The political and the human-reflections on demotion of John

Tonight is a difficult one for John McGuinness TD, a political adversary in our constituency who has not been reappointed to a Junior Ministry by Taoiseach Brian Cowen TD. On a human level this is a difficult time for John, his wife Margaret and all the McGuinness family, including my council colleague and opponent in the forthcoming local elections, Andrew. It is never easy to lose a position which you feel you have secured on merit, and one in which you have worked hard and in which you feel you have done well.

It is also a frustrating time for the McGuinness half of the Fianna Fáil team in Kilkenny who thought that by succeeding in topping the poll in 2007, and in the process, helping to deliver three seats out of five that enough had been done to secure the first step on the ministerial ladder for a politician who is, without a shadow of a doubt, bright and articulate. Indeed the McGuinness lieutenant on the Borough Council, Cllr. Joe Reidy tonight said on local radio that the step to a senior ministry was one they thought would happen sooner rather than later. Those of us of all political persuasions hoped that a senior ministry would come to Kilkenny sooner rather than later, as it is now twenty seven years since we had that honour and all it brings with it.

On a political level however, I have had my differences with John McGuinness. I believe his attacks on public servants in last year's Sunday Independent interview were wrong and unfair, but as the 'pension levy' or public service tax as it should be called has proven, many in his own party agree, including the Minister for Finance and the Taoiseach.

John believes in his right to speak out, but it is the ability to attack Government decisions which your party made and which you walked through the Dáil lobbies to vote for, which I and a huge number of the voters I am meeting on the doorstep find hardest to take.

When John announced on KCLR local radio on the morning of the latest budget that the Government 'had made a bags of the last budget', he failed to mention that he had voted for it and also robustly defended it in the local and national media.

John was defiant tonight on national television stating that he had 'not been elected to the Dáil to leave his brain outside the door'. With this we all agree, but we will continue to demand that he and every Fianna Fáil TD in Carlow/Kilkenny and in the country accept their responsibility for and are held accountable for things like axing the Christmas bonus for pensioners and social welfare recipients, increasing class sizes, hatcheting services in hospitals and health clinics, abandoning the Fair Deal for those in nursing homes etc. etc. etc. and of course standing over policies which have ended up with hundreds of thousands of people losing their jobs.

If we didn't I'm sure John would be disappointed that we, like him, didn't use our brains and speak out to defend the weakest in our society who are being made pay for the sins of the free-market nonsense which his party has made such a boast of championing.

He goes at last-Ahern not a corrupt man?

So here's the faces of Christmas past and Christmas present. Bertie Ahern finally called it a day yesterday. I had done the Late Night Live programme on Newstalk the night before which proved to be great fun and a lively debate. Unfortunately it's not podcasted on the Newstalk site. Presenter Declan Carthy opened by telling the nation that Bertie had won another major victory in the highcourt in oreventing the Mahon Tribunal from accessing some of the information about his finances. Having criticised Burke and Haughey previously for impeding and delaying the workings of previous tribunals, he had resorted to the same tactics himself and seemed to have succeeded. Declan's question though was simple. "Why is he doing this-what does he have to hide??"

Looks like Bertie copped this also in the last few days, and finally decided to do the right thing. I called publicly last September for the Taoiseach to resign, as I felt he was not being upfront with us as voters. In fact, I think Ahern got away with murder from the day he did his 'Cry me a river' routing with Brian Dobson on RTÉ television. I don't know what Dodson is like, but I do know that if Olivia O' Leary had conducted that interview, Ahern would hardly have survived till the last election, and we would likely have a different Government by now.

So what's Ahern's legacy? There's no doubt that he did a lot of good, particularly the cmpletion of the Good Friday Agreement negotiations ten years ago. He also presided over a Government in very fortunate economic circumstances. Pointing out that Ruairi Quinn left McCreevy and Ahern the first budget surplus for almost two decades is not taken well by FF's experts on thier 'Economic miracle'. The hard question though is what hos Government chose to do with such riches. The legacy of the self-proclaimed socilaist however has been one of extraordinary wasted opportunity, a growing divide between rich and poor, a third world health system, and now a floundering economy.

There's no doubt he was likeable, and worked hard at projecting the ordinary man image. I for one think he has been a poor Taoiseach, and that history will treat him a lot less kindly than the rose-tinted glasses of the past twenty four hours. Slán abhaile Bertie-bain taitneamh as an ciúnas.

Well done to health marchers-Only the start

I couldn't make it to the Health service demonstration on Saturday in Dublin due to family commitments but hats off to those who took part. The Health Service Unions represent those who work at the coal face of Irish health every day. They took the initiative on Saturday, and were joined in strength by the Labour Party and others on the left.

The highlight of the day I believe was the speech by Kilkenny resident Conor MacLiam, husband of the late Susie Long whose tragic death brought so much of the injustice and inequlaity of the health servie to the fore. Conor gave a fantastic interview on the Sue Nunn show on KCLR local radio this morning, and made it clear that he believes that this campaign should continue. I hope to be there next time, and we owe that to Susie and all those who have suffered at the hands of this unjust system.

Labour Leader Eamon Gilmore also joined the ongoing weekly picket at the Mater Hospital in my old constituency of Dublin Central. Most importantly, the picket highlights the apalling conditions in the A&E department in the hospital. My late brother in law Gregg Flannery passed away in that unit three years ago, and if ever I needed a clear example of the disgrace of the system, it was the sight of his family members sitting on plastic chairs in the hospital yard in the time of their greatest distress because there was nowhere for them inside.

Join the Health march on Saturday

This Saturday, March 29th there will be two major Health Rallies in Dublin City Centre and in Tallaght.

The Tallaght Hospital protest is at 1pm but if you're a Labour member or supporter in the neighbouring constituencies you can come at 12.30pm to the County Hall, Belgard Square North (adjacent to gate of Tallaght Hospital)


The National Rally takes place in Dublin City Centre. All Labour members and supporters are to meet at 2.30pm at the very latest at the Garden of Remembrance, Parnell Square.

This is one of the most important demonstrations possibly sine the anti-war demo's of 5 years ago. Let's turn up the heat on Harney and Ahern.

Getting the basics wrong-give people OT

Figures I've got today from my old constituency colleague and our current health spokesperson Róisin Shortall TD show an outrageous 1,363 people in Carlow/Kilkenny, including 364 children are waiting for occupational therapy while eight OT posts remain unfilled in the area. Occupational Therapy is a crucial part of the treatment of people with disabilities and mobility difficulties, yet Mary Harney, Minister for Health and Brendan Drumm, as the boss of the HSE can decide to just not fill jobs which provide this basic service to people who really need it.

I've already highlighted the effect this has had on services like the provision of cervical smear tests for women. Why is it that we care so little about such basic services. The so-called agenda for change in the health service has left us with precious little change in the top-heavy administration, but is having a serious impact on services for ordinary patients.

Droch-Lá-Susie leaves us

This is a sad way to return to blogging after another break, but yesterday we got the news that Ireland's bravest woman, Susie Long had lost her battle with bowel cancer. I knew Susie from about town over the past couple of years, and first met her at a gig in Ó Riada's pub about three years ago. Susie was a great music fan, and my abiding memory of her will be the night I shared my colleague Malcolm Noonan's back seat with Suzie on the way back from Bruce Springsteen's magical Seeger Sessions concert in the Point Depot last Novemember. Like the rest of us, Susie indulged in a bag of chips in Inchicore, although she knew that with her illness it would cause her pain the next day. It was the fact that she, like my 15 year old son Fionn, Malcolm, Kairon and myself, were on the ultimate musical high after a truly uplifting gig that will stand in the memory.

Of course it was as Rosie on the Joe Duffy show on RTÉ Radio One that Susie became a national person of influence. Her honest and painful retelling of the story of her delayed treatment as a result of her lack of private health insurance struck a note with everybody who heard it or read the transcript afterwards. Suzie was not looking for personal sympathy, but through her anger at what she knew was her imminent passing, was fighting to ensure that an unfair and appalling health system would not claim others. If you haven't heard the original clip, here is the transcript, or here is the podcast.

In the months since Susie has borne her illness with great dignity, and was delighted to be in attendance in St.Luke's hospital to see the plans for the long-awaited day services unit which will be dedicated to her memory, and indeed her fighting spirit.

Susie was a life-long political fighter and gave so much to her adopted Kilkenny. I was privileged to have known her, although not as deeply as I would have liked. To Conor Macliam, her husband, and to Fergus and Aine, her beloved kids, my sympathies. As she annouced to the nation in an icredible interview with the Sunday Tribune recently. Even more enlightening was the short interview she gave to Miriam O' Callaghan on Primetime, which you can access here.Susie's body will be cremated today Monday, and a memorial service will be held in her memory on Friday.I believe we must honour Susie's memory in a concrete way. One is to continue the fight for decent cancer services for all. Another is to work for a proper hospice in Kilkenny. For now we just miss you Susie, and hope that your battle inspires us all to keep on fighting.

This is Margaret-Reasons to change the Government Part 1

This video tells its own story- Commit yourself to voting for Michael O' Brien in Kilkenny, Jim Townsend in Carlow, or your Labour Party candidate anywhere in Ireland. It surely is time for a change!

Time to clean up the Breagagh

I was delighted that my motion calling for the clean-up of the River Breagagh was passed at last week's Borough Council meeting. The situation on the Breagagh has occupied me since I was elected, and I succeeded in having the Council staff do a substantial clean-up in the area near the Watergate and Blackmill Street Bridge. The Breagagh is an important feeder tributary for the River Nore and contributes fish life to the larger river. Unfortunately it is being neglected in many areas, and its wildlife is being choked. My friend and colleague Ian Coulter and his wife Daphne whose backyard almost reaches the riverbank, brought my attention to the disgraceful state of the river near their home in Rosehill Court. The ownership of the riverbank is one of the problems, and City Engineer, Kieran Fitzgerald is to examine the ownership for the residents on my behalf. He also promised me that he would ensure that the development of the area will be a central part of the roads plan of the Western Environs, which are being developed on the other side of the Breagagh. I will continue to pursue this matter and will work to defend the Breagagh for the future.

'Rosie's' Story- A National and Local Disgrace

Although I know Joe Duffy since student politics days, I rarely get to listen to his 'Liveline' show as I'm at work most days when it airs. All that changed this week however. I'm at home with a miserable viral bug, and I am listening to anything to take my mind off things. It was with huge interest then that I listened to Wednesday's show, when a caller called 'Rosie' phoned in from Kilkenny in extreme anger at the failure of our local health services to treat her in time for bowel cancer, which she has now been infrmed is treminal.

For you to make your own judgement, you can read Rosie's letter here, or listen to the podcast here where she reads it herself to the nation.

As it happens, I know 'Rosie', which is not her real name, and I share her anger at what happened to her. I'm a very strong supporter of St. Luke's and recognise the great work they are doing with very limited resources. I listened to Ian Wilson, the hard-working and dedicated surgeon in St. Luke's doing his best to defend the indefensible this morning on KCLR, and yesterday on Liveline. Ian explained the lack of resources in the hospital very well and fairly, but I would disagree fundamentally with his defence of the two-tier health system. Ian may be right that those admitted to St. Luke's are seen in order of need on the waiting lists, but he freely admitted this morning that those of us fortunate enough to have private health insurance can opt to cross the road to Aut Even hospital where he and others have private practices and can treat patients who can afford it in much shorter times. Hopefully 'Rosie' will kick start a debate locally and nationally on this Government's agenda on the Health system, which favours private care over public.