “Farmers are ruled by ridiculous calendar deadlines imposed by this out-of-touch Government. Minister Brendan Smith TD must ease restrictions on slurry spreading and allow the farming community to be dictated by current weather conditions which are perfect for spreading. Would it make a huge difference if the Government permitted farmers to spread two weeks ahead of schedule?” asked the Tipperary North/South Offaly Deputy.
Is this the same TD who in 2012 welcomed colleague Minister Phil Hogan’s decision to announce extensions to the periods for the application of certain fertilisers?
Note: I tell you this purely for the further education of all Mr Coonan’s believed urban ‘ISIS Protesters’ currently residing in Dublin; apart from the normal nitrates and pesticides applied to crop-land, if not spread responsibly on farmland, underground water can easily become contaminated by microbes or germs from the spreading of slurry and from waste-water treatment systems. Slurry contains cow urine and cow faeces; latter which includes chemicals and medicines e.g. de-wormers and anti-biotics, together with chemicals used to clean cowshed floors.
Do you, the people of Tipperary, believe that Mr Noel Coonan is capable of answering or even defending truthfully the specific defined accusations put by his assumed ‘ISIS Lieutenant’ Ms Clare Daly in Dáil Éireann two days ago, (Video Shown above) or indeed was Mr Coonan even present, sitting in the Dáil Chamber, when she made her heart felt speech on behalf of those earning less than €10,000 per year? Is it fair that a person earning €10,000 per year should pay this government the equivalent of one weeks wages for water, when Mr Coonan is asked to pay exactly the same sum taken from a salary which is at least some nine to thirteen time greater, when his annual share of some €7,000,000 in politicians expenses is divided up, latter contributed by Irish taxpayers?
Does this the same Fine Gael TD truly believe that the over 1,000 water protesters, organised by the Thurles Right to Water group, many his supporters, that took to the streets of Thurles on November 8th last, were really ISIS Members?
Is this the same Fine Gael TD who despite many years in Dáil Éireann (2007) together with his Labour colleagues and others; all reigning during continuous local factory closures, failed consistently to attract even one job opportunity to the Thurles area, but weekly, continuously ‘WELCOMES’ the achievements and general funding opportunities put in place by his senior Government Ministers, as if these announcements were some way influenced by his intervention?
Surely, never has a Coalition Government, of which Mr Coonan is a member, so earned Irish peoples total distrust so quickly, so absolutely and so inherently as this present Fine Gael and Labour grouping.
Thank God, Mr Coonan has only spoken in 22 committee discussions and Dáil debates in the last year — well below the average among serving TDs.
 In his surgery, while stitching a deep cut to the hand of a 65-year-old Tipperary farmer; the latter’s injury caused by a confused cow being de-horned in his cattle crush, the local Thurles doctor struck up a casual conversation with his nervous patient.
Their conversation eventually got around to the current problems within Irish Water, politics in general and under performing Tipperary politicians. The old farmer suggested that, “Well, as I see it, most politicians in Tipperary are ‘Post Turtles’.”
As you can imagine with very few, if any, Turtles to be found naturally occurring in Tipperary and not being familiar with this descriptive title, the local doctor asked his patient to further elaborate on his ‘Post Turtle’ correlation with politicians.
The old farmer explained, “Doctor when you’re driving down Seskin Lane in Thurles for example, if you should come across a narrow fence post with a turtle balancing precariously on top, that’s a ‘Post Turtle’.”
The old farmer, observing the now even more puzzled look on his doctor’s face, continued in his explanation; “You see Doctor, you realise that the turtle didn’t climb up there of his own efforts, he doesn’t belong up there, he doesn’t know what to hell to do while he is up there, he’s elevated totally beyond his normal ability to properly function and one can’t help but wonder what kind of dumb arse placed him up there in the first place.”
“Irish Water” said the elderly farmer, “Sure it’s rather like what a Dublin Whorehouse Madam once told me many years ago; “Sir”, said she politely,“If you got it, you sell it; once sold sure you’ve still got it. It’s a very lucrative and progressive business, if you can keep it of the balance sheet – water that is – if you know what I mean!”
 A bomb threat was made against the offices of the Environment Minister, Mr Alan Kelly, here in Tipperary this morning.
Minister Kelly is tasked with overseeing ‘Irish Water,’ yet another mismanaged “banana skin to slip on” left behind by the exit of Fine Gael Minister Phil Hogan to Europe.
It is understood that the bomb threat was made to Mr Kelly’s constituency office, latter situated in Nenagh, Co Tipperary, earlier this morning.
Through a spokesperson for Mr Kelly, Labour’s Junior Minister Aodhan O’Riordain, has confirmed that a member of staff in Mr Kelly’s Nenagh office was extremely upset, having receiving this anonymous telephone communication. It is understood Gardaí have been notified with regard to this rather unsavoury communication.
Meanwhile, protesters have gathered in neighbouring Limerick at an event involving the Minister for Finance, Mr Michael Noonan. The crowd have been chanting anti-water charge slogans and Gardaí and plain clothes detectives have been drafted into the area to ensure that the protest remains peaceful.
In another incident, Gardaí in West Cork are forensically investigating the burning of two Irish Water vans over the weekend. The believed malicious incident happened in the early hours of yesterday morning. Gardaí in Bantry confirm that both Renault vans were the property of a contractor working for Irish Water.
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