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'Bah Humbug' Pays Off As Offaly TDs

Thursday, 19 January 2012

NEITHER of Offaly's two TD's sent Christmas cards this year - saving the taxpayer a bundle in the process.
Fianna Fail's Barry Cowen did not avail of the 'free' Christmas card scheme for Dail deputies and Senators but Deputy Marcella Corcoran Kennedy, Fine Gael, did publish a newsletter for her constituents.
Speaking to the Tribune yesterday (Tuesday, January 17), Deputy Corcoran Kennedy said she did not know if the Christmas newsletter came under the same funding heading as the Christmas cards.
'Newsletters can be done at any time during the year and because I hadn't sent out one at all since I was elected I decided to do one for Christmas,' she said.
'No Christmas cards for us in Offaly!' she joked. 'It's a newsletter job from me.'
A statement from the Laois/Offaly Labour Party Senator, John Whelan, put the spotlight on the Oireachtas Christmas cards this week.
Along with 94 members of the Oireachtas, Senator Whelan decided not to use taxpayers' money to send out Christmas cards.
But that still left 132 other TDs and Senators who availed of the Christmas card printing and posting perk.
Senator Whelan said it was 'wrong at any time to send out over 200,000 Christmas cards at the taxpayers' expense, but it is especially wrong in the present economic climate when the Government are scrimping to find funds for nursing homes, schools and Community Employment Schemes'.
'The postage alone costs over €100,000 at a time when many families are struggling to make ends meet. This Christmas cards thing from TDs and Senators is vulgar and a throw-back to the past,' said the Senator.
'Set against the backdrop where the HSE cut the rehabilitative training allowance for people with disabilities from €31.80 per week to €20, a draconian 37 percent reduction, and other similar measures, the wanton waste of resources by TDs on Christmas cards is in sharp relief to the reality of people's lives.'
He added: 'I am certain if TDs and Senators had to pay for the printing and postage out of their own pocket they would not be sending out on average 1,500 Christmas cards each. Would it not be better to donate the money to Simon or Vincent de Paul at this time of year?
'I know from talking to people that it really annoys them and they are sick of it. It's like the season of goodwill and giving and here's an homogenous, mass produced card which you paid for.
'I don't want to come across all preachy and I'm only in the Senate a wet week but I'd like to see this practice brought to an end in the interest of the reputation and credibility of politics.
'In this day and age the Christmas cards perk for TDs should be brought to a halt. It is a matter I intend to raise at the next meeting of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission.'
Senator Whelan also attacked the 'hypocrisy' of Fianna Fail's Deputy Sean Fleming who has criticised the extra payments made to Independent Senators.
The payment is based on the same allowance that Independent TD's such as Luke 'Ming' Flanagan and Mick Wallace receive - and it's worth €42,000 each.
Senator Whelan asked if Deputy Fleming was aware that it was his own Fianna Fail Government under former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern which introduced the payments when the support of Independents like Jackie Healy Rae and Michael Lowry was required.
'A lower level of allowance is made available to the Indep senators and you would have to say it's an absurd allowance,' said the Laois-based former journalist.

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