Independent TCD senator Shane Ross
MICK Bailey was fresh as a daisy. There was a bounce in the builder’s step.
I spent the first hour of Friday morning accosting people in Dublin’s Molesworth Street. Mostly they were people I do not know and, more often, people who certainly do not want to know me.
I spotted Mick Bailey of Bovale builders fame while I was loitering with intent outside Leinster House, coincidentally contemplating a column on Bovale’s bankers, Anglo Irish.
LAST June I received a fascinating visitor. The guy said he was a former internal auditor of AIB. He wanted advice. At first I was not overexcited. I sometimes seem to attract every crackpot in Ireland. Some are genuine. Others are headbangers.
Eugene McErlean was no headbanger. He was the real McCoy. At first he was a slight disappointment. He had no complaint against AIB.
Monday
My last day of a week in Boston. I switch on CNN to hear Barack Obama fingering Ireland as one of the countries to which the USA exports labour.
He specifically brackets us with India and the old Eastern block. Ominously, he is answering a question about where he will raise money to fund his middle class tax cuts. Corporate taxes are his target. Ireland is specifically in his sights.
I freeze, but I cannot blame Obama. He owes Ireland nothing and has done little to court the Irish vote. A president without Irish baggage is not good news for us. Any move by Barack to coerce US multinationals home could be devastating for Ireland. The first leg of the Celtic Tiger — construction — is already amputated. The removal of the second leg — multinationals — would cripple Ireland. If Barack is elected tomorrow, Brian Cowen should take the first aeroplane to Illinois.
On the plane home I read John Murray of RTE’s hilarious new book on business jargon. It will make a great Christmas present. It takes pomposity apart. It pokes fun at captains of industry by name and takes lumps out of all the social partnership waffle.
Continue reading ‘We’re Not On Obama’s Radar’
On October 22nd I will be bringing forward my Broadband Bill during Private Members Time in the Seanad. I published my bill a year ago and still the Government has failed to provide universal, high-speed broadband to every household and business in Ireland. I am committed to pushing my bill through the Houses and I would like to enlist your support once more. Continue reading ‘My Broadband Bill’
Yesterday Patrick Neary, the Financial Regulator, came into answer questions before the Economic Regulatory Affairs Committee about his role in the current banking crisis. I have written here already about my views on his job performance and my views are well known. I wasn’t going to tread on eggshells when I got to put questions to him in person.
Continue reading ‘Financial Regulator Admits Banks Were Never Brought To Bear’
OK. Let’s be vindictive. Time for a bit of satisfying revenge. Who is to blame for the economic collapse? How did innocent Ireland ever come to depend on the construction industry for its boom? Was it the Government? The unions? Property developers? Or the global credit crunch? All played a part, but none deserves the lion’s share of the blame.
First, let us point the finger. Afterwards it will be time to punish the offenders. A bit of old-fashioned retribution is overdue. The culprits: the bankers.
HAS the board of Aer Lingus gone walkabout?
The wobbly old airline, just out of the warm womb of public ownership, carrying baggage galore, has betrayed its semi-state ancestors. Burdened by a bombed-out share price, struggling with soaring fuel costs and rooted in a crumbling island economy, Aer Lingus faces a grim future. Worst of all, its steadfast chairman, John Sharman, is perched in the departure lounge, quitting at a time of crisis for the airline industry.
SEAN Quinn belongs in the pantheon of Ireland’s business heroes.
He tackled the white-collar thugs in the insurance industry. He pumped capital into Conor O’Kelly’s dynamic NCB stockbrokers, enabling them to challenge the mighty Davys. He bought health insurer Bupa, ensuring the survival of at least one player to confront the VHI monster.
I have a view on the economy and the political battle that goes on, that nothing is as good or as bad as both sides are saying and not all of it is particularly relevant. I spoke to Minister Lenihan about this in the Senate because of its immedaite and persistent importance. I am a long time on record as stating that the stewardship of Mr. McCreevy, while it may have been an easy time, was superb in that he was prepared to take the economy in a new direction, which might have been at a political cost to himself - it may be why he is where he is now - but which was radical and introduced a new philosophy into the running of the economy which has worked extremely well.
GREAT to hear Richard Nesbitt of Arnotts on Marian Finucane’s brilliant RTE show on Sunday. Richard was agitated by last week’s column here about Greencore, the one that fingered the food company’s auditors Pricewaterhousecoopers. Insiders tell me Richard was keen as mustard to rubbish my unremarkable piece.
Remember? PWC failed to spot a €21m hole in Greencore’s accounts. Hardly a trivial matter.
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