Who remembers THAT letter? “What letter?” I hear you cry!

In May last year, I wrote about a certain Neville Chamberlain’s political faux pas, which defined his office as Prime Minister of “Blighty”. On the 30^th September 1938, after a meeting with Chancellor Adolf Hitler, Chamberlain returned to England, via Heston Airport. He exited his “Corporate jet” waving a letter from his now BFF, announcing that there would be, “Peace for our time.”

Chamberlain, in those few brief minutes, was claiming that he had singlehandedly stopped the prospect of Armageddon. He had prevented World War II.

Scroll forward just under twelve months, to the 1^st September 1939, which we now recognise as the “Official start date” of WWII. For all Chamberlain’s letter waving and pontificating, there was no substance to Chancellor Hitler’s letter. In fact we now know, that the letter was used to stall for time, to allowing Germany to build even bigger military forces. More disturbingly, this hand typed A4 piece of embossed paper, meant that the European powers could “Legitimately” stand back, empowering Germany to make some significant land grabs.

Recorded history is a great reference point and I would advocate that we all every now and again, dip into it to see the journey we have taken.

On 6^th May 2016 we, particularly in Waterford, became very excited about a similar piece of correspondence. A letter from the then Minister of Finance, Michael Noonan TD, was waved to us, by our own Junior Minister Halligan. This declared that a second Catheterisation Laboratory had now been signed, sealed and delivered for Waterford and the wider South East. The funding and building of the second laboratory was cast in stone. Written into that mythological document, “The Programme for Government”. Fine Gael, supported by a few Independent TDs, would construct our Hanging Gardens of Babylon.

We should have been very wary of such claims and promises. History has taught us to be cautious of people waving letters. But then again we somehow choose to learn so very little from our immediate past.

“Subject to a favourable recommendation from an independent clinical review of the needs of the region....” in the first paragraph of the Minister’s letter. This should have set alarm bells ringing. We were told that this review was merely a formality. Boy were we sold a banana boat with no paddle!

14 months later and we are in reality, no further forward. We’ve yet to see foundations being dug to build a Catheterisation Laboratory. This would give us access to the very basic rights to appropriate emergency care.

The political fudge, to appease the Waterford/SE hordes, was to provide a mobile laboratory. This too was also given lots and lots of PR spin. Yet many, many weeks have passed since this unit was supposed to find its way to Waterford, for the month of June. We are led to believe that September is now the promised landing date for this unit – maybe we should club together and buy Minister Harris a sat nav?

What is for sure is that Fine Gael, with its Independent Alliance support foundations, could sign off on the procurement, build and delivery of a Catheterisation Laboratory for Waterford and the South East, at the stroke of a pen! Far too many do not see Waterford and the SE as a priority, certainly Leo and Simon don’t.

There is, in all honesty, NO need for people to be asking for other parties to threaten this and threaten that, if the lab is not delivered. Let’s face it, the opposition parties are only interested in getting into power and not bringing down a Government. Asking the people to vote at another GE is not on the cards. There is NO appetite for this type of political revolt. Anyway, we only have two opposition TDs in Waterford, so in the Number’s Game, we’re zero/zilch!

OUR issue is that we need politicians who are prepared to box clever, whilst driving OUR agenda. We need people in power, representing us, who can forge alliances and work the dark, dingy corridors of power in the Dail.

OUR Political talent pool is just too small to make any real difference. Maybe next time around?

Who’s battling for Waterford, now that the leadership contest is heating up????

“In the blue corner” we have Simon “The Cork” Coveney. “In the other blue corner” we have Leo “The Lion” Varadkar. Two Fine Gael political heavyweights about to slug it out in a leadership contest. After the long and protracted retirement of Enda Kenny, we can now say for certain that this is a two horse race for the leadership of FG. Perhaps a new Taoiseach of this wee green isle as well.

With two contenders having been announced, each protagonist’s fight team, will start to prepare their “Big fight plan” on just how to defeat an equally youthful opponent. The two combatants are only 38 (Varadkar) and 44 (Coveney). They are literally “Babies”, in terms of a political career. It will certainly be an interesting few weeks ahead, seeing just who matures enough, in the eyes of the FG party cohorts, to take the majority of votes and therefore Kenny’s still warmish leader’s seat.

Mind you, age seems to be no longer a barrier to political immortality. You only have to look east, to France and Emmanuel Macron, who is 39 years old and now the President of France. Sacré bleu!!!

Coveney and Varadkar have held various senior cabinet positions, in the last and current Government. In fact, in equal measure, they have tried to tackle some of the toughest ministerial portfolios. The FG faithful will have marked these times in office as roaring successes. Yet for many, perhaps the majority, there will be a very different definition to success.

Just how do we measure the success of their ministerial office?

Varadkar has held the keys to the offices of; Transport, Tourism and Sport from 2011 to 2014, Health from 2014 to 2016 and currently Social Protection.

In the other corner Coveney has been letting himself in and out of the offices of; Agriculture, Food and the Marine from 2011 to 2014, Defence from 2014 to 2016 and currently Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government.

Interestingly, both sets of localised FG party supporters, will ultimately claim that each candidate has some form of affinity and love for all things Waterford. Coffey is now battling for Coveney’s corner and Deasy, miraculously reappearing from the depths of the “Wild wesht”, has declared for the Varadkar corner. It will also be captivating to see just which way our FG councillors vote? Perhaps we should be party to who they might place their “Paddy Power” wager on?

What of Waterford when all the dust has settled?

In order to answer this question, you need first of all reacquaint yourself with each fighter’s past portfolio.

Has our regional airport not been crying out for money for a runway extension for donkeys’ years? It’s University Hospital Waterford’s plight, to be at the heart of a south east hospital grouping, without the much needed catheterization laboratory or the implementation of the conveniently forgotten Higgins Report, very well documented by now. These game changers for Waterford, with the stroke of a pen, could have been signed off many moons ago. The one consistent factor with these not being delivered seems to have been the Minister in charge at the time, in these Government departments, namely Leo “The Lion” Varadkar!

 

As for Simon “The Cork” Coveney. He cannot be absolved from blame for stymieing Waterford’s progress either. Our coastal fishing industry remains unprotected and many believe devastated. Regional defence bases in the region closed. The “Gifting” of the LE Aoife to the City, as a centre piece to a maritime museum, rejected. Expansion of the City boundary, to the north of the River Suir, dismissed. Despite the recommendations of an impartial independent review committee.

 

So there we have it. The two contenders do NOT have any real meaningful track record of supporting this blue and white city and county. Both could have made a significant difference to where our economy finds itself today. Right here, right now!

Unfortunately, if the last six years are anything to go by, Waterford appears to be on the ropes once again, with both these contenders.

I for one won’t be throwing in the towel.

Has Government interest in Waterford reached a plateau?

Last week at a clandestine, undercover meeting over the border, the news about the Waterford City Boundary Review extension decision was strategically leaked. Once again via the source of instant information that is social media. To be more precise, I read the news across a number of Facebook posts and of course the local Kilkenny newspapers had their “Scoop”. In no small part, due to the rumbustious nature of those Cats supporting TDs and Councillors, who have been very, very vocal and noisy on this topic.

The issues surrounding the expansion of the City, to a size of reasonable and significant consequence, are very complex, emotive and “Raw!” The fact is, that for the South East to grow and have any chance of competing with the other regions of Ireland, our City must be of much greater scale, than the one we currently recognise today.

For far too long we have been told that Waterford will be that “Gateway City” to the South East region. Despite report after numerous report, that goal is still as far away as ever. In spite of Minister after Government Minister promising to deliver for Ireland’s Oldest City, our competitive towns and cities steal yet more and more ground from under our feet, in relation to the greater good of the South East.

Last Monday, 3^rd April 2017, the recommendations from the recent controversial review committee were NOT going to be implemented by the current Government. The report findings would be ignored and some “Fudge”, promising fields of green, would be put in place to appease the Deise natives.

This independent body, which we were constantly assured was set up with no political allegiance, came to the self determined conclusion, that Waterford City must be helped to grow and expand. That growth is necessary to assist the region to compete and attract future investment.

Now, this Government’s record with report findings for Waterford, is to say at the very least extremely woolly. We have one report being slickly and secretively rejected. Partly I fear, due to the political Grand National that is a looming FG leadership challenge. Only one report being implemented, despite the deep rooted flawed foundations, realising a single unacceptable outcome.

For the sake of protecting their identity we will call the two protagonists Simon C and Simon H!

These two men have just delivered the most bizarre of all Government spin. One, Simon H, has taken the Herity Report and stuck steadfastly to ALL of the findings and recommendations. Stating that the report was independent and as such must be adhered to, because as a Government Minister he cannot interfere with these outcomes!

Yet his colleague, Simon C, has taken another independent report and applied his OWN recommendations! Completely ignoring “The free from outside control and not subject to another's authority” independence of the Boundary Review Committee!

I suspect the outcome of both these reports, has far more to do with political posturing, than the good of the people of Waterford and the South East! Both FG and FF see the 5-deputy Kilkenny/Carlow, as a potential three-seat constituency. Thus these main stream heavyweight parties, view the Kilkenny/Carlow constituency, as a far more important political battleground than Waterford. Probably returning a similar political map after the next general election, as we always do?

With Simon C trying to reach his own political summit, leadership of FG and ultimately an Taoiseach for Ireland. He needs to find supporters, keep them sweet and there just so happens to be, two of his own good men across the River Suir. In addition he should need the help of some allies from this side of the river. Alas, that particular political “Scarlet Pimpernel”, holds court with no man, just doing his own thing – so no guarantees where the swing vote from Waterford will eventually go.

With these sorts of odds, is it any wonder that Simon C is hedging ALL his bets? There will be no need for him to cash out early, as he appears to have all the aces in his hand.

“Flip-flopping” report findings, our new politics!!!! 

There is much to look forward to, in the coming weeks and months!

This unseasonably warm, dry weather, does not alter the fact that we are still in Winter! Whilst you may well have the odd Daffodil and Crocus, poking their colourful heads above ground to say “Hello”, there is every chance that we will shortly return to colder weather. Not by all accounts, such cold weather that marks February 2017 as the coldest since records began, but colder weather all the same.

Not that I wish to be too grumpy an old man, as Spring will be with us very shortly and there is much to look forward to, in the City and wider afield.

The City Council, as previously written about, have given their support to nearly 80 festivals and events. This is in addition to some excellent initiatives, such as the one that has currently been encouraging people to visit our museums on Sundays for free, up to the end of February. If this has been successful, in terms of drawing the crowds, then it might well be considered worthwhile to run again, later in the year.

Our next big City event, is of course the 1848 Tricolour Celebration, which takes place over the weekend of 3^rd to 5^th March. The event culminates on Sunday 5^th, with the now traditional Flag Raising Ceremony on The Mall. In attendance will be a significant military presence, with accompaniment from some of our very best local Waterford musicians. But, prior to this happening, there are plenty for other themed events to look forward to.

An exhibition on Thomas Francis Meagher in the Central Library, combined with an Irish Defence Forces recruitment day. A comprehensive schools’ educational programme, which will bring TF Meagher to quite literally thousands of school children, focusing on the true meaning of the Green, White and Orange colours of the Flag. A Gala Dinner taking place in The Granville Hotel on Saturday 4^th, with a not insignificant representation of overseas guests to the City. Perhaps the “Main event” will take place early, on the afternoon of Saturday 4^th. Nearly 100 re-enactors will participate, in probably, the largest period re-enactment, circa 1916, taking place in Ireland this year. During the 20 minute choreographed performance, there are sure to be many hundreds of blank rounds being fired!!!

Following rather rapidly on the back of the 1848, will be the City and County’s St. Patrick’s Day parades. The largest of these processions will snake its way through the streetscape of the City Centre and finish on The Mall. We will once again see all manner of clubs, social enterprises, commercial floats etc on display, on what I always remember, as being a rather cold day of the year. It is just such a pity that the crazy, nutty world of Health and Safety has prevented the “Madder floats” from swelling the conga line, due to incomprehensible third party public liability costs!

Guaranteed, our St. Patrick’s Day parade will take our minds of the soon to be FG leadership challenges. Which one assumes will happen, after all the Ministers have had one last jolly. A jolly to pastures green, monuments green, in fact everything green, in some far flung foreign land.

Once St. Patrick or St. Patty, as they call him in the US (why do our Yank cousins insist on calling him this I have no idea!), has gone to bed for another year, we can start to look forward to many of our tourists arriving in Waterford. They in turn can look forward to exploring and discovering Ireland’s Oldest City, The Greenway and Comeraghs.

From the end of March onwards, we can get stuck into a full programme of Festivals and Events. Then there will of course be your own favourites. I am looking forward to the likes of Sproai, West Waterford Festival of Food, Harvest and of course my particular favourite The Sean Kelly 160km Tour of Pain, Suffering, Mental Torture, Agony.......and FUN!

So, if the political rumblings of a FG Leadership challenge send you to sleep, there are so many more events on the horizon to keep you awake in the coming year.

Thanks to Kevin Pim for the video footage which is from the 1848 facebook page; www.facebook.com/1848Tricolour/videos/1340576525985437/ 

Programme for Government OR Room 101?

Remember this?

Room 101 originated as a BBC Radio Five programme in the early nineties and was hosted by the comedian Nick Hancock. The concept eventually moved to mainstream BBC Television and the show is currently being hosted by comedian Frank Skinner. There are also the endless repeats being shown on a “continuous loop” on the satellite channel Dave.

Room 101 was of course inspired by the novel “Nineteen Eighty-Four”, author George Orwell, where ALL the worst things in the World would be gathered, placed and forgotten.

The current BBC series allows us to view an endless stream of celebrates, in a panel of three, placing all manner of objects, themes, ideas, people etc into Room 101, having discussed the merits for inclusion with host Frank Skinner. As a “dip-in viewer” I have often wished that Skinner had placed all three celebrates into Room 101!

Over the years there has been an eclectic mix of “things” that have ended up in Room 101 including; the FA Cup, Postman Pat, Ferrero Rocher, Margaret Thatcher, cyclists, golf, novelty underpants, hangovers, moths and even poor old Bono!

Clearly then, Room 101 has become synonymous with somewhere to place “things” that clearly do not matter to you, me and our TDs.

I have a sense that the new Programme for Government will become Ireland’s very own Room 101!

There has been great interest in the new Government’s minestrone soup of a Programme for Government, which can be viewed on the good old interweb, through various sources. This huge 155 page document, aptly titled “A Programme for a Partnership Government” outlines ALL and I mean ALL of the proposed plans that will be carried out during the term of this 32^nd Government.

In realty this is just a big wish list or our TDs equivalent of a Dear Santa letter!

Sarah's cats.

I recall a meeting in the Granville Hotel many, many years ago when I was CEO of Waterford Chamber. The event’s Top Table was Enda Kenny and a young (younger) Simon Coveney, with George Lee conducting the proceedings. You will recall that George Lee was trumpeted by FG as the new kid on the block, the new face of FG’s Irish politics and would be the man to shape the future of FG economic policy to ensure stability and drive the country’s recovery!

In the end the dinosaur that is Irish party politics made him resign; “For the last nine months I've done my best to have an influence on that (FG economic policy), but I have to confess that I have virtually no influence, no input whatsoever.”

At this meeting we were promised in FG’s Programme for Government, should they be elected in 2011 to the 31^st Dáil, that amongst other “things”, Waterford Hospital would be suitably resourced and funded as a regional hospital, Waterford Institute of Technology would get “University” status, the south east would be supported for economic development etc etc.

In reality ALL of these promises were nothing but election husting’s spin and when push came to shove everything that was promised for Waterford was literally dumped into Room 101!

I fear that we are yet again reliving that Groundhog Day, and strangely enough the same people are promising to deliver for Waterford, yet their track recording in doing this is, well to be polite, diabolical! Yes, we have had some small wins, and these have been small wins, but the big ticket items have just not been delivered.

Who would you put in Room 101?

Proof that this Government is NOT serious about delivering for Waterford and the South East is the complete and utter lack of a FULL ministerial role for a south east TD. The last ministerial portfolio for Waterford was Cullen and our current crop of TDs are not even making the team sheet.

Rest assured that our Dublin centric TDs are lining up plenty of entries for Waterford and the south east for Room 101 – I just hope that our big ticket items do not end up back in there once again!

A Political Disaster-Class!

Is it just me or is anyone else shocked, annoyed, p@#$*d off and distinctly uncomfortable with the delay in forming a new Government? Was the election not seven weeks ago and yet we are still waiting to hear and read about the make-up of the next Dáil?

We all know that the wheels of Government tend to turn very, very slowly, but they appear not to be moving at all on the important issue of actually governing this country. It just goes to prove that the Humphreys of this world, which so famously amused us during the early eighties in the UK sitcom “Yes Minister”, are the people actually running this country.

Despite no Government, at the time of writing this article, this country continues to run and function efficiently enough. We have not yet turned into a lawless anarchistic state with angry hordes taking to the streets to demonise our political class thus begging the question just what have our newly elected representatives been doing for the last seven weeks?

Have we the tax payer just been subsidising one big Dublin shindig?

Is this not a clear case of demonstrating just how unproductive the political system is in Ireland? Were we to benchmark the productivity over the last seven weeks I am quite sure that the outcomes would not make good reading. Businesses and employees are constantly being told to be more productive, be more streamlined and yet the very people championing this mantra are themselves not practising what they preach. Never have I witnessed such ineptitude and incompetence.

Does it really take seven weeks to get round a table, bash a few heads together, forget historic playground jibes and “barter a better deal for the people for Ireland?”

Of course it should not.

The people, on 26^th February, gave a mandate for a new type of political representation and yet those elected seem to have forgotten this and now seem to be once again ploughing their own furrow for the betterment of who? There was just one chance to sweep the political map clean and start afresh? But we are back once again to sweeping the same dirt round and round the room.

Being openly pro all things Waterford, these delays are not doing our City, County and the greater South East any good what so ever. The longer the negotiations, (or should that read child’s play?), go on, the more and more we lose focus, on the very issues that need to be fixed to get us back to some sort of viable economic stability.

Wander around our City on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and even a Thursday and you will see very few people out spending money in our retail heart. We are still in that third tier of Ireland’s economic recovery and our disposable income is one of the lowest in the country. This elephant in our room will not go away and longer the procrastinations and childish bickering that goes on in Dublin the more our economic issues will fade as a distant election manifesto memory.

So who should we blame for the delay in getting on with governing? Well, I would blame ALL politicians for not sorting this mess out. People need to swallow their pride and find a solution that suits the county and not a solution that suits the politicians.

 

I wonder if we paid our politicians based on results, actions, productivity and delivery would we be in a different place? I do not know of any business or organisation for that matter, that would pay staff for what has in actuality been seven weeks of inactivity and downtime!

Finally, I must say that our TD’s are all looking extremely smart, save one or two exceptions, with new suits, perfect hair, and new gunas, on that satellite channel Oireachtas TV. Clearly, they have been spending their time wisely, seeking the advice of Gok Wan.

Though some have evidently engaged Trinny and Susannah for styling tips!

“E-A-R-L-Y” – we all know how to spell that word Enda!

It was suggested by Enda Kenny in last week’s national news that the 2016 General Election would be held in early spring and, just to emphasise the point, the Taoiseach actually spelled the word for us just to make it easier to understand, “Early in the Spring. E-A-R-L-Y.” he stated whilst at an event in Madrid.

Anyone would think he was a school teacher – oh wait a minute, he is!

At least now we know that the country is on General Election footing and have no doubt that ALL the political parties and independent TDs are gathering their troops and starting to plan their election campaigns. And this will give an opportunity to all of us, who have registered to vote, to plan our own questions for those putting their names forward for the 2016 General Election.

For those who have not registered to vote, there is still time to make sure that you can have your say and let me be very clear that everyone should register to vote and then everyone will be allowed to have their say and ultimately influence the result next year. There will no doubt be many sitting TDs hoping and praying that new voters do not appear on the register and, in fact, I am sure that many of these TDs are in fact quite happy at the very poor levels of political engagement seen across this country. This means that they will yet again rely on diehard traditional voters to come out and vote. Thus, returning the same average number of electoral votes we are now used to seeing year after year after year.

Coming back for 2016!

Now, just for one minute, imagine that the whole of Ireland were to become enthused with politics over the next six months and then just imagine how much effort and engagement our political representatives would be forced to make with every single voter. We would all feel the better for increased levels of engagement and therefore we would all be able to grill and demand a better performance from our representatives. You only have to look across the Channel to see what difference higher levels of public engagement has made to the political map in Scotland and in the UK in general. And only when higher levels of public engagement are made can we really hold our representatives accountable to us the V-O-T-E-R.

If we are to make changes for the better in Irish Politics then we, the V-O-T-E-R, must be more vocal, more interactive and we need to benchmark just how our representatives are performing.

We have heard over the last few weeks promises of this funding and that funding for Waterford City and County when, in reality, once you read the very small print, many of these headline grabbers are in fact “pipedreams!” If these are not pipedreams then the promise of funding and game changer investments must be delivered and delivered now. If they cannot be delivered prior to the next Election then Government’s promised investment in our City and County must be ring fenced and we need our existing TDs to “SHOW US THE MONEY!” before E-Day in 2016.

 

I fear that, as we move ever closer to an “E-A-R-L-Y” spring election, we will start to read and hear more and more spin about what has been delivered and what can be delivered in the future.

However, if we are really to see our representatives making a R-E-A-L difference to Waterford, then we, the electorate, must once and for all engage with everyone who puts their name forward for the 2016 Election. We must tell them what we want and let them know that we will be monitoring their performance, their promises and we will ultimately judge their honesty.

What we cannot do in the 2016 General Election is revert back to our old “traditional voting preferences” as that is just what we are expected to do.

Let us “C-H-A-L-L-E-N-G-E” the mediocrity in 2016!