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IT’S NOT AN easy job, being Ceann Comhairle — as the current holder of the role, Seán Barrett, would no doubt attest.
For instance, how many times have you switched on the radio to hear a news report start with the remark “there were ructions in the Dáil…”?
Someone has to take control when those ructions break out.
And back in 2007, former Justice Minister John O’Donoghue was that soldier… Newly installed in the role following that year’s General Election.
As a youthful Brian Dobson* explains in the clip below — the Kerry TD had to suspend the Dáil “after a series of extraordinary rows”.
The main culprit, raising O’Donoghue’s ire? A certain Enda Kenny.
“Quiet now, you’re new in the job,” was the Fine Gael leader’s advice… A red rag to a bull, it turned out – leading to a “torrid” afternoon…
*Just kidding Brian… Obviously, you look exactly the same.
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My favourite is still “F*ck you Deputy Stagg, f*ck you”
You should see his Ice Bucket Challenge :D
His phoenix park challenge was enough.
Thanks for introducing me to it, my night is filled with the remixes of it lol
Lol Mike!
Mike
Don’t be a hypocrite as you told us yourself that you use the Phoenix Park regularly as a short cut!
Yes rodgers but I utilise ot as a “public park” and not to engage in sex acts like your friend.
Remember it was us who elected Enda, a national teacher for only two years.
Because his da was a TD – who only won his seat cos he played football.
Is it any wonder why we’re a bit of a laugh in the EU?
Spot on. Parish pump politics in full flight. Just the same as O’Donoghues slimy rise to the top.
I didn’t elect him. I voted Labour in a misguided belief that they would change things. I know better now.
Johnny cash spent taxpayers money on himself and his wife like Monopoly money took a taxi for a 5 minute walking distance at our expense fat b/ stard
James, I think you’ll find that was a limo that the rancid, thieving b*stard took between two terminals in Heathrow, despite the free shuttle service available. Still, he’s sitting in his castle in Kerry on €128,000 per annum of our money despite it all. Good ol JOD ha?
Red thumbs eh? Well taking out my personal opinion that JOD is a ‘rancid, thieving b*stard’ and I know he doesn’t live in a castle (but in fact a very, very large house) everything else there is true. So whats the issue here red thumbers? Truth get in the way of the party line, or did he do ye a favour along the way and therefore should be forgiven, and well paid for the rest of his life, for stealing from the Irish people?
What’s a ‘dipidy’? Enda grandstanding
to show us all what a defender of the ordinary people he’d make…by fuk… If only we knew what a gutless maggot he really was…
And still is. Spineless kenny and his band of worms.
So what happened to Edna’s bottle ?
Enda’s bottle went when he got elected tea shirt lost everything including any dignity and credibility .
Did you ever see the episode of South Park where George Lucas does certain things to Indiana Jones?
Picture Merkel as George and Ends as Indiana.
Hence the lack of balls
The same cheann comhairle who charged a 700 Euro limmo to the state to take him from terminal1 to terminal2 on Heathrow
Paul; not to mention some other wee bills ol’ JOD chalked up to expenses;
As Ceann Comhairle, O’Donoghue employed seven more office staff than the previous Ceann Comhairle who managed with three staff.
O’Donoghue and Brendan Howlin shared a “working dinner” in June 2007. The cost of the €293 meal was paid for by O’Donoghue. He also dined regularly in Michelin-starred restaurants, on many occasions with his wife.
Four trips to Britain in 2006 and 2007 led to €21,000 expenses claims for hiring cars.
He claimed expenses on a £1 sterling donation which he personally gave to UNICEF when in Scotland. The donation was part of the hotel bill. The total bill for his stay there from 21 January until 24 January 2009 came to €801.70.
He regularly attended horse racing sessions and even brought his wife, secretary and other officials to the Melbourne Cup in Australia in 2003. He returned in 2005, telling a magazine the following year that: “There’s nothing quite like Melbourne Cup day in Australia”.
He claimed expenses of €600 on a limousine to take him to horse racing at Aintree.
He claimed for another limousine to carry him between terminals at Heathrow Airport in London. The total claimed for this limousine was €472.
He claimed nearly €900 per night for a 2006 stay in the Radisson Hotel in Liverpool.
He resided in one hotel in Paris where rooms cost €633 per night.
Many of the expenses were claimed for tips he gave — one of these amounted to almost €200.
He purchased many gifts such as €882 worth of items from the House of Ireland shop and 2006 Midleton whiskey which totalled €135.
€4,956 was claimed on the hire of limousines during a trip to several cities in the United States.
€11,869 in expenses was claimed on advertisements displayed in local newspapers in his native Kerry.
On 6 October 2009, it was revealed that O’Donoghue had spent more than €20,000 at nine different race meetings internationally over the four-year period of 2003–2007
In May 2006, O’Donoghue used the government jet for a six-day journey at the cost of €32,450. O’Donoghue, accompanied by his wife, attended the Cannes Film Festival. He returned from Cannes to Kerry to attend the opening of new offices for the Fexco company in Killorglin. He then travelled from Kerry to Cardiff for the Heineken Cup final, which Munster won, and travelled back to Cannes by government jet. He went from Cannes to London for a Ryder Cup promotional event, before returning to Dublin on 24 May 2006.
Expenses for car-hire services provided by a London-based firm to O’Donoghue during four visits to Britain in 2006 and 2007 came to a total of €21,289.57, according to documents released under the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act. Documents released to The Irish Times showed that three of the four visits were connected with O’Donoghue’s attendance at race meetings in Cheltenham and Ascot.
In 2006, when O’Donoghue visited Manchester on official business during St Patrick’s week prior to attending Cheltenham, car-hire payments made to Terry Gallagher of Cartel Limousines Ltd came to €7,591.96 for “airport pick-ups”. This covered the period 11–13 March. In June 2007 O’Donoghue attended the Royal Ascot race meeting over a four-day period and Gallagher’s firm was paid a total of €3,582.22, according to the official receipts.
On 31 August 2009 O’Donoghue’s expense claim controversy appeared on the front page of the Irish Independent, revealing how O’Donoghue received €330,000 in allowances and expenses in addition to his basic TD salary. It was further revealed that O’Donoghue flew to and from County Kerry at the expense of the taxpayer 73 times, despite having a full-time car driver to his service
And Enda Kenny is now Angela Merkels bit*h………
Two gombens, end of…..
How did we watch telly without HD back them
HD is not all good. I stumbled on Fair City tonight. HD has done the veiwers of that any favours.
Seeing all the actors looking haggard. Yup I concur with that.
“Your making up the rules as you go along” – can’t argue with that
No you certainly can. He can do that. So no he wasn’t making up the rules. I disdain jod but he was being sabotaged and he called out a factual rule. Black and white. So no what you said is lies. L.i.e.s. Lied.
whover named him THe Bull got it spot on
Mary Lou calling enda a d#ckhead was priceless !
He was (is) some arrogant, pompous gobdaw.
have your say