Following on from
this thread
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The tax abolitions proposed/threatened by SF are the very essence of populist and foolish in the extreme. If they go all in on their wish list we are talking about €5bn lost to the State.
It's unlikely all of this money would be squirrelled away abroad or invested in foreign REITs, but likely spent by people currently strapped.
FG may lose Finance to FF. FG has had its worst results ever in a RedC poll. FF is 4% ahead of FG in a B&A poll. FG held its think-in last week. So what does the useless Varadkar do? He attacks SF.
It would probably be more interesting to see SF's proposals on funding these cuts and abolitions but that would be a topic for a different thread. The real issue that seems to be driving a lot of FG's claims about SF is that FF is beginning to reassert itself as the senior partner in the coalition and Varadkar's position in FG is weakening as more FGers come to the conclusion that they have to remove him or risk obliteration at the next GE.
The soundbites about SF's economic policies are just a distraction from the very real problems in the government. And there is a Budget later this month so shifting the focus to SF is in FFG's best interests.
Regards...jmcc
Eh, this is money the State WOULD not collect.
Were they not until relatively recently in the same group in the euro parliament though?
Yes
It's reasonable to align them together so?
No
To align them together as they are in the same Euro Parliament grouping would require pretty poor understanding of the Euro Parliament Groupings. They are incredibly loose ideological groupings and you would have to align 14 current EU governments with Orban using the same logic.
Varadkar's position is weakening? Just as he becomes Taoiseach again?
FG criticise SF to make them look different, because this is what political parties do to appeal to their supporters, but you think this is wrong? Do you really believe that FG supporters want Varadkar to cosy up to SF?
So FG lost Finance to FF, but gain Taoiseach, and this is bad for FG?
A really strange analysis.
These were their goodies last year and they won't be much different this time around. The problem still stands that there are not enough on over €100,000 to cover all the rest of it, especially when they also want to abolish the annual €500m LPT that funds councils and they want to hit the €652m raised by carbon taxes, €130m of which is ringfenced for our retrofits, welfare support etc. Free travel for under 18s is of course for the good of the country and not an attempt to buy future voters.
You seem to be having a bit of a meltdown. Apart from your, to use your own words, "really strange analysis", FG hasn't lost Finance yet. An FF that has rediscovered that it is the senior partner in the FFG coalition is going to cause problems for the stability of the coalition. It really isn't a difficult concept. FG supporters may be upset as FF seek to distance themselves from FG.
Seriously? FF are handing over the Taoiseach position to FG in a couple of months? So they are making a few waves? Would be amazed if they weren't considering the climbdown from having the Taoiseach position.
Rediscovering they are senior partner in the coalition as they hand over Taoiseach position? No logic to what you are saying at all.
Any news on FFG Budget proposals yet? The government and the opposition will both engage in auction politics to gain favourable media coverage before the Budget. It is a kind of ritual that is performed each year.
Surely in such a coalition the idea that one party has the Taoiseach role while the other has finance is pretty standard?
Two weeks today actually and quite a big chunk of spending will necessarily be those short-term energy supports.
Some guesses here by Deloitte - apart from the temporary emergency stuff it will be a typical budget, some tax tweaks and some new measures, welfare increases and probably some changes to the usual suspects.
But FG don't want to give up Finance and FF sees it as part of the deal. There were noises in the media about the Eurogroup of finance ministers and Donohoe being the most powerful Irishman etc. An FF under a different leader would be more than capable of walking if it doesn't get Finance.
Martin has once again reiterated that FF will take it over and it's very likely to be an obvious simple swap between the pair. Under the agreement, if one party has the Taoiseach, the other would have the Minister for Finance portfolio. Apart from this and the change of Taoiseach nothing else has been discussed about the reshuffle. Paschal has been there since 2017 and there have only been 7 MOF since 1991, soon to be 8.
The story has been bubbling away:
https://www.thejournal.ie/paschal-donohoe-michael-mcgrath-5862300-Sep2022/
FFers may not accept more of Martin's grovelling to FG and Varadkar.
Sure, but Martin just said it today, again. That story is more about possibly losing the chair of the Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers. All three parties will discuss the new December government makeup after the Budget.
Interesting that you see recent history in the same group as aligning political parties.
In answer to your question, I would say no, that fact that Orban's party was kicked out of the group for his far-right views would suggest that the group is not far-right and therefore the other members are not aligned with Orban's party.
But it is an interesting thought for applying your principles elsewhere to current existing and continuing alignments.
The FF think-in last week may not have been quite a happy FFamilies meeting. Both Calleary and Cowen were missing from the group photos. Troy turned up in the same car as Martin. It looks like there is pressure on Martin to drop his usual wannabe FGer act. Ironically, one potential FF candidate for Finance is Michael McGrath and that might take him out of the running as a potential leadership challenger. It still leaves O'Callaghan. Martin's position in FF is far from safe. The only way for Martin to survive is to start acting like the leader of FF and standing up to FG. Aesop's fable about the scorpion and the frog seems apt.
Would it not be better to pick the best person for the job?
TBF given the way the EU is going,there more headed towards orben than not.
I had been under the vague impressionthat the finance ministry had been split in two under FG-Lab and the two roles were of roughly equal status but apparently Minister for Finance is still Minister for Finance
I am sure the parties, to a large degree, also do that.
But the electorate was asked who was best for the job and got a roughly equal answer between FF and FG.
I was thinking more in such an evenly split coalition but yes, there was some shenanigans there in order to keep everyone happy.
Ultimately though, the two most important roles are both swapping to the opposite party. Nothing to see here.
Pre-2011 it was always only one department and one MoF but in 2011 the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform position was created and it took on some of the DoF responsibilities. It might have been a sop of sorts to Labour but it has turned out to be a sensible approach to spread the load and Brendan Howlin got the first job. Paschal followed him in 2016 before moving to MoF.
What way is the EU going?
The EU is turning very conservative,we have people in jail in Spain for sedition,France introducing laws targeting Muslims to piggyback off the rise of far-right
Voting to let migrants drown in Mediterranean,dozens of migrants slaughtered at Spanish border in Morocco few weeks ago,and not an iota of anyone speaking out against any of above......the EU is something we should be wary as fcuk of imo,it deosnt seem to have strong enough democratic/judicial oversight.....badly badly in need of reform
You just listed a pile of things with nothing to do with the EU then claimed we need to be wary of the EU 🤨
Anyway , you can continue to believe that FG being in the same euro political grouping as Fidesz before the latter was kicked out from it, is indicative of something sinister if you so want, but its a preposterous notion given the other members of the grouping and how the groupings work in general (not to mention, again, they were kicked out).
It is a realignment after Merkel's mess (closing down nuclear power stations and making Germany dependent on Russian gas along with her stupid immigration brainfart that effectively set the foundation for Brexit) and its fallout. Most of the governments will remain largely centrist though Sweden could be one to watch.
In an ideal world, yes. In the real world only politicians are available.
You'd rather a dictatorial technocracy?
Ah yeah people being slaughtered at the EU border and voting in the euro parliament to let migrants drown in Mediterranean have nothing to do with the EU....have a liedown there kid
So we are to accept FG have nothing in common with its EU grouping,it voluntary joined then 🤣🤣🤣.....dunno who your trying to kid tbh
Tell us,what's Mairead McGuiness voting record as regards sending assistance to migrants in the Mediterranean,and how does it differ from how orbens group voted??.
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