Donies news update Sunday

The figure for households liable to pay €100 levy not clear – LGMA

         

The Chief Executive of the Local Government Management Agency Paul McSweeney (above photo) has said that the figure for the exact number of households liable to pay the household charge is not clear.

It could take several days, or even weeks, to process the backlog of postal registrations

Paul McSweeney said there were a number of households throughout the country that will never appear on the Household Charge register, due to exemptions, including for property held in trust and charity, Health Service Executive, Government and local authority housing.

He said nobody knows what the exact figure for the number of liable households is.

Last night, Socialist Party TD Joe Higgins put the figure higher – at 1.86 million.

He said households entitled to a waiver, for example a household in an unfinished housing estate or in receipt of mortgage interest supplement, should have registered for that waiver.

He said waivers would become part of the register, and were included in the estimate of 805,000 properties registered before last night’s midnight deadline.

He said this estimate was a conservative estimate and was expected to rise in the coming days.

Mr McSweeney said the agency expected to have a reasonable indication of how many people had registered for the charge before the deadline by Wednesday lunchtime.

However, he said it would take a number of weeks to get a final definitive figure.

A spokersperson for the Minister for the Environment has told RTÉ the minister is considering what mechanism might be used to incentivise local authorities to work with the LGMA and collect the outstanding money owed for the charge.

She could not say whether this would involve penalties or rewards in terms of funding, but confirmed that each local authority will receive a county-by-county breakdown of what they collected shortly.

The spokesperson reiterated the statement made by Minister Hogan on a number of occasions recently that local services will face cuts if all the money is not collected.

She also reiterated that the department is sticking by its estimate that 1.6 million households were liable for the Household Charge, despite claims by others the actual figure is much higher.

In addition, the minister’s spokesperson confirmed Mr Hogan is contesting a bill for private management fees that relate to an apartment he owns in Portugal.

Shane Filan’s company Shafin Developments Ltd in High Court debt battle:

Bank of Ireland sues the Westlife star who put millions into property development's

            

On the move: Shane Filan and wife Gillian are now living in Surrey

Bank of Ireland is suing Westlife’s Shane Filan over alleged unpaid debts,.

Documents lodged in the High Court show that BoI is pursuing cases against the star and two members of his family, Finbarr and Peter.

BoI was one of several banks that helped fund Shane’s massive property speculations during the boom, which aimed to create a number of housing and commercial developments in Leitrim and Mayo.

On Monday, the bank was given permission by the High Court to fast-track the case – and also to serve summonses on Shane’s agents or family, in the wake of his move to Britain three months ago.

Although Westlife continue to post profits as a band, Mr Filan’s property ambitions are in disarray with his main vehicle – Shafin Developments Ltd – selling off houses at less than they cost to build.

During the boom, Shafin also purchased several sites in Sligo, where further ambitious developments were planned.

But the company, which borrowed millions from Ulster Bank, has failed to progress the sites despite obtaining planning permission for some of them.

The Filans also embarked on further property ventures funded by other banks such as Anglo Irish Bank.

Along the way, Shane and family members gave personal guarantees of almost €5m.

In 2007, the Filans used Anglo to fund the purchase of a substantial hotel site in Dromahair, Co. Leitrim, to be redeveloped as a supermarket. Today this site still lies idle despite having full planning.

At the same time – the peak of the property bubble – Bank of Ireland also afforded loans to Shane, Finbarr and Peter Filan.

The first loan, in December 2007, was used to purchase an old bakery in the centre of Ballina, Co. Mayo, which was to be demolished and rebuilt as a high-street fashion outlet.

The project has not proceeded despite being granted full planning permission.

The second BoI loan was used to purchase – for €1.3m in 2009 – 58 hectares of idyllic Leitrim farmland and a stretch of nearby mountainside where Shane and his brothers keep horses.

A year ago, the MoS revealed that Shane and Finbarr Filan narrowly missed having Shafin struck off for failing to file accounts for more than a year. When the accounts were finally filed they detailed accumulated losses of just over €3m in 2010 – a quarter of a million euro more than in 2009.

The company is also carrying bank debts of almost €5m and is entirely dependent on the ‘continued support of its directors and its bankers’.

The Filans insisted they would not go bust when contacted.

‘They have strong commercially viable plans for all of their projects and are prepared for the eventual upturn in the economy. They are looking forward to the rest of 2011 and 2012 in a positive manner,’ their solicitor said.

The Filans also promised that work on a huge retail and residential development on land just behind Shane’s Carraroe home would begin within months. The lawyer said: ‘They plan to commence construction this summer. When opened, this project will generate between 90 and 110 full-time jobs.’ Today the site still lies idle.

Western train services disrupted following damage to a bridge in Galway

       

Train services between Ennis in Co. Clare and and Gort in Co. Galway have been disrupted, after a construction vehicle damaged a bridge.

It happened at about 2pm yesterday afternoon.

All rail traffic on the line has been stopped following an inspector’s report and a bus transfer is now being operated for passengers travelling between Ennis and Gort.

Irish Rail spokesperson Jane Cregan told Clare FM that it is hoped repair work will be completed by the middle of this week.