The Fine Gael thread

[Maguire01]

that gravy train gonna keep on rollin, strap in tight Ross, wouldn't want u falling off.

The gravy train will always roll, you just want someone else on board.

[mikehunt]

that gravy train gonna keep on rollin, strap in tight Ross, wouldn't want u falling off.

The gravy train will always roll, you just want someone else on board.

You couldn't be farther from the truth. I have enough to feed my family and pay my bills and I'm happy with my lot. What does vex me is whinging public sector workers giving it the "poor me". Country is in the shit and the public sector is one of the main reasons. No accountability,  no reform, very little pay cuts and no job losses. And now they want pay rises. Poor them indeed.

[Rossfan]

that gravy train gonna keep on rollin, strap in tight Ross, wouldn't want u falling off.

The gravy train will always roll, you just want someone else on board.

Hunt is the man who wants free privatised water
Fox and Lynch think SF will abolish all taxes and provide free public services.
Meanwhile SF cover up and keep sexual abuse in house.
Micky Martin says F F won't join a Coalition with FG or SF but expects to be Taoiseach.
Then there are the Loony loolah left and the Lucyloolah right.
No wonder FG/Lab are rising.
The Greens will probably have a great General Election too as they will make such perfect sense compared to the latter two sets of clowns.

[mikehunt]

that gravy train gonna keep on rollin, strap in tight Ross, wouldn't want u falling off.

The gravy train will always roll, you just want someone else on board.

Hunt is the man who wants free privatised water
Fox and Lynch think SF will abolish all taxes and provide free public services.
Meanwhile SF cover up and keep sexual abuse in house.
Micky Martin says F F won't join a Coalition with FG or SF but expects to be Taoiseach.
Then there are the Loony loolah left and the Lucyloolah right.
No wonder FG/Lab are rising.
The Greens will probably have a great General Election too as they will make such perfect sense compared to the latter two sets of clowns.

you're one to be throwing stones, a right wing union rep.

[foxcommander]

Fox and Lynch think SF will abolish all taxes and provide free public services.

Where did I say that?

[Lar Naparka]

More bad news for Hunt, Fox, Lynch etc -I'm hearing FG up 5 and Lab up 1 in latest poll.

Ross, it's kinda obvious that you're a (primrose and ) blueshirt supporter.
But you seem to be out of step with the majority of Roscommon folks I know.
For most of them, the fact that Kenny broke his pre-election pledge to keep the A&E department at the local hospital as soon as he got into power, was unforgivable
God knows there's little by way of a credible alternative but it seems you don't share the majority's opinion of Enda and his government.
Is it just the fact  that you're a wee biteen off-balance or do you see something in FG policies that the rest of your fellow-countrymen cannot.

[Rossfan]

I am not a FG supporter. My heritage would be FF , my inclination Social Democrat.
No matter who was in the last 4 years would have been implementing awfulness after the FF/McCreevy/PD Builder Banker running wild era.
As for Election promises - I stopped believing them with the tooth fairy.
The comment you quoted was as it reads and nothing else.
Next election...... A vote for Naughten is a vote for FG in effect, a vote for Fitzmaurice is a waste in the real world,I won't vote FF or SF, a vote for John Kelly while a decent man and the nearest to my views is also a waste as he won't get near a seat..... So what do I do???

[armaghniac]

that gravy train gonna keep on rollin, strap in tight Ross, wouldn't want u falling off.

The gravy train will always roll, you just want someone else on board.

You couldn't be farther from the truth. I have enough to feed my family and pay my bills and I'm happy with my lot. What does vex me is whinging public sector workers giving it the "poor me". Country is in the shit and the public sector is one of the main reasons. No accountability,  no reform, very little pay cuts and no job losses. And now they want pay rises. Poor them indeed.

Define "very little"

[Rossfan]

that gravy train gonna keep on rollin, strap in tight Ross, wouldn't want u falling off.

The gravy train will always roll, you just want someone else on board.

You couldn't be farther from the truth. I have enough to feed my family and pay my bills and I'm happy with my lot. What does vex me is whinging public sector workers giving it the "poor me". Country is in the shit and the public sector is one of the main reasons. No accountability,  no reform, very little pay cuts and no job losses. And now they want pay rises. Poor them indeed.

Define "very little"

What an ill informed incorrect bigoted anti worker anti public service neo liberal right wing rant from Mi Kehunt.
Not surprised as he had a problem last week with a worker being entitled to a lunch break.
I thought we had left 1913 behind us but there are still a few William Martin Murphys around who still can't get their heads around the idea that working people both Private and Public Sectors should be paid more than a pittance or indeed anything at all.

Little pay cuts indeed - average cut 7.5% ( dressed up as a "Pension Levy") throught deductions 2009 - average 7.5% in pay cuts to rates 1/1/2010 in addition to the across the board cuts  of reduced PAYE credits, The Universal Social Charge and the imposition of PRSI on the first €127 per week.
Then there were the reductions in money, terms and conditions of Croke Park and Haddington Road Agreements.

[armaghniac]

Little pay cuts indeed - average cut 7.5% ( dressed up as a "Pension Levy") throught deductions 2009 - average 7.5% in pay cuts to rates 1/1/2010 in addition to the across the board cuts  of reduced PAYE credits, The Universal Social Charge and the imposition of PRSI on the first €127 per week.
Then there were the reductions in money, terms and conditions of Croke Park and Haddington Road Agreements.

Presumably Mr Hunt will be bringing forward real figures to show the level of cuts involved and comparing them with actual figures for other sectors.
Presumably also Gerry Adams will also come out with a detailed account of his life in the IRA, this seems more likely than the previous.

[macdanger2]

For once I somewhat agree with mike

Hearing the pension levy described as a "cut" is laughable – it's called contributing part of your defined benefit pension. Something any private sector would be glad to do if he were offered such a deal.

There have been fairly limited (and that's being generous) reforms of how the public sector operates - there's no method of appraisal whereby the best workers are rewarded / promoted and the laggards are out the door. That's frustrating for private sector employees who have spent the last few years under the very real threat of losing their job – something no public sector worker has had to face. It must also be frustrating for the bright / diligent workers in the public sector who get no reward for doing their job well yet get labelled as being as useless as the office layabout. That lack of change is almost entirely down to the unions and the inertia of the govt to challenge the public sector unions.

[Rossfan]

Hearing the pension levy described as a "cut" is laughable – it's called contributing part of your defined benefit pension. .
That lack of change is almost entirely down to the unions and the inertia of the govt to challenge the public sector unions.

Pension "levy" is a mechanism to save the public purse some money( as one of the Head honchos of the Dept of Finance told me -I used to have friends in high places  ). None of the saving goes to any pension fund.
Public service pensions are paid out of the Superannuation monies deducted from current public service Employees.
If I got €450 last week and €425 this week - that's a €25 cut no matter what it might be termed officially.
It is not  "the public sector unions" job to reform the public service - their job is to represent their members' interests.

[macdanger2]

Hearing the pension levy described as a "cut" is laughable – it's called contributing part of your defined benefit pension. .
That lack of change is almost entirely down to the unions and the inertia of the govt to challenge the public sector unions.

Pension "levy" is a mechanism to save the public purse some money( as one of the Head honchos of the Dept of Finance told me -I used to have friends in high places  ). None of the saving goes to any pension fund.
Public service pensions are paid out of the Superannuation monies deducted from current public service Employees.
If I got €450 last week and €425 this week - that's a €25 cut no matter what it might be termed officially.
It is not  "the public sector unions" job to reform the public service - their job is to represent their members' interests.

Do those superannuation monies cover the entire cost of public service pensions?

I think the unions do their members a disservice by protecting the do-nothings at the expense of the rest of the public servants who get paycuts instead of getting a more streamlined place to work. Of course, it's in the unions interests to keep numbers up, it keeps the dues coming in

[armaghniac]

There have been fairly limited (and that's being generous) reforms of how the public sector operates - there's no method of appraisal whereby the best workers are rewarded / promoted and the laggards are out the door. That's frustrating for private sector employees who have spent the last few years under the very real threat of losing their job – something no public sector worker has had to face. It must also be frustrating for the bright / diligent workers in the public sector who get no reward for doing their job well yet get labelled as being as useless as the office layabout. That lack of change is almost entirely down to the unions and the inertia of the govt to challenge the public sector unions.

Wasters are obviously most active in calling on their union to do things, other people are too busy working. But as long as people keep electing wasters to direct all of this there won't be much improvement.

[Rossfan]

Do those superannuation monies cover the entire cost of public service pensions?

Each public body pays their own I believe. Make more sense if it was all centralised.
20 odd years ago I was a temporary clerical officer in the payroll office of a Council. In that particular body then the contributions were about twice the pensions.
I'm not in an office role in my current organisation so don't know the current situation.