Hong Kong to set up a new city in Ireland?

The stupidity of this idea is only matched by the stupidity of people on this thread defending it.

New cities concocted in board rooms by idiot financiers and idiot politicians with the connivance of idiot planners have never been successful in modern history. They are, however, environmentally catastrophic.

Setting that aside, the idea of giving up a chunk of sovereign Irish territory to a communist dictatorship superpower (of course it would both be totally independent and totally subject to Irish laws, whatever one you'd prefer to hear based on your political leanings), and not recognizing why that might be an idiotic move is, to say the least, very Irish. It's worth remembering that the whole point of the belt and road program is to increase Chinese control worldwide, and often invoices saddling local governments with oceans of Chinese debt.

But seriously, if you wanted to set up a financial autonomous zone (which we already did with the ifsc) then you don't really need to let the Chinese run the place, but you do need to recognise that that's all you're doing, not bringing in engineers and doctors as one poster seemed to believe. It would be a large scale brass plate exercise like the ifsc was before it. But probably with much much bigger empty buildings that will be built in anticipation of the arrival of thousands that never come.

Of course it is kind of vague about what role China would have here, in some accounts it seems to suggest this is a scheme to escape Chinese influence. Which makes it an even more stupid idea since you would be enemy number one on China's extensive **** list. Setting aside everything else that's intrinsically harebrained about the whole thing.

It sounds like a total nonsense story, but it's such a terrible idea on even a cursory consideration that it's almost a guarantee our completely inept gombeen political class are seriously considering it, and are probably pissing their pants in excitement at all the things the rich financiers, definitely not con men, are telling them.

Edgware wrote: »

At least Micheal Martin has made attempts to speak Chinese (albeit to Krusty the Clown "flied lice" standard)

Mr Chinese of you please..... Oh lighten up.... Father ted

New Kowloon walled city to be built here instead.

It was taken seriously before during B Ahern's time. That Athlone would become a new city using Chinese investment and population (mainly). The idea was shelved as the Government was looking for no more that 50,000 new people. the Chinese used to massive numbers were looking to relocate 400,000!