Greystones - Who do you want and why? [ELECTION 2011] All posts here.

Maudi

i tend to agree,simon is to eager.with little track record,he reminds me of one of those snake oil quacks from those old western movies,or a young bertie ahern.oozing to much charm.with little in the way of definitive policies,

eleMental

Dont think I'll be voting for Labour either - interesting to see yesterday morning that Tom Fortune thinks himself above the regulations for the timelines for putting up election posters. The Farankelly Road was branded from top to bottom before the Dail had even been dissolved or an election date confirmed. As usual, politicians consider that the laws of the land dont apply to them.
:mad:

Matt Le Tissue

mikedragon32 wrote: »

Steve Earle used to have this slogan on the sleeves of all his albums.

"If you don't vote, don't bitch"

I do have every intention of voting, the question is "is it worthwhile" when you consider what if any change the new Gov can actually achieve

Annasopra

eleMental wrote: »

Dont think I'll be voting for Labour either - interesting to see yesterday morning that Tom Fortune thinks himself above the regulations for the timelines for putting up election posters. The Farankelly Road was branded from top to bottom before the Dail had even been dissolved or an election date confirmed. As usual, politicians consider that the laws of the land dont apply to them.
:mad:

That was Tom Fortune - neither of the other labour candidates did it

loobylou

eleMental wrote: »

Dont think I'll be voting for Labour either - interesting to see yesterday morning that Tom Fortune thinks himself above the regulations for the timelines for putting up election posters. The Farankelly Road was branded from top to bottom before the Dail had even been dissolved or an election date confirmed. As usual, politicians consider that the laws of the land dont apply to them.
:mad:

Agree 100%. Really ticked me off too.
Nor will I vote for any candidate that puts up posters on the M11, (not seen any there yet but they were there last time around).

Matt Le Tissue

Was it in this thread I saw a link to a site that had a list of suggested questions to ask canvassers?
Can't find the link

mtucker

Matt Le Tissue wrote: »

Was it in this thread I saw a link to a site that had a list of suggested questions to ask canvassers?
Can't find the link

Here you go;

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056164120

krieture

So i went to see Stephen Donnelly speak in bray last night. I would have gone to the greystones meeting but i couldn't make it.

Just some general impressions that I got from the meeting;
1. he is a one policy candidate, completely focusing on the economic situation. His education and experience in this regard are world class and this is his strength. He squirmed a bit under questioning about other social issues, i.e the x case.
2. he was nervous and that came across. He had notes and referred to them quite often and I didn't feel as much passion as I expected. He used the "David Cameron" technique, jacket off, no tie and sleeves rolled up. I think the nervousness was due to his inexperience as a speaker and that he will become a better "performer" with time, because he has the economic credentials.
3. he tried to argue the importance of opposition and the benefits of being a independent. This for me was one of the sticking points in relation to getting my vote. I amn't convinced on his ability to use his experience/expertise to envoke change, as a single TD.
4. he implied that there will almost definitely be a grouping of like minded (Shane Ross etc.). This would make them a much stronger grouping but it isn't definite.
So overall i was quite impressed. I am quite disillusioned with the status quo parties and i feel that there is room for someone with his professional capabilities. Whether he gets the votes, I dont know, but im glad that there is a alternative.

Matt Le Tissue

I did mean to go to his meeting but got sidetracked. Was there many there?

Matt Le Tissue

mtucker wrote: »

Here you go;

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056164120

Cheers for that.

krieture

Matt Le Tissue wrote: »

I did mean to go to his meeting but got sidetracked. Was there many there?

I would say around 70 attended. With a fairly mixed demographic.

matt-dublin

make this a poll!!!

loyatemu

matt-dublin wrote: »

make this a poll!!!

the poll is on the 25th.

Merrilady

Eden Gate resident here - Not one canvasser / politican has called to the yet.

I would like to know what thier polcy is on mortgages / interest rates / social welfare assistance.

I also have a particular interest in Adoption and the new Adoption law that was passed in Nov.
I realise it is not nessesarily a "big" issue for most, but it is in our house and for the 300 + families that are awaiting to add to thier families but cannot because of the ridiculous board that is sitting over this.

I would also like to see if there will be any changes with regard to Management conpanies over estates and thier fees.

And my last pet peev ( for the moment ) is the 84.

With regard to who I am voting for ..... I havent a breeze

annf

psycho-hope wrote: »

at the moment I'm not sure who im going to vote for, tho I have kinda been put off voting for any of the younger memebers of the town council who were invovled in the whole 84 saga.

Are you serious about using your vote based on one bus route? Do you not think there are more serious issues that need to be considered before casting your vote?

Blandpebbles

A bus route can have a huge impact on a persons ability to work as well as their social life and money in the pocket.

I don't think it's as bad as voting for the fella who filled the potholes.

Not sure about mortgages though, what say do they have in what the ECB does?

Maybe for TSB and others who are hiking variables...

Having heard about Tom Fortune's wife being ill (my sympathies) I am not sure I could canvass with that strain on me and this is exactly what I told his canvassers the other night.

recedite

We need more politicians like Jacky Healy Rae in this country. He would have 2 buses running, one to UCD and one to wherever else you want to go. Never mind the cost; send the bill to Frankfurt.

annf

I'm just surprised that with all the other issues such as the number of people who have lost their jobs, the number in negative equity, the numer in arrears with their mortages, the number on waiting lists, on trollies in hospitals - the list goes on but all you worry about is a bus route.

RayM

annf wrote: »

Are you serious about using your vote based on one bus route? Do you not think there are more serious issues that need to be considered before casting your vote?

Last year, Dublin Bus announced plans to change the 84 route, choosing to terminate it in Cherrywood, rather than the city centre. As part of these changes, they decided to increase the frequency to one bus every half hour - a massive improvement to the existing service. Passengers choosing to travel beyond Loughlinstown would have had the option of transferring onto a DART or the high-frequency 145 in Bray, or the Luas at Cherrywood. For the first time ever, the residents of Kilcoole and Newcastle (particularly elderly people, many of whom rely entirely on public transport) would have had a decent, reliable and regular bus service.

Simon Harris' reaction to this perfectly reasonable move could best be described as 'knee-jerk' and 'short-sighted'. Along with his equally youthful & inexperienced Town Council colleague, James O'Sullivan, he interfered and Dublin Bus' plans were soon watered down. Rather than becoming a high-frequency route, the 84 remains an hourly service and now takes an even longer, tediously meandering route all the way to Belfield. All because a bunch of neo-gombeen councillors chose to focus on the whims of a tiny minority of their constituents (UCD students, who might find changing buses a bit inconvenient), whilst ignoring the needs of others.

You're correct when you say that there are more serious issues out there. However, if Harris' imbecilic intervention in the 84 saga is indicative of his overall abilities as a public representative, then I'd sooner vote for... well, just about anybody else on the ballot paper. Maybe when he has a few more years of experience as a councillor behind him, he might be worthy of a place in the Dail. Right now though, it's very difficult to view him as anything other than an overly ambitious career politician, with a talent for self-publicising and little else.

Mr Posh

RayM wrote: »

Last year, Dublin Bus announced plans to change the 84 route, choosing to terminate it in Cherrywood, rather than the city centre. As part of these changes, they decided to increase the frequency to one bus every half hour - a massive improvement to the existing service. Passengers choosing to travel beyond Loughlinstown would have had the option of transferring onto a DART or the high-frequency 145 in Bray, or the Luas at Cherrywood. For the first time ever, the residents of Kilcoole and Newcastle (particularly elderly people, many of whom rely entirely on public transport) would have had a decent, reliable and regular bus service.

Simon Harris' reaction to this perfectly reasonable move could best be described as 'knee-jerk' and 'short-sighted'. Along with his equally youthful & inexperienced Town Council colleague, James O'Sullivan, he interfered and Dublin Bus' plans were soon watered down. Rather than becoming a high-frequency route, the 84 remains an hourly service and now takes an even longer, tediously meandering route all the way to Belfield. All because a bunch of neo-gombeen councillors chose to focus on the whims of a tiny minority of their constituents (UCD students, who might find changing buses a bit inconvenient), whilst ignoring the needs of others.

You're correct when you say that there are more serious issues out there. However, if Harris' imbecilic intervention in the 84 saga is indicative of his overall abilities as a public representative, then I'd sooner vote for... well, just about anybody else on the ballot paper. Maybe when he has a few more years of experience as a councillor behind him, he might be worthy of a place in the Dail. Right now though, it's very difficult to view him as anything other than an overly ambitious career politician, with a talent for self-publicising and little else.

Good post and have to agree, and there’s me thinking I'm the only one with this opinion!

Maudi

Mr Posh wrote: »

Good post and have to agree, and there’s me thinking I'm the only one with this opinion!

hear hear well said

Blandpebbles

Well explained and enlightening. Harris is gone for me.

Annasopra

Did Simon Harris ever follow through on his 2009 pledge?

FG Candidate signs a pledge not to accept "mileage" money if elected to Wicklow County Council and to overhaul the expenses system at local authority level Harris calls for the "gravy train" to be decommissioned Fine Gael Local Election Candidate, Simon Harris has signed a pledge limiting the expenses he would receive if elected to Wicklow County Council in the upcoming Local Elections. Speaking about his decision and his public pledge, Mr Harris stated, "If I am elected to Wicklow County Council I will not accept any Council money for mileage incurred in travelling to meetings of the Council. Most people do not get paid to drive to work and to me it would be illogical to receive and accept such a payment. In the current economic climate, how could I, as a new politician, honestly claim to relate to the difficulties and challenges being experienced by families and by businesses if I was to apply for the honour of representing the people and then board the generous 'gravy-train' of expenses at local government." "When I announced my intention to enter politics and to contest these elections, I highlighted that it was a priority of mine to make politics more relevant, accessible and interesting to people and communities. It is easy to talk the talk but the time has come for me to put my money where my mouth is and make some very clear and very public pledges to my electorate in Greystones, Kilcoole, Delgany, Newtown and Newcastle," said Mr Harris. "Many Councillors do excellent work and their efforts are diligent and effective for our locality. I do not criticise any sitting Councillors for the expenses they receive and I do acknowledge the decision taken by Wicklow County Council to scale back expenses in the current budgetary situation it finds itself in. But nonetheless, I believe these local elections offer us a real chance to change the way we do business at local government level - it is an opportunity to say enough is enough, decommission the run-away gravy-train and let's make politics more transparent and our politicians more accountable," continued Mr Harris. "It is with that in mind that I have made a conscious decision to sign a pledge to my electorate which states that if elected to Wicklow County Council in the forthcoming Local Elections:
I will not accept any payment from Wicklow County Council for mileage incurred whilst travelling to any meetings of the Council. Why should people be paid to drive to work? If elected, it will be an honour to serve the community and paying Councillors to drive to Council Meetings is insulting particularly at a time when people are losing their jobs, unemployment is rising and the average person would be quite happy to drive to work and pay for their own fuel in order to obtain or retain a job.

I will only go abroad on foreign trips if I deem them to be absolutely in the interest of both my constituents and our county. Should I go on any such trips, I will fully inform my constituents via letter of the benefits of the trip, the costs incurred, what was learned and how it can be put to use for our county.

In January of each year, I will publish a full breakdown of any and all remuneration I have received from Wicklow County Council – this will be itemised and again made available to all my constituents.

I will move a motion at the earliest possible opportunity in Wicklow County Council seeking reform of expenses paid to public representatives, to ensure that all such expenses are vouched and essential.
It is vital the people can have faith and confidence in the political process and in government at all levels – local and national. By undertaking these four small pledges, I hope to herald a new type of politics – It is an honour to serve one's community – this honour must never be forgotten," stated Mr Harris.
"To prove this is not a gimmick I am sending a signed copy of this pledge to the Wicklow Times - they will then have a copy of this and will be able to monitor the matter if I am elected. In the current climate, in a show of solidarity with hard-working people find it difficult to make businesses sustainable or maintain jobs and in the interest of increasing transparency, openness and accountability in politics I feel this is both the responsible and appropriate step to take," concluded Mr Harris.


FG Candidate remains the only County Wicklow Local Election Candidate to have signed a pledge to reduce and reform Council expenses and seek a more transparent system Fine Gael County Council Candidate in the Greystones Electoral Area has expressed his bemusement with attempts by politicians to curtail pre-election costs incurred personally by each candidate whilst ignoring the sheer waste of public money in unvouched gravy-train expenses after the election. Mr Harris remains the only candidate for Wicklow County Council to have signed a pledge in relation to expenses. He has stated that if elected he will:
Not except "mileage money" for driving to and from Council meetings
Move a motion that the Council adopts a system of vouched expenses
Publish an annual breakdown of exactly every cent he receives from the Council and for what purpose.
"The gravy-train of expenses at Council level and indeed national level needs to be halted. It could never be justified but now in these economic times if must end. I am happy to have signed a commitment to seek a more transparent system of expenses where people are not left out of pocket for expenses occurred but equally that all expenses are vouched, transparent and logical," stated Mr Harris.

"I very much welcome the limit on Local Election spending - I agree with it fully and I also support efforts to limit posters to certain areas. However, I must say I remain perplexed that politicians continue to focus on these issues - on how much money a candidate spends on an election when this has already been limited by legislation - rather than trying to ensure that public money is not wasted on unjustifiable 'expenses'," continued Mr Harris. "People I meet across my electoral area and in my community are fed-up with the waste of public money - they see politicians at a national level refusing to give up long-term increment payments even in these tough financial times and at a local level they see a cash-strapped Council unable to address simple, local issues yet the system of expenses remains unreformed," said Mr Harris. "I want the public to have faith and confidence in our politicians - this is necessary if we are to get out of this economic crisis, deliver for people and protect vital services - that is why I am determined to reform expenses at all levels of politics and for my part I will start with the Council if elected on the 5th June," concluded Mr Harris.

I might be wrong but Ive never seen any follow up on whats highlighted in bold

psycho-hope

annf wrote: »

Are you serious about using your vote based on one bus route? Do you not think there are more serious issues that need to be considered before casting your vote?

i rely on the 84 to get to work in bray, as it stands at the moment if i need to be in work for 12 i have to get the 10.30 bus, which has me in bray the guts of an hour earlier than i need to be, so yes it is going to affect who i vote for.

Blandpebbles

Just did the boards poll for Wicklow. Jeez it was hard to pick someone who looked creditable. Never realised we had so many 'unknown' independents running.

Stephen Donnelly top with Simon Harris next... oh dear oh dear...

hamstervision

RayM wrote: »

Right now though, it's very difficult to view him as anything other than an overly ambitious career politician, with a talent for self-publicising and little else.

Does it worry anyone else that his website doesn't give much of his own personal views, any examples of any actual work he's done or what he actually hopes to achieve in power? The "Policies" section is just a list of generic Fine Gael policies. The "About Simon" section tells us what boards he sits on but nothing of what he actually does for them. The only thing I can find about what he hopes to do is a few short bullet points under "Simon's priorities". Yet he seems to have twice as many posters everywhere as anyone else. I'm yet to be convinced as to why I should give him my vote.

In clear contrast, Stephen Donnelly's website, for example, is excellent. And, while I do worry that voting for an independent won't actually do much in the greater scheme of things, at least I know what he stands for and can clearly see that his policies are well-thought-out.

Mr Posh

hamstervision wrote: »

Does it worry anyone else that his website doesn't give much of his own personal views, any examples of any actual work he's done or what he actually hopes to achieve in power? The "Policies" section is just a list of generic Fine Gael policies. The "About Simon" section tells us what boards he sits on but nothing of what he actually does for them. The only thing I can find about what he hopes to do is a few short bullet points under "Simon's priorities". Yet he seems to have twice as many posters everywhere as anyone else. I'm yet to be convinced as to why I should give him my vote.

In clear contrast, Stephen Donnelly's website, for example, is excellent. And, while I do worry that voting for an independent won't actually do much in the greater scheme of things, at least I know what he stands for and can clearly see that his policies are well-thought-out.

That’s a good point, if sitting on a board qualifies you to be a TD then Harris wins hands down but in terms of real life work experiences which can be transferred to the Dail I have know Idea what he can offer.

Should the candidates not put there CV’s on there web pages so we as the voters can judge there experience for the job!?

mikedragon32

Well in fairness to Harris, sitting on boards is probably no different to sitting on your hole in the Daíl, so he's eminently qualified.

At the other end, Donnelly will be wasted there. A smart guy like him should be making decisions and changing things up. Sitting on his hole in the Daíl means that he'll need to negotiate just to get time to speak, let alone influence anything. Your vote for him might not be wasted, as it looks like he's a cert for a seat, but his presence there is probably a waste.

Still undecided!

Fiachra2

I would question his certainty of a seat. To get elected its not enough to poll well in Greystones and Bray (or Boards!). You have to achieve in the rest of the county and I would have doubts about that.

The other problem is that FG and Labour will (almost certainly) form a government and so all these independents will actually have virtually no influence. SF have had a number of TD's in the Dail for quite a few years but no influence because the successive coalitions didnt need their support.

I admire the integrity and enthusiasm of independents but politics involves swallowing a lot of unpleasant pills and trying to compromise with people with whom you may have only limited commonality and that means joining a party.

Matt Le Tissue

In a democracy a vote is never wasted (imo)
I'm sure he could and indeed would become a member of a technical group (assuming he get's elected of course)
I haven't decided who's getting my number 1 but Donnelly will get a vote somewhere from me anyway.