Sir, – First-time TDs who between them claimed nearly €300,000 in severance packages from the former local authorities they served, demand an end to increments and allowances paid to public servants (Home News, October 16th).
Of these eight, one employs half his family on the State payroll while another claimed travelling expenses for driving the equivalent distance of a return journey from Dáil Éireann to Istanbul while on “Dáil business” in his relatively small constituency, this despite the fact that parliament was in recess.
I assume the glazers needed to repair their homes after their latest bout of stone will also be paid for from the public purse. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – Congratulations to Eoghan Murphy and his seven Fine Gael colleagues. I thought that Fine Gael had been absorbed into the “Labour/Public Sector Trade Union” Party .
Well done as well for highlighting the overstatement of savings by the Croke Park agreement which it seems has saved nothing compared to the billions in pay rises given in increments since 2008.
And finally, thanks are due to them for raising the fact that the group that implements the Croke Park agreement is made up of four public servants and four trade unionists: is it any wonder that no real savings have been made (turkeys voting for Christmas!).
Perhaps now the Government will do what we elected it to do: cut the cost of providing services, not the services themselves. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – The group of Fine Gael TDs who are hostile to the Croke Park agreement has been dubbed the “Five-a-Side” by party colleagues (Home News, October 16th). But clearly the figures don’t add up as there are eight of them. Are they not more of an octagon delusion? – Yours, etc,