Fine Gael TD sues Dublin Hotel after falling off swing

WealthyB · 23-07-2019 9:12pm

Snow Garden wrote: »

This line from FG/IFP is unbelievable.

They are actually trying to blame the hotel here.

Where is their honour? Chancers.

Looking forward to the Dean Hotels response!

Shefwedfan · 23-07-2019 9:14pm

WealthyB wrote: »

Looking forward to the Dean Hotels response!

Dean hotel should sue for slander

JohnnyFlash · 23-07-2019 9:20pm

Shefwedfan wrote: »

Dean hotel should sue for slander

A hotel isn’t a person.

Shefwedfan · 23-07-2019 9:30pm

JohnnyFlash wrote: »

A hotel isn’t a person.

It's a company

Saying derogatory things about a company in the press so no reason. The Dean acted exactly how it shoudl have done for a false claim and Leo is making out they are in the wrong

I would sue him, her and the whole shower

Suckit · 23-07-2019 9:41pm

RTE even running with it as the main story.
Hilarious.
Leo thought it would disappear under Boris, but that's barely getting a look in.
Seriously underestimated the public anger with this, but it seems many were silently waiting for some sort of sanction for Bailey.

"In not going further by removing the whip from Deputy Bailey, I do so conscious of the devastating effect this saga has had on Deputy Bailey and her family in particular. She has endured considerable negative publicity, public criticism and is now personally liable for significant legal and medical costs."

So..
the devastating effect - Negative publicity, public criticism and paying the legal and medical costs for this farce..

Christ. I've never ever heard somebody say nothing in such a long winded way in my life.

On a separate note, I went in to Easons yesterday and bought a book titled "Leo: A Very Modern Taoiseach"
I had to go back today and I complained to the sales assistant - "All of the pages fell out when I opened it"
The sales assistant said, "That's because it has no spine".

This is it · 23-07-2019 10:05pm

What's this IFP nonsense? Embarrassing.

Anyway, quite annoyed with how this has played out. Genuinely hope the electorate don't forget this come the next GE. We've a habit of letting them, politicians in general, away with things.

I've no idea who I'm going to vote for, they're all the same it seems.

Snow Garden · 23-07-2019 10:07pm

The message from FG/IFP is clear. Fraudulent insurance claims can continue unabated.
There is no accountability at the highest level. It must make depressing reading for businesses today.

This attempted whitewash will be recalled every single time a voter pays for insurance.

Snow Garden · 23-07-2019 10:15pm

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/maria-bailey-to-lose-9500-oireachtas-role-as-taoiseach-demotes-td-following-swinggate-controversy-38339300.html

She was advised on her legal case by Culture Minister Ms Madigan

Minister Madigan (then a backbench TD) gave initial legal advice, guidance and assisted Deputy Bailey with her Personal Injuries Assessment Board (PIAB) application

Hold on a second...I thought they said before Madigan only helped her fill out the form? Now it clearly states Madigan gave initial legal advice.

Shefwedfan · 23-07-2019 10:17pm

Snow Garden wrote: »

https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/maria-bailey-to-lose-9500-oireachtas-role-as-taoiseach-demotes-td-following-swinggate-controversy-38339300.html

Hold on a second...I thought they said before Madigan only helped her fill out the form? Now it clearly states Madigan gave initial legal advice.

They have lied that much they can’t even remember what they said at the start of it

It’s safe to say Madigan and Bailey knew exactly what they where doing, the onky problem is they got caught out

Kivaro · 23-07-2019 10:20pm

Muahahaha wrote: »

Leo Varadkar, he has no balls.

Reports coming in now that he was afraid to remove the whip in case Bailey sued for whiplash

_Kaiser_ · 23-07-2019 10:25pm

So Leo didn't even have the balls to temporarily remove the whip as was predicted the other day. The threats she made during the infamous interview to expose things must not have been idle.

The timing of this almost-as-shambolic statement from him in the midst of Boris becoming leader/PM across the way is a blatant attempt to bury the story and 2 fingers to the electorate who he/they are taking as idiots.

But what this REALLY suggests to me is that Bailey is merely the tip of the iceberg here, or potentially the small fry. What are FG actually hiding??

JeffKenna · 23-07-2019 10:28pm

So the report concludes that Ms Bailey signed “an affidavit (linked to a personal injuries summons) that over-stated the impact of her injuries on her running”.

However the affidavit stated she couldn't run "at all" for three months after.

I'd love to see how the conclusion is formed. It seems to me she outright lied about her running.

is_that_so · 23-07-2019 10:39pm

Shefwedfan wrote: »

Seemingly is_that_so decided to delete that comment

What comment?

is_that_so · 23-07-2019 10:41pm

WealthyB wrote: »

Looking forward to the Dean Hotels response!

There won't be any as the case was dropped.

MrTrebus · 23-07-2019 10:46pm

JohnnyFlash wrote: »

Big leaps of logic going on there, JD. This happened before she was a TD and Enda/Leo werent aware of it. It’s like saying SF are ok with child murderers and bombers because they have em in the party.

bull****..nothing like a bit of deflection huh !

holyhead · 23-07-2019 10:52pm

Varadkar was in a very tricky position. If Bailey loses the whip the threat of a general election moves closer. In not removing the whip Varadkar looks weak and the whole clampdown on fraudulent claims loses credibility. Bailey herself still hasn't learned. In her statement today she is hanging on to some legal advice that her case wasn't fraudulent. The public believe it was fraudulent. A T.D. operates in the arena of public opinion and live and die by same. As for mitigating circumstances which Varadkar referenced. Well that's just tosh. Bailey created this mess and brought the ire of the public on her by taking the claim in the first place and then her catastrophic interview.

1. Anyone who needs instructions on how to operate a swing is clearly not the brightest light in the harbour.
2. Anyone who operates a swing with a bottle/glass in one hand is asking for trouble.
3. Anyone who can't remember whether they had a bottle/glass in one hand is a candidate for dementia or suffering from selective memory.
4. Anyone who feels they are ENTITLED to take a case for something so ridiculous invites ridicule.
5. Anyone who claims they can't move for weeks after an accident and then posts a picture of herself doing a marathon four weeks later is
plain stupid.

Credit to the hotel for not rolling over. They are about the only party who emerge with any semblance of common sense and backbone in this whole mess.

23-07-2019 10:54pm

_Kaiser_ wrote: »

But what this REALLY suggests to me is that Bailey is merely the tip of the iceberg here, or potentially the small fry. What are FG actually hiding??

Bailey is so interwoven into the fabric of FG (why would she be accorded the whip initially?), that any threat against her removal is stifled by others being potentially exposed as equally corrupt or worse. It's a powerful negotiation tool, and evidently Leo had to meekly back down. Which in the larger scheme of things, makes a mockery of the "inquiry" conducted and the voting public seeking accountability for a fraudulent insurance claim pursued by an elected official in Dáil Éireann.

ChikiChiki · 23-07-2019 10:59pm

Being discussed on the Tonight Show. Intro with "Is it a good day to bury bad news and has FG gone far enough?"

Lol, backfiring spectacularly. The Irish brass neck politician is really a thing. If it happened across the water they would have resigned.

Shefwedfan · 23-07-2019 10:59pm

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Bailey is so interwoven into the fabric of FG (why would she be accorded the whip initially?), that any threat against her removal is stifled by others being potentially exposed as equally corrupt or worse. It's a powerful negotiation tool, and evidently Leo had to meekly back down. Which in the larger scheme of things, makes a mockery of the "inquiry" conducted and the voting public seeking accountability for a fraudulent insurance claim pursued by an elected official in Dáil Éireann.

What it has shown is Leo has little to no power as leader of the party

lola85 · 23-07-2019 11:06pm

Out of all the things that might bring FG down to get caught out on this is amateur hour as far as no one in the party seen it coming.

I guess things got to comfortable.

_Kaiser_ · 23-07-2019 11:08pm

Shefwedfan wrote: »

What it has shown is Leo has little to no power as leader of the party

Well we know that... the party membership wanted Coveney, but were overruled so Varadkar could tick another item off his bucket list :rolleyes:

If Brexit turns out to be a disaster for this country (as is increasingly likely), then Coveney too will lose the goodwill he's built up too - although I still say he'd be far worse for the country. Varadkar may be superficial and an empty suit, but some of Coveney's views would be far more damaging if he had any real power.

The problem here is timing.. Brexit has another few months to play out and our TD's won't want to be electioneering in the late autumn/winter. Plus there's the October budget which may be nastier than expected depending on what Boris does.

Assuming all the above happens, FG's hold on Government will be even more untenable than it's been since Enda setup the current mess to serve his own ego, but FF won't want to pull the plug until the Spring.. which leaves us with another uncomfortable 5/6 months of limbo at a time (due the factors above) we can probably least afford it.

WoollyRedHat · 23-07-2019 11:13pm

Can anyone submit a FOI request that would reveal the full extent of Madigans involvement, as a matter of public interest with consideration to her current role as a cabinet minister?

Snow Garden · 23-07-2019 11:17pm

This story is running for over 2 months now.
It's still being handled very very poorly.
The new statement throws up even more questions and will use up a lot of ink over the next few weeks.

I hope this will send a clear message to other public representatives about taking such cases in future.

Interesting that the FG/IFP statement did not mention Farrell by name when he actually made money from his fraudulent claim.

Snow Garden · 23-07-2019 11:27pm

holyhead wrote: »

Varadkar was in a very tricky position. If Bailey loses the whip the threat of a general election moves closer. In not removing the whip Varadkar looks weak and the whole clampdown on fraudulent claims loses credibility. Bailey herself still hasn't learned. In her statement today she is hanging on to some legal advice that her case wasn't fraudulent. The public believe it was fraudulent. A T.D. operates in the arena of public opinion and live and die by same. As for mitigating circumstances which Varadkar referenced. Well that's just tosh. Bailey created this mess and brought the ire of the public on her by taking the claim in the first place and then her catastrophic interview.

1. Anyone who needs instructions on how to operate a swing is clearly not the brightest light in the harbour.
2. Anyone who operates a swing with a bottle/glass in one hand is asking for trouble.
3. Anyone who can't remember whether they had a bottle/glass in one hand is a candidate for dementia or suffering from selective memory.
4. Anyone who feels they are ENTITLED to take a case for something so ridiculous invites ridicule.
5. Anyone who claims they can't move for weeks after an accident and then posts a picture of herself doing a marathon four weeks later is
plain stupid.

Credit to the hotel for not rolling over. They are about the only party who emerge with any semblance of common sense and backbone in this whole mess.

Great post.

Shemale · 23-07-2019 11:32pm

Suckit wrote: »

They did, and Ende was there to witness it.

Some lineup Fr Fintan Stack, Fr Dougal Maguire and Quagmire.

skimpydoo · 23-07-2019 11:33pm

JohnnyFlash wrote: »

Big leaps of logic going on there, JD. This happened before she was a TD and Enda/Leo werent aware of it. It’s like saying SF are ok with child murderers and bombers because they have em in the party.

She was a FG councilor and Party Member.

McMurphy · 23-07-2019 11:34pm

Shemale wrote: »

Some lineup Fr Fintan Stack, Fr Dougal Maguire and Quagmire.

:pac:

Snow Garden · 23-07-2019 11:41pm

The Indo is going after the Madigan lie on front page tomorrow. Madigan will have to come clean.

Snow Garden · 23-07-2019 11:48pm

The FG TD on the Tonight show is absolutely floundering. Car crash stuff again.

FF and SF are suggesting the Gardai should be brought in now for the fraudulent claim.

This could bring down the government yet. Fascinating TV!

ChikiChiki · 23-07-2019 11:52pm

"Swing Case TD got Ministers Advice on Claim" - Headline in tomorrows Indo.

Lisa Chambers (FF) who has a legal background stating there is certainly a legal question and implying the Gardai should get involved.

Daily Mail editor says trying to bury the news today has added an extra layer to the scandal.

Patrick O'Donovan (FG) downplaying it as if it is nothing. Trying to garner sympathy mentioning her bereavement multiple times along with social media abuse.

McMurphy · 24-07-2019 12:16am

lola85 wrote: »

FF and people been brought to justice for fraud:)

Excuse me for been cynical:)

I know - it's like the Taoiseach of the state, not only running a campaign for members of the public to snitch on scammers, but also having a scamming, ambulance chasing minister within his own cabinet initiating personal insurance claims for a fellow td (thick as thieves, literally) yet turning a blind eye to both.

There's gonna be no but what about to this one horse.

ChikiChiki · 24-07-2019 12:19am

lola85 wrote: »

FF and people been brought to justice for fraud:)

Excuse me for been cynical:)

Understandable to be cynical about FF preaching accountability (as am I) but FG are making them look more ethical and Leo does not even realise it.:o

Grassroots must be close to pressing the red button.

boombang · 24-07-2019 12:20am

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/maria-bailey-removed-as-committee-chair-over-compensation-claim-1.3965091?mode=amp

Don't know if anybody else has mentioned this already, but the linked article states:

"Ms Bailey has already been chosen as a Fine Gael candidate at the next general election."

I think that's going to help make up the mind of many voters who might have still been on the fence.

Bunny Colvin · 24-07-2019 1:03am

boombang wrote: »

https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/maria-bailey-removed-as-committee-chair-over-compensation-claim-1.3965091?mode=amp

Don't know if anybody else has mentioned this already, but the linked article states:

"Ms Bailey has already been chosen as a Fine Gael candidate at the next general election."

I think that's going to help make up the mind of many voters who might have still been on the fence.

Is there any chance she could be elected after this? **** this country if she gets anywhere near it.

tayto lover · 24-07-2019 7:15am

Bunny Colvin wrote: »

Is there any chance she could be elected after this? **** this country if she gets anywhere near it.

Of course there is.
Think Lowry, Mc Ilvanney and I’m sure there’s others.

Shefwedfan · 24-07-2019 7:27am

Bunny Colvin wrote: »

Is there any chance she could be elected after this? **** this country if she gets anywhere near it.

One paper stopped people in her area

You would expect in that area to be highly educated but sadly not...a lot of she learned her lesson blah blah blah....and this was before she got any reprimand for Leo

tototoe · 24-07-2019 7:27am

This story just keeps on giving. A story leo and FG tried to bury in the midst of Boris and Lowry..

Yet it's top story on breakfast radio, on the front page of most papers...and both bailey and varadkar still trending on twitter this morning.

Love it.

Chiparus · 24-07-2019 7:29am

tayto lover wrote: »

Of course there is.
Think Lowry, Mc Ilvanney and I’m sure there’s others.

Bertie, Charlie Mihall ..........

Shefwedfan · 24-07-2019 7:29am

tototoe wrote: »

This story just keeps on giving. A story leo and FG tried to bury in the midst of Boris and Lowry..

Yet it's top story on breakfast radio, on the front page of most papers...and both bailey and varadkar still trending on twitter this morning.

Love it.

Whoever is their media person and the couple of lackies on here, really they haven’t a f**king clue

Shows how disconnected Leo is, he still think he can spin a line, wear an expensive jacket and it will all ok.....

You got away with it for a while Leo, now people expect a leader, your not it so move on and let’s see what else is around

Brexit is no excuse not to have general election, Boris is going to make a complete balls of that on his own

Auguste Comte · 24-07-2019 8:06am

is_that_so wrote: »

There won't be any as the case was dropped.

I think they might have something to say about the legal costs they faced and are currently trying to recover.

golfball37 · 24-07-2019 8:15am

What this says is yes she did something wrong and we are punishing her. She is still worthy of being a valued full member of the parliamentary party however.

They have really abandoned their advertised values since Varadkar took over and I think they’ll suffer whilst it’s allowed continue. He’s not a leader.

_Kaiser_ · 24-07-2019 8:21am

IT claims there's a split within FG over Leo's handling of the issue :

Maria Bailey case: ‘Fury’ in Fine Gael over Varadkar decision not to punish TD further (via @IrishTimes) https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/maria-bailey-case-fury-in-fine-gael-over-varadkar-decision-not-to-punish-td-further-1.3965311

Fine Gael sources said the Taoiseach had decided against doing so for “compassionate” reasons. Ms Bailey’s father, former Fine Gael councillor John Bailey, died in recent weeks.

“In not going further by removing the whip from Deputy Bailey, I do so conscious of the devastating effect this saga has had on Deputy Bailey and her family in particular,” Mr Varadkar said.

One senior Fine Gael figure, however, said there was “fury and disbelief” at the decision, adding: “He has bottled it.”

Looks like, despite Leo's and even some here's attempts to downplay and bury this story, at least some within FG seem to be aware of how it looks to the rest of us.

Odyssey 2005 · 24-07-2019 8:25am

Shefwedfan wrote: »

Whoever is their media person and the couple of lackies on here, really they haven’t a f**king clue

Shows how disconnected Leo is, he still think he can spin a line, wear an expensive jacket and it will all ok.....

You got away with it for a while Leo, now people expect a leader, your not it so move on and let’s see what else is around

Brexit is no excuse not to have general election, Boris is going to make a complete balls of that on his own

Conspicuous by their absence in the last few pages.:eek:

Sleeper12 · 24-07-2019 8:25am

Bunny Colvin wrote:

Is there any chance she could be elected after this? **** this country if she gets anywhere near it.

Look at how the locals back Lowry year after year and the growth of the Healy Rae dynasty. Anything is possible. She may even top the poll but I think FGs vote will suffer throughout the country because of this

Shefwedfan · 24-07-2019 8:31am

Odyssey 2005 wrote: »

Conspicuous by their absence in the last few pages.:eek:

Trying to figure out how to tell Leo that this whoel thing has seriously back fired......

Auguste Comte · 24-07-2019 8:38am

golfball37 wrote: »

What this says is yes she did something wrong and we are punishing her. She is still worthy of being a valued full member of the parliamentary party however.

They have really abandoned their advertised values since Varadkar took over and I think they’ll suffer whilst it’s allowed continue. He’s not a leader.

It begs the question, what are the personal qualities required to serve in the Fine Gael parliamentary party.

Honesty, ethics, morals, basic decency seem to be unnecessary when you look at the behaviour of Bailey and Farrell.

Loyalty to party and leader and a hunger to enrich oneself at any cost would seem to be what's needed.

Shefwedfan · 24-07-2019 8:50am

golfball37 wrote: »

What this says is yes she did something wrong and we are punishing her. She is still worthy of being a valued full member of the parliamentary party however.

This is the problem......she is not worthy of being a valued member of the party

She was caught out this time but what other s**t have they been up to? how many other dodgy cases will pop up? or dodgy expenses?

Lea reaction just says that she has something on Leo, so if they keep digging and digging at some stage it will come out.....then the whole thing will explode

McMurphy · 24-07-2019 8:51am

Leo not punishing her due to her father dying recently is some serious cop out, presumably taken to protect Madigan.

This is going to sound harsh, but bear with me on it.

John Bailey didn't drop dead suddenly one day out of the blue, he had a terminal illness that Maria was fully aware of, up to and including his recent re-election campaign for the locals in Dun Laoghaire. Maria and Josepha hatched their cunning plan for easy cash over four years ago, I'm not sure when cllr Bailey was diagnosed with his terminal illness, but Maria had over four years to drop her scam - if not for decency reasons, then she should have done so due to her father's ill health and to avoid upsetting an very unwell man.

If (according to the Times) there's a split within the blue shirts due to Leo's lack of backbone on this, it's because leo is protecting Madigan imo.

If the three comical amigos are back from China or Killarney or the local chipper (all in the same day sometimes)and are reading this......

The media focus on Madigan and what role she played isn't going away..... Check out Twitter this morning, and lots of other media outlets.

Calls for Josepha Madigan to give fuller account of her part in ‘swing-gate’

Shefwedfan · 24-07-2019 9:01am

Johnny Dogs wrote: »

Leo not punishing her due to her father dying recently is some serious cop out, presumably taken to protect Madigan.

This is going to sound harsh, but bear with me on it.

John Bailey didn't drop dead suddenly one day out of the blue, he had a terminal illness that Maria was fully aware of, up to and including his recent re-election campaign for the locals in Dun Laoghaire. Maria and Josepha hatched their cunning plan for easy cash over four years ago, I'm not sure when cllr Bailey was diagnosed with his terminal illness, but Maria had over four years to drop her scam - if not for decency reasons, then she should have done so due to her father's ill health and to avoid upsetting an very unwell man.

If (according to the Times) there's a split within the blue shirts due to Leo's lack of backbone on this, it's because leo is protecting Madigan imo.

If the three comical amigos are back from China or Killarney or the local chipper (all in the same day sometimes)and are reading this......

The media focus on Madigan and what role she played isn't going away..... Check out Twitter this morning, and lots of other media outlets.

Calls for Josepha Madigan to give fuller account of her part in ‘swing-gate’

We are all adults.....

If I f**ked up at work, it would not matter a relative died or not. I would get 2-3 days off and then expect to be back in office.

That's what happens in the real World. Leo is supposed to be the leader of a country. I just work for a company so Leo should be more ruthless than my company. You would expect.

If I done something which would be classed as sackable I would be sacked when I went back into the office.....I know that, my boss knows that, everyone in the company knows that

I am sory Bailey lost her father. But using that as some sort of sob story is a cop out. Personal life is personal life, business is business.

Leo should not be running the country like a playschool and is afraid to hurt someones feelings

The other question is why was Bailey allowed in the local elections if he was so ill? It was mentioned that Maria could nominate his replacement? how f**king crooked is that?

tmabr · 24-07-2019 9:25am

Can we just see the video of the fall. Maybe set up a gofundme page to pay off the inevitable lawsuit which will follow.
Would be totally worth it.

Fine Gael TD sues Dublin Hotel after falling off swing

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