More promises? As Joan Burton pledges a scheme for first time buyers
TÁNAISTE BURTON UNVEILS SERIES OF ELECTION PLEDGES INCLUDING USC REFORM IF PARTY IS RE-ELECTED?
THE ELECTION CAMPAIGN POSES ONE OF THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES LABOUR HAS FACED IN MORE THAN A CENTURY OF EXISTENCE, BUT THE MOOD AT THE PARTY’S CONFERENCE IN MULLINGAR IS POSITIVE.
Tánaiste Joan Burton has unveiled a series of election pledges if the LabourParty is returned to government.
Among the pledges in Ms Burton’s keynote speech to the Labour Party’s national conference in Mullingar, Co Westmeath, was a promise to give first-time housebuyers a helping hand if the party won another term.
Ms Burton said Labour would introduce a “save to buy” scheme, which would give first-time buyers a cash top-up when saving for a deposit for a home.
The scheme would involve a top up of €1 for every €4 saved, subject to a cap of €1,200 over five years.
Ms Burton said that Labour had proven its commitment to sound public finances, from Ruairí Quinn’s achievements as minister for finance in the 1990s to Brendan Howlin today.
Ms Burton said: “A prosperous economy is central to any effort to create a decent society. But prosperity, by itself, won’t create that decent society.
“We must manage the economy to serve the needs of the community. Ensuring a decent standard of living for workers is essential.
“So over the lifetime of the next government, we’ll work to raise the minimum wage to a living wage. And we’ll continue our reform of the tax system to make it fairer.
“We’ll start by abolishing USC on the first €72,000 of individual income. We’ll do that because, after the crisis we’ve come through, low- and middle-income workers need more take-home pay.
“We’ll ensure the wealthiest in society continue to pay their fair share.”
She said that Labour’s fair tax plan would mean that for every €1 in tax reductions, €3 would be invested in the services that the State’s families and communities need.
Social housing
She said Minister for the Environment Alan Kelly would chop housing waiting lists by building high-quality social houses for those who need them.
On the issue of childcare, Ms Burton said: “For parents with young children, Labour has a radical but affordable plan to reduce the cost of childcare over the next five years to €2 an hour. So every child has the best possible start in life.”
She said Labour would ensure more people received the care they need in their own communities through a national network of primary care centres.
“We’ve already ensured that free GP care is a reality for every child under six and every adult over 70.
“Our plan is to extend free GP care to everyone, so that families will never again have to worry about the cost of going to the doctor.”
Pensions
Ms Burton said that she had protected the State pension through the worst of times, and increased it as soon as the State had the money to do so.
“Labour will use the strong economy to annually increase the pension by at least €5 a week. It’s the very least our older people deserve.”
Ms Burton said that Labour entered Government in 2011 to end the worst economic crisis the country had ever known.
“The true test of any government is whether it leaves our country in a better place.
“Fianna Fáil inherited a boom and blew it. Labour, with our coalition partnersFine Gael, inherited a ruin and rebuilt it.
“But the people did the hard yards. And that extraordinary effort – that extraordinary sacrifice – is paying off.
“In 2011, we were in deep crisis. Now we have the fastest growing economy inEurope. ”
She said the benefits of the recovery were visible, with 135,000 new jobs, higher take-home pay as a resulf of the USC reductions, an increase in the minimum wage, a new tax credit for the self-employed and increased child benefit.
“Stability is vital. The worst mistake we could make now is to squander our hard-earned progress by gambling on uncertainty. With the party who caused the crash and the party who would have made it worse. We know who they are.”
She said building a decent society required a careful balance.
“The balance that ensured Labour in Government strengthened workers’ rights in the teeth of the worst recession we’ve known.”
Marriage referendum
The Tánaiste said that due to the result of the same-sex marriage referendum, every Irish child would grow up knowing their country accepts them.
“I was never prouder of the Labour Party than on that joyful Saturday last May. I was never prouder of Ireland.
“But the journey to create a modern Ireland is not over.
“Some time ago, I spoke with a woman whose unborn baby had been diagnosed with a fatal foetal abnormality.
“That baby was much wanted, much loved – but had no chance of surviving to term.
“In such tragic circumstances, some women will wish to see out their pregnancy. Some will not, and it’s not right that our answer is to send them abroad.”
She said that Labour, if returned to power, will deliver a referendum on the Eighth Amendment in the next government.
Veteran broadcaster Terry Wogan dies, aged 77
RADIO & TV VETERAN WHO DIED AFTER SHORT ILLNESS ACTED ‘AS A BRIDGE BETWEEN IRELAND AND BRITAIN’
THE GREAT IRISHMAN TERRY WOGAN WHO DIED AGED (77) ACTED IN NO SMALL WAY AS A BRIDGE BETWEEN IRELAND AND BRITAIN, TAOISEACH ENDA KENNY SAID AS HE PAID TRIBUTE TO THE VETERAN BROADCASTER WHO DIED FROM CANCER ON SUNDAY
His family issued a statement, saying: “Sir Terry Wogan died today after a short but brave battle with cancer.
“He passed away surrounded by his family. While we understand he will be missed by many, the family ask that their privacy is respected at this time.”
President Michael D Higgins, and British prime minister David Cameron all paid tribute to Limerick-born Wogan, as did many broadcasters and other media colleagues.
President Higgins said Wogan’s was one of the best known voices in Britain and Ireland.
“People in Ireland will remember his early career in Irish broadcasting. On his move to Britain his voice became one of the most often quoted, favourite radio voices.
Wogan on Wogan: ‘I never saw any reason not to be Irish’
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“Always proud of his origins in Limerick, he made many returns to his native country for television and radio projects.
“His rise to the top of radio listenership in the United Kingdom was a great tribute to his breadth of knowledge and in particular his unique, very personal sense of humour.”
A book of condolences in his memory will be opened in the council offices of his native Limerick on Monday morning.
British prime minister David Cameron said Britain had lost “a huge talent – someone millions came to feel was their own special friend”.
“I grew up listening to him on the radio and watching him on tv. His charm and wit always made me smile,” Mr Cameron tweeted.
BBC director general Tony Hall said: “Terry truly was a national treasure. Today we’ve lost a wonderful friend. He was a lovely, lovely man and our thoughts are with his wife and family.”
Wogan had a 50-year career on television and radio, including presenting Wake up to Wogan on BBC Radio 2 and the Wogan chat show. He was also the voice of the Eurovision on the BBC for more than 30 years.
He worked in banking for a few years after college and then began his career in broadcasting at Radio Éireann (RTÉ) in Dublin as a newsreader and announcer. “Dublin was very much part of his life although he was born in Limerick,” said Sky presenter Eamonn Holmes. He added that if, as a young Irish broadcaster, you got Wogan’s blessing it was a “marvellous, marvellous thing”.
Wogan’s first regular BBC Radio show was Midday Spin and, when Radio 1 started, he presented Late Night Extra for two years, flying over from Dublin every weeks.
He took over his own daily show on BBC Radio 1 and 2 in 1969. In April 1972 he took over the morning show on Radio 2. He presented this until 1984, shortly before his three times a week chat show, ‘Wogan’ began on BBC One. The programme ran for the next seven years.
His television credits also include ‘Song for Europe’, ‘The Eurovision Song Contest’, ‘Lunchtime with Wogan’, ‘Come Dancing’, ‘Celebrity Squares’, ‘New Faces’ and ‘Blankety Blank’.
He returned to Radio 2 in 1993 as host of ‘Wake Up To Wogan’ and presented the show until December 2009. In 2005 he was knighted.
German backing for Sligo rail line’s greenway plan
THE DISUSED SLIGO TO GALWAY RAIL LINE FROM COLLOONEY TO CHARLES TOWN WOULD MAKE AN IDEAL GREENWAY ACCORDING TO SLIGO GREENWAY CO-OP
Sligo Greenway Co-op has been attracting growing support from abroad for its campaign to create a greenway on the disused railway line between Collooney and Bellaghy.
Following the recent launch of the group’s websitehttp://www.sligogreenway.com sales of shares in the Co-op have increased and messages of support from around the world have been emailed to the community group.
An award-winning greenway, Nordbahntrasse, located in Wuppertal, Germany is featured on the Sligo Greenway website. As a result of this link, many people from Germany have offered encouragement to the Sligo project.
Germany has more than 700 trails on former rail lines that are frequented by local enthusiasts and tourists. The country has over 70,000 km of linked trails, compared to Ireland’s 200 km, facilitating a huge tourism industry as well as important local amenities. In turn 15 million German tourists and over 20 million European tourists seek out these same facilities when travelling abroad.
Dr Achim Bartoschek from Leverkusen is part of a community group in Germany that has created a similar local amenity, Much of their funding was done with symbolic share certificates similar to the Sligo Greenway campaign. In a message wishing success to the Sligo Greenway Co-op, Dr. Bartoschek noted that he had added the Sligo project to his own website.
Further endorsement of the Greenway concept has also come in the form of Co-op shares sold online since the website went live in late November. Many Sligo people familiar with the closed line bought shares as gifts for family around the world and some people living abroad did likewise in an effort to support regeneration and growth in their native county.
Tubbercurry native Martin Brennan, now living in the US said of the greenway proposal: “I am absolutely convinced that the efforts of communities throughout the country to construct these bike paths can be compared, in terms of economic impact and environmentalism as being second only to the establishment of the GAA. They promote physical and psychological wellness whether they are used for biking, jogging and walking.”
Sligo Greenway Co-op formed in early 2015 and is current continuing a range of meetings with Sligo County Council and other stakeholders in an effort to have the Greenway delivered for Sligo at the earliest opportunity.
Tesco probe breach of the legally-binding code is a boon for suppliers
IT SEEMS TO BE SWINGS AND ROUNDABOUTS FOR THE TOP EXECUTIVES AT TESCO THESE DAYS.
After posting strong trading figures for the Christmas 2015 period, along with improved levels of customer satisfaction and growth of 4.1% in their international markets, they have been struck another blow as a result of the findings of the Groceries Code Adjudicator.
In February 2015, the GCA (the supermarket watchdog) began a very detailed investigation into whether or not Tesco was in breach of the legally-binding code which protects supermarket suppliers.
The adjudicator was primarily concerned about three key issues:
- whether or not Tesco had been making unilateral deductions from suppliers;
- the length of time taken to pay monies due to suppliers; and, in some cases
- allegations of intentionally delaying payments to suppliers.
This week, the findings have been published and it has been pointed out that Tesco has, in fact, acted “unreasonably” in respect of delaying payments to suppliers, often for lengthy periods of times.
As a result of this, Christine Tacon, the adjudicator, has made five key recommendations which, among other things, include stopping Tesco from making unilateral deductions from money owed for goods supplied, whereby suppliers will be given 30 days to challenge any proposed deduction and, if challenged, Tesco will not be entitled to make the deduction.
Initially, Tesco has publicly responded by apologising to suppliers affected and stated that it is now a very different company from what it was when the investigation started. Officially, the company now has four weeks in which to clarify how they plan to implement the adjudicator’s recommendations.
This all spells good news for suppliers, particularly those operating on a small scale who need to be paid promptly in order to stay in business. However, it provides little comfort for those who have historically suffered at the hands of the supermarket giant in a retail marketplace where Tesco is struggling, not for survival, but for total control.
Tullow oil veterans poised to strike for ailing Petroceltic company
T5 OIL & GAS IS INTERESTED IN MAKING A DEAL, WRITES GAVIN MCLOUGHLIN
(Left picture) T5 Chairman Pat Plunkett.
A group of former Tullow Oil directors is preparing a takeover bid for stricken Petroceltic’s assets.
T5 Oil & Gas, a vehicle set up by the Tullow veterans, has run the rule over Petroceltic’s Egyptian production assets, according to multiple industry sources.
It’s understood that any bid by T5 would require a significant fundraising, with the purchase price for the Egyptian assets likely to run into tens of millions.
Rising oil prices in the final hours of last week could throw a life line to Petroceltic, whose lenders agreed for a third time on Friday to allow the company breathing space to find finance or buyers for its assets.
Lenders could pull the plug after Petroceltic, once a darling of the stock market, breached the terms of its loans in the final days of last year.
T5’s chairman is Pat Plunkett, who was chairman of Tullow from 2000 until 2011. Other former Tullow directors involved in setting the company up were Gerry Sheehan, who was a senior international exploration manager at Tullow, Matthew O’Donoghue, who was director of international operations, projects, contracts and procurement, and Andrew Windham, who was managing director of Tullow’s Africa division from 2007 to 2012.
T5’s website says its strategy is “to develop a portfolio of conventional oil & gas resources which will create sustainable growth and value for the company.”
“The company’s first asset is the Louga Block in Senegal. However, the company also intends to acquire highly prospective oil and gas assets in countries and regions where the management team have extensive experience and a strong network of contacts.”
The assets in question have been put up for sale by struggling Petroceltic, which in an explosive announcement two days before Christmas said it was willing to sell some or all of the business. Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Davy Corporate Finance were enlisted to review the options.
In response to a query from the Sunday Independent, a T5 spokesman said: “as is standard practice, we never comment on any market rumours.”
“This email should not be read as either a confirmation or a denial,” the spokesman added.
Petroceltic’s remaining Egyptian production assets include a “receivable” – money owed by the Egyptian national oil company – that stood at $31m at the end of last September. That receivable may or may not be included in a deal.
In December, Petroceltic told the market that “negotiations in relation to a potential disposal of the Group’s Egyptian production interests…are continuing”.
It said it had already agreed to sell interests in three exploration licences in that country to a joint venture partner.
Petroceltic declined to comment on this story.
Last week, Petroceltic’s largest shareholder, Worldview Capital Management, said it was mulling over an all-cash offer for the company
SCIENCE
Europe launches a space laser data satellite
The information transfer from a laser satellite will be 90 to 100 times faster than the speed of a home Internet connection, and hours faster than from current satellites.
THE EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY SATURDAY LAUNCHED A TELECOMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE INTO SPACE FROM BAIKONUR, KAZAKHSTAN, THAT WILL USE LASERS TO GATHER INFORMATION FROM EARTH OBSERVATION SATELLITES AND QUICKLY SEND IT TO SENSORS ON EARTH.
The launch was part of a project known as European Data Relay System, or EDRS, and is the first of several of these data-transfer satellites that will be launched into space in the next several years.
The ESA says that its new laser communications network will create what it calls a “SpaceDataHighway,” able to transfer information such as photos and videos from Earth observation satellites, drones, and even from the International Space Station down to Earth at a near real-time speed of 1.8 Gigabits per second. This is 90 to 100 times faster than the speed of a home Internet connection, says the ESA.
“EDRS is one of a kind and ESA’s most ambitious telecom programme to date, creating the means for an entirely new market in commercial satellite communications,” the agency said in an announcement.
The faster transmission speed will be a boost to responders to disasters, pollution incidents, or illegal fishing or ocean piracy, for example, who could make better decisions with more immediate access to satellite data.
“Some important shipping routes go through the North Pole region, where thick-ice [floes] can cause damage to vessels and even threaten human life,” Magali Vaissiere, ESA’s director of telecommunications told the BBC.
“It’s also an environment in constant motion which means that data that is two days old is not only unhelpful – it could even be unsafe,” she said, referring to the limitations of traditional radio satellites.
Current satellites in low Earth orbit are able only to send back the data they collect during their 100-minute orbit time around Earth during a 10-minute window when they have line-of-sight with sensors on Earth.
ESA’s first optical satellite will remain in a stationary position higher in space (same as television satellites) than other satellites, about 36,000 kilometers (nearly 23,000 miles) from the Earth’s equator and above Europe. It will collect data from this location and relay it down to European ground stations, avoiding the time delay when other Earth observation satellites have to wait for “line of sight” with ground stations, says the ESA.
EDRS laser technology was developed by German satellite builder Tesat, a subsidiary of French aerospace company Airbus at a cost of 500 million euros.
The laser terminal will be tested over the coming weeks and months with ground stations in Germany, Belgium, and the United Kingdom, and is expected to be fully operational this summer, when it should start serving its first customer, the European Commission.
Over the next several years, ESA plans to discharge two more laser-equipped satellites into space, one over Europe and the other over the Asia-Pacific region.
Their biggest challenge, said ESA project manager Michael Witting, will be to get these laser terminals to talk to each other.
“It’s a laser beam; you have to point it accurately. It’s the same as taking a torch in Europe and pointing at a two-euro coin in New York,” Mr. Witting told ArsTechnica.
“That’s one of the main challenges for developing the laser communication terminal, but also developing the satellite – it has to be stable enough to allow that kind of accuracy,” he said.
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