Funferal

MDH lashes the PDs

Slightly out of date, but I can’t resist posting this. I was recently sent the text of a speech Michael D. Higgins gave in the Dáil, criticising the jailing of anti-waste-charge protestors. It’s such a powerful piece of oratory – as much from Michael is – that I felt people might want to see it.

[For those who are unaware, the Progressive Democrats are a small neo-libertarian party currently in government with the populist/pro-business Fianna Fáil party. Joe Higgins, a former Labour Party member, is currently the sole representative of the Socialist Party in the Dáil, the Irish parliament. Michael D Higgins is the Labour Party President, and a representative for Galway, my home town (Ireland has multi-seat constituencies and Deputy Grealish of the PDs is one of the other representatives for Galway).
Mr. Michael D. Higgins: I support the motion tabled by the Technical Group. It should never have reached the point at which Deputy Joe Higgins and others find themselves in jail. They should not be in prison because their imprisonment came about as a result of the transfer of authority from elected representatives nationally and locally to un-elected members of local authorities, who have taken a decision without having to take into account the consequences of taking this matter to the courts for a ruling.
This has been an unfortunate chain of events, from which we should learn that every time this House cedes authority, it also cedes the capacity to deal with the consequences of actions.
The speech in which my Galway West colleague, Deputy Grealish, described his version of society would have done justice to the latter days of Franco’s regime in Spain. What is so admirable about a society in which one can be non-resident for the purpose of paying one’s taxes, but perfectly free to bid for assets of the State built up with public money.
The Deputy’s party stands for greed. He has a neck to use the word “hypocrisy” in light of his statement to the people of Galway that he opposed incineration and the solemn declaration he gave in my presence at another meeting that he was in favour of rights based legislation on disability. This was his position until he came to Dublin when he adopted the attitude that he was only one of a small group. He has discovered his voice and, to borrow his words, the people are waiting to give their opinion on him and his ilk next June.
The Tánaiste’s speech last night perpetuated an outrageous version of this country. The reality is we had an enormous boom which was squandered. Documents such as Achieving Inclusion by CORI show that every one of the previous budgets resulted in a massive transfer to those who were wealthy and could, for example, afford to save the maximum amount in an SSIA. The CORI publication describes statistically the groups to whom the transfers have been made and shows that the people on the lowest incomes benefited least from recent budgets, while those on the highest income benefited most. This is the reason the motion is correct to include the word “equity”.
Perhaps we have all been too polite in putting up with the spokespersons for the housing speculators who have made it impossible for people to put a roof over their head. Members of the Progressive Democrats Party who gave us lectures on productivity for benchmarking could improve their performance by turning up in the House or doing a little work on committees. They represent the speculating class, many of whom, in any advanced society, would be in jail for what they have brought about.
In the city in which Deputy Grealish and I live, 80% of those on the housing list would not qualify for affordable housing because they are on social welfare. Is it right to take lectures on how we should respect the law from people such as the Deputy? While the law must be respected, it must also be based on justice.
The motion is correct to use the word “equity”. We regularly hear those who care for the elderly, provide a home help service, help people with a handicap or sit alongside lonely people in out communities described by the Tánaiste as not having real jobs in the real economy. Her worry is that one will not be
able to drive people into the real economy, which is the reason she suggested we should all have to work beyond the age of 65 years. She stated we would have to consider keeping the elderly at work because the economy required it. The philosophy of the Progressive Democrats Party is “Live and die for the economy”, not any economy, but one based on individual greed.
I defy the Progressive Democrats Party to disprove an interesting statistic on our position in the European Union for spending on social protection. According to EU figures, we spend least of the member states. It is interesting that Sweden spends 32.9% of gross domestic product on social protection, which includes items such as child care, housing, access to public parks and so forth. The equivalent figure for Ireland is 14.7% and the gap is widening.
When these people come along and look at a country like Sweden, where there are high taxes to pay for good social protection and a civilised society built on principles of equity, it becomes a misery index. All the money one earns, according to the Progressive Democrats philosophy, is one’s own and one should not spend a penny on solidarity. That is the party that would lecture us on the inappropriateness of one of our Members being in prison, other people being in prison and the absence of a waste management strategy even though it delegates powers to people who are not accountable. That is what this is about.
It is interesting to see what has happened across every social indicator while our great economic miracle took place. I have heard from every Member of the Progressive Democrats that one must create wealth to reduce poverty. However, the figures show that the gaps in society have widened. Compare the chances of education for any child living in a city council house in Dublin, for example, with those of our children. Compare the chances of somebody who is dependent on the health services with those of somebody who can top up their contributions to private health.
I wonder at the neck of these people. I hope when they go to the doors throughout Ireland that people will take a good hard look at them and tell the Tánaiste, who asked them to live and die for the economy, what they think of how she squandered the surpluses by giving money to the rich. She refused to tax speculators and allowed immunity for non-residents. In addition, she took 1 billion euro and gave it, through transfer systems and the social saving scheme, to people who have the capacity to fork 250 euro and more per month into their savings. They will now get even more. Is it not great that the Government is giving it to them?
This is interesting for somebody who once served in Government with the Fianna Fáil Party. That party has been taken over by these apostles of greed and their notions of the economy. They are the people who will now turn to somebody who was relying on a person to visit them, not to physically help them but to listen and talk to them and reduce their loneliness, and tell them it is not a real job. The same will apply to a person who needs assistance with meals or who is organising a scheme for young people addicted to drugs or for former prisoners. Those are the 10,000 jobs that are affected – 5,000 in one batch while there are 2,500 each in the other two batches. What are those communities being told? They are told that when the great Progressive Democrats wagon rolls in and they have all gobbled at the trough, there will be something there for the people who have been left behind.
I take no lectures from Deputy Grealish and that little, miserable, individualist bloc in the Progressive Democrats or from the party they have contaminated, Fianna Fáil.