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THE GOVERNMENT HAS been accused of “breathtaking cynicism” for deciding not to oppose a Sinn Féin motion calling for the new National Maternity Hospital (NMH) to be fully public and located on public land.
Cabinet today approved plans for the NMH that will see it remain as a voluntary hospital and be moved to be co-located alongside St. Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin.
Under the plan, the State will own the buildings but the land on which it will be built will be owned by St Vincent’s Healthcare Group who will lease it back to the State for 299 years.
All of the major opposition parties are opposed to plans as envisaged and have called for the land to be fully publicly owned.
A Sinn Féin Private Member’s Motion calling for public ownership of the land is being debated in the Dáil tonight and may be voted on tomorrow.
Speaking earlier today, Green Party TD Neasa Hourigan had said she would not be able to oppose Sinn Féin’s motion if the government had opposed it.
This raised the prospect that Hourigan and potentially other government TDs would be forced to vote against the government.
Voting against the government would likely have led to Hourigan losing the Green Party whip. Hourigan previously lost her speaking rights within the party when she voted against the government on the Residential Tenancies Bill in 2020.
However, it has now been confirmed that the government will not table a motion against Sinn Féin’s, making it likely that Sinn Féin’s non-binding motion would be passed if it is voted on.
A government spokesperson has said this evening that a Cabinet decision has already been made on the issue and therefore there was no need to oppose Sinn Féin’s motion.
The spokesperson said that Health Minister Stephen Donnelly will “outline his view” during the course of the debate but that much of what is in Sinn Féin’s bill is “non-contentious” as it calls for improvement in maternity care.
The spokesperson also said that decisions on not opposing opposition motions is one which is made “on a case-by-case basis”.
In the Dáil this evening, Social Democrats co-leader Róisín Shortall TD said that the government should be “ashamed” by its “hypocrisy”.
“The government is faced with a motion that says that we must pursue the full realisation of the promise that was made by the Sisters of Charity to give the land to the people of Ireland,” she said.
It is the height of hypocrisy that on the very day that this government rammed through a Cabinet decision to plough ahead with its proposal, that you actually sit back and pretend that you’re supporting this motion. I mean, are you not ashamed of that?
People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy made similar comments.
“It is the height of breathtaking cynicism. The motion calls for the government to get full public ownership on the very same day when they’ve done the opposite. It’s disgusting cynicism,” he said.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Drivetime programme this evening, Hourigan herself said the government was removing her right to demonstrate her opposition.
“Where you have no democratic vehicle to register your objection to these things, one of the ways to do it is to deviate from the whip. By the government accepting this motion as it seems that they will, now even that small piece of dissent has been removed,” she said.
Hourigan said that in general opposition motions are “not a good vehicle for political debate” but that this case was an exception.
In this case, where there’s a 299 year deal, this is generations of women, and I would have liked the opportunity to have it on the record for those 299 years that I object to this, this isn’t good.
Speaking this evening, a government spokesperson said that Hourigan’s position was not discussed at Cabinet but that her party leader Eamon Ryan had “reached out”.
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Paying 1500euro for a 2 bed in Naas :(
@Free Online Games:
Seems reasonable enough , depends on the occupancy rate
@Free Online Games: rent apartment/ rent house more expensive than mortgage & some Dublin people move to country cheap. Blame landlord greedy
@Brian Flavin: I’m about 2 months off mortgage approval and will be looking at roughly 660euro monthly repayments on the same place. Can’t wait!
@Free Online Games: best of good luck new house & move in two months time
@Free Online Games:
Well done , best wishes on the new gaff.
@Colonel Grant: Thank you Sir *Salutes Colonel* .
@Brian Flavin: They always have been. The only point they weren’t was during the recession where properties were rented at a loss. That was never sustainable and those losses were always going to be attempted to be recovered. The additional charges were also always going to be added to rent. People didn’t care when they knew the rent couldn’t go up but once they were applied people started complaining.
@Free Online Games: How long have you been there? Do you know what the rent was before you moved in? If you have any contact with previous tenants (e.g. for post) you should ask them and if it was increased by over 4% between tenants, you can take a case to the RTB which will find in your favour and they will owe you the excess rent. I took a similar case to the RTB and got my rent reduced by €300 plus they owed me the excess rent.
@Colonel Grant: “Seems reasonable enough” will you get on up the road its almost a month salary for most couples, hence they are left with feck all to save to get themselves deposit for a house. Its complete madness and its on the way to another crash, landlords will be left with empty places and have to foot the bill for such due to people just jumping ship and emigrating again. Better life elsewhere with cheaper rent… Nobody to blame but the government and themselves….
@Free Online Games: Time to bring in maximum rate per sq metre for rent prices
Its total greed and these accidental landlords crying there being forced out of the market mostly are in full time employment while someone else purchases a house for them and invests in their pension. Your heart would bleed for them.
@Daithi Ó Raghallaigh: if it’s so easy why aren’t you doing it
@Daithi Ó Raghallaigh: 52% tax and repairs etc and risky as some tenements don’t pay. Not worth it.
@ed w: bit like asking why I am not an astronaut. They just sit .don’t even fly the things anymore. So easy . BUT I’AM NOT ONE
@Sandra Fogarty Tormey: the tax experts saw otherwise https://www.taxback.com/blog/tax-and-irish-rental-income-what-you-need-to-know/
@Daithi Ó Raghallaigh: alot of people are still in negative equity and have struggled for years to keep up mortgage payments during tough times. Why not make hay when the sun shines because let’s face it the sun wont shine for long in this country.
Sure phek all be done about it now, the boys are off on their holidaybops… Great bunch of lads, Brexit looming and these lads take a few months off.
Try 12% increase in Kerry
The RPZs are having a “positive” impact on rental inflation alright. Since they were introduced as a temporary measure (since extended of course) rents have galloped along as supply contracted.
@Sean:
Did you read the article?
A bit misleading to suggest the rules have been broken if they don’t check the rules were followed. Maybe a quarter of landlords that stayed in the market did up the property allowing them to raise rent above 4%
Not surprising . No real chance of being hit with penalties
If only there was some measure we could take to immediately decrease demand for rental property until such a time that enough new rentals came on stream…..
Moved out of last house because it was been sold 7 months later was on daft for 464 over the RPZ allowed amount
@Derrick Ó Súilleabháin: did somebody buy it and do it up? Or is what you are saying they left it vacant for 7 months before deciding to rent it after no sale?
@Derrick Ó Súilleabháin: “being” sold not “been” sold. I’m not surprised you bring a hard luck story to this forum since your grammar is obviously not very good innit.
@Craic_a_tower: they did not do it up did sell it pictures on daft are exactly the way we left it and I live near by and pass it every day to work no skips no builder were there
@Sean: I’m sorry that my medical cerified dyslexia offends you . I think you should be more aware of people’s conditions before you try to be smart
Landlords & Builders are bad people.
This what happens when you have a weak government and a poor I love everyone leader
Been saying this for years. Link rent charged to tax levied on landlords. High Rent = High Taxes, Low Rent = Low Taxes. This would put downwards pressure on rents and encourage more Landlords into the market due to better returns.
It works for Employment Income why not Rental Income??
have your say