Kenny I want 5 more years - I'll butter ye up with Tax cuts

nelly17

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/kenny-i-want-five-more-years-29947196.html

Seriously, this is Bertie politics 101. Throw them a bone and the votes will come. The maddening part is that we will fall for it......again.

“The mandate given to me was to take our country out of an unholy economic mess that we had inherited and that mandate was to sort out our public finances and get out country working,” he said.

“I’m very happy that our people have moved to the point where we have a clear plan and plan to exit the bailout. We now have a clear plan and strategy to follow through on that with the publication of the Medium Term, Economic Strategy

“That’s my mandate. That the trust that people placed on us and that’s what we’ve got to do.”

Mr Kenny said the Government recognises that many people have been “squeezed” financially and signalled that the Cabinet would look at tax cuts this year.

“Any relief that can come will be considered carefully by Government,” he said.

They clearly take us for fools by stoking the flames with this crap its just the PR machine gearing up for the next elections, this and the Banking inquiry set up deliberately excluding the 2008-present day period so that they can use it as a mechanisim to score points against FF in the run up to the next elections.

spank_inferno

Doesn't excluding '2008 to present' day let FF off the hook?

jhegarty

You are correct op.

This government has been nothing but tax cuts and candy floss.

nelly17

spank_inferno wrote: »

Doesn't excluding '2008 to present' day let FF off the hook?

It lets both off the hook but with running it just up to 2008 it means the finger can be pointed squarely at FF

Tiddlypeeps

They raise taxes and we moan. They say they are gonna lower taxes and we moan. They can't win.

bella_doyle

nelly17 wrote: »

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/kenny-i-want-five-more-years-29947196.html

Seriously, this is Bertie politics 101. Throw them a bone and the votes will come. The maddening part is that we will fall for it......again.




They clearly take us for fools by stoking the flames with this crap its just the PR machine gearing up for the next elections, this and the Banking inquiry set up deliberately excluding the 2008-present day period so that they can use it as a mechanisim to score points against FF in the run up to the next elections.

compared to what went before , enda Kenny has been a superb Taoiseach , whats the alternative , Michael martin :eek:

spank_inferno

So who would you rather in charge then?

Seeing as your choices range from SF, to Joe Higgins to quasi-parties like DDI {{shudder}}.

Littlehorny

After the amount scandals that have gone on lately with our money, i would welcome them getting less tax off us for a change.

Phoebas

nelly17 wrote: »

The maddening part is that we will fall for it......again.

True enough OP. All this exiting the bailout, getting lower rates on our debt, getting rating agency upgrades, improving the economy, improving the labour market stuff is just a ploy to get a chance to make further improvements.

I'm not going to fall for that!

Littlehorny

bella_doyle wrote: »

compared to what went before , enda Kenny has been a superb Taoiseach , whats the alternative , Michael martin :eek:

Exactly, Kenny is by far the best of a poor lot, at least he seems to give some kind of flying f*** about the people he is there to serve.

Rabelais

I might be mad, but I'm in favour of economic growth and cuts to income tax.

We could charge a tax on online outrage though. Collect a few bob.

ScumLord

Tiddlypeeps wrote: »

They raise taxes and we moan. They say they are gonna lower taxes and we moan. They can win.

That's mostly because they're losers.

SuperGrover

OP - tell me how to vote next time round and good reasons why and I'll do it.

mike65

Kenny doesn't even need to butter us up - just look at the alternative.

Rabelais

ScumLord wrote: »

That's mostly because they're losers.

Scumlord, can you use your considerable brain power to answer this quandary of a question for me - why do we have so many losers, jerks and tricksters as politicians when the Plain People of Ireland are such humble, decent and caring people?

Terry1985

nelly17 wrote: »

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/kenny-i-want-five-more-years-29947196.htmlBanking inquiry set up deliberately excluding the 2008-present day period so that they can use it as a mechanisim to score points against FF in the run up to the next elections.

Who needs to 'score points against FF'?
I wouldn't let any FF muppet on a school parents committee never mind government.

Fianna Fail? Never again.

Bits_n_Bobs

Rabelais wrote: »

Scumlord, can you use your considerable brain power to answer this quandary of a question for me - why do we have so many losers, jerks and tricksters as politicians when the Plain People of Ireland are such humble, decent and caring people?

I blame the culchies...

Renegade Mechanic

Ah f*ck it all. Does it really matter who gets in at this point?

tritium

I read some if he comments Enda made. Basically asked if f he wanted a different job and said he'd a job to do here and was looking for another term to do it in.

Plenty if jobs with less stress and tbh his pension would mean he doesn't need the money, so I have to admire the mans commitment in the face of the begrudgeryamd cynicism that forms part of our national psyche

padd b1975

They need to re-start widening tax bands to keep pace with inflation, something that had been neglected during that time when we were bankrupt in all but name.

That's all that will happen.

ScumLord

Rabelais wrote: »

Scumlord, can you use your considerable brain power to answer this quandary of a question for me - why do we have so many losers, jerks and tricksters as politicians when the Plain People of Ireland are such humble, decent and caring people?

Thinking the plain people of Ireland are humble, decent and caring by default is where you're going wrong. I've said it before, but the politicians are just the tip of the iceberg.

RayCon

Renegade Mechanic wrote: »

Ah f*ck it all. Does it really matter who gets in at this point?

Yes .... anybody but FF .... for eternity.

Eight Ball

bella_doyle wrote: »

compared to what went before , enda Kenny has been a superb Taoiseach , whats the alternative , Michael martin :eek:

Gerry Adams

golfball37

They were mandated to implement change. Change to way we do business as a government and country.

From the Reilly stroke, the drip feed of scandals from PAC and the immediate breaching of the pay cap to advisors and bankers I think they have failed miserably in what they were mandated to do.

I can live with the cuts and the increased financial pressure as they were given a terrible hand by the previous government, no issue. My problem with them is the rotten politics so long associated with FF has been taken to new lows by Kenny's government. Given a company owned by DOB the contract to install water meters was the icing on the cake.

He does not deserve another 5 years.

debabyjesus

Get labour out, give fg the majority!

Also abolish motor tax and stop giving tax breaks to sanctimonious gob****es on bicycles!

krudler

nelly17 wrote: »

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/kenny-i-want-five-more-years-29947196.html

Seriously, this is Bertie politics 101. Throw them a bone and the votes will come. The maddening part is that we will fall for it......again.




They clearly take us for fools by stoking the flames with this crap its just the PR machine gearing up for the next elections, this and the Banking inquiry set up deliberately excluding the 2008-present day period so that they can use it as a mechanisim to score points against FF in the run up to the next elections.

Jesus, what would you prefer, more taxes?

mikom

tritium wrote: »

Plenty if jobs with less stress and tbh his pension would mean he doesn't need the money,

Pensions........

Kristopherus

bella_doyle wrote: »

compared to what went before , enda Kenny has been a superb Taoiseach , whats the alternative , Michael martin :eek:

The Shinners:D Adams as Teeshock And Mary Lou as Tawnishte:eek::eek::eek:

Anita B Jaynow

Kenny is a legend and knows his stuff, show some respect, goddamnit.

corkonion

I think Fine Gael will probably be the main party in our next Government but that labour will be sharing a well earned rest with the green party

Idbatterim

Seriously, this is Bertie politics 101. Throw them a bone and the votes will come. The maddening part is that we will fall for it......again.

Well in fairness, if its vote buying and its going to spent somewhere, id prefer it to be spend on income tax cuts, rather than welfare or PS increases! the marginal rate here is 52%, a FG minister recently admitted it was scandalous, it is scandalous! Id prefer if it went towards job creation, capital expenditure etc, i.e the first people who should be looked after are those that lose their jobs or have had to emigrate. but failing this, tax cuts are a hell of a lot more palatable to me than the other usual vote buyers...

The naivety here sometimes is incredible, with an election coming up, what should they do, just use any extra money to pay off the national debt and be martyrs? ceeding ground to every other party who will claim and will most likely deliver on their in effect bribes? Its a balancing act, re-election, while at the same time, keeping finances in check...

.jacksparrow.

All politicians ever think about is how can I get re elected.

At all costs.

Keep the people in the dark and feed them ****e.

homerjay2005

with a few notable f*ck ups, i think overall the government have done a good job and Enda has done well to turn us into a respectable country again as opposed to the sinking ship he took over.

not perfect, but he is learning. given the backward Unionised bulls*it that he has to put up with and the complete lack of transparency and progress to be made in this country, i think running it is a virtually impossible task when things are not going well.

Bruthal

Phoebas wrote: »

True enough OP. All this exiting the bailout, getting lower rates on our debt, getting rating agency upgrades, improving the economy, improving the labour market stuff is just a ploy to get a chance to make further improvements.

I'm not going to fall for that!

Im surprised your name is not in red yet.

mikom

Bruthal wrote: »

Im surprised your name is not in red yet.

Talk to: FG.

shruikan2553

They said they will look at it so I wouldnt expect it to happen. Sure isnt that what you do to win an election, make up stuff and then its too late when they realise you wont do it.

irish bloke

Bits_n_Bobs wrote: »

I blame the culchies...

It's the million plus skangers over on the east I blame

jj72

Where does he actually say hes cutting taxes in the OP?

Mint Aero

Woohoo! Go Kenny , Go Kenney!

and so forth.

bumper234

nelly17 wrote: »

It lets both off the hook but with running it just up to 2008 it means the finger can be pointed squarely at FF

And you think it shouldn't be? Answer me this, would FF be using these same tactics if the roles were reversed?

JohnMearsheimer

Offering sweeteners coming up to elections is nothing new. I wouldn't be adverse at the moment to giving Enda Kenny 5 more years. The country seems to be progressing, albeit slowly. Kenny has made a better hand at being Taoiseach than I imagined he would. I don't like the alternatives. I would be reluctant to vote for FF. As for SF.....it's very easy to talk big when you're in opposition but the reality of governing is much different.

I'm not sure how Labour will fare after the next election. Labour have the Education and Social Protection ministries, both areas that have suffered unfortunate but unavoidable cuts over the years. It's easy to provoke public ire when there's been cuts to emotive policy areas. The same can be said of Health where there is a FG minister, James Reilly. Reilly seems to compound problems in Health by coming across as gruff and uncaring. Phil Hogan hasn't really covered himself in glory either.

The act of governing is a balancing act. You're not going to keep everyone happy. This government has stepped on a lot of people's toes but in 2016 you'll have to ask yourself are we in a better position than we were in 2011. I think the answer to that will probably be yes.

Son Of A Vidic

Tiddlypeeps wrote: »

They can't win.

Oh believe me they always win.

steddyeddy

Based on the fact they did nothing to overhaul the political system. and nothing yo combat the traditional scandals and corruption in our society. They stood back and over paid political advisers while making life more financially difficult for the disabled. Kenny could pay me 500 a week and I wouldn't vote for that shower.

Samba

bella_doyle wrote: »

compared to what went before , enda Kenny has been a superb Taoiseach , whats the alternative , Michael martin :eek:

He has been superb compared to what we've had in the past, I'll give you that.

But this does not automatically make him a "superb Taoiseach", not by any stretch of imagination.

Where's all the political reform that was promised during pre-election?

Tell me, if he's such a superb Taoiseach, how did this happen during his tenure, is this the type of reform he was referring to perhaps?

steddyeddy

Just because you don't vote for Kenny doesn't mean you have to vote for Fianna Fail. I know some of the independents aren't the best but that's because Fine gael and Fianna fail dominated the political landscape for decades. If we stop voting for these political junkies (sons and daughters of politicians) we will change things. We also need to get more involved in politics at an individual level.

Aidric

For anyone interested Kenny was part of a panel at Davos yesterday discussing the likelihood of a European recovery. He didn't perform too badly but as usual looked like he was regurgitating a tightly prepared script.

http://webcasts.weforum.org/widget/1/davos2014?p=1&pi=1&a=52639

He hasn't performed badly all told, he was a steady pair of hands when they were needed most. Michael Noonan is the real star performer.

moxin

Income tax cut talk is a load of vote buying. We as a country simply cannot afford them yet, the debt is huge. The overall tax take at the moment needs to seriously jump (without hiking taxes as the culprit for it) via an economic rebound before tax cuts can be implemented. So far, there is no sign of a serious jump in the tax take to justify an income tax cut.

smurgen

I'd like if the government was just conservative when it comes to tax expenditure and tax savings.a counter cynical approach to tax cuts would be a lot wiser I think - save in the good times and spend more taxes in the bad times.it wouldn't be very popular tho I'd imagine.

mikeym

Enda Kenny is the best of the bad bunch.


Micheal Martin would be a rubbish taoiseach if he and the fianna fail gang were back in power.

Id like to see more independant td's elected in the future, I know Ming Flanagan isnt everyones cup of tea at least he didnt get elected cause his dad was a td.

smurgen

mikeym wrote: »

Enda Kenny is the best of the bad bunch.


Micheal Martin would be a rubbish taoiseach if he and the fianna fail gang were back in power.

Id like to see more independant td's elected in the future, I know Ming Flanagan isnt everyones cup of tea at least he didnt get elected cause his dad was a td.

I'd leave the country if Michael Martin and ff took over again.he's a snake.

Foxhound38

nelly17 wrote: »

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/kenny-i-want-five-more-years-29947196.html

Seriously, this is Bertie politics 101. Throw them a bone and the votes will come. The maddening part is that we will fall for it......again.




They clearly take us for fools by stoking the flames with this crap its just the PR machine gearing up for the next elections, this and the Banking inquiry set up deliberately excluding the 2008-present day period so that they can use it as a mechanisim to score points against FF in the run up to the next elections.

If you've got an alternative Taoiseach that is viable then I'm all ears OP. I'm no fan of FG, and I'm a former-ish Labour voter (cards on the table: I've voted Labour since I could vote - but I'm not sure about them this time around) but the fact is that FF is still toxic and SF will make gains but the only senior party that would touch them is FF and they won't have enough combined to take out FG and Labour.

As a result, barring a catastrophe Kenny will walk the next election. To be honest, beyond the hyperbole he hasn't been doing too bad so far IMO. It's been tough, and he's harldy the most charismatic politician in the world, but things do appear to be picking up economy-wise and I'd rather the current Gov got a second term than FF come back in just in time to take credit for it!

Labour on the other hand are between a rock and a hard place - if they had any brains and if there was an alternative government combination possible they should stay in opposition during the next term and rebuild. Another term of being the mudguard could cause many long-term problems for them...