Reasons to be fearful of Government's property intervention

The Government has announced new measures to kick-start lending in the first-time buyers' market as part of its 'Construction 2020' plan.

Under the plan the State will share the risks with the banks and offer 95 per cent mortgages to young borrowers who fit the lending criteria. Any such scheme will only apply to newly built houses under a certain value.

Despite some banks shouting from the rooftops about being open for business, the reality is quite different and mortgage lending is nowhere near where it needs to be. The Government's hope is that by reducing the risk to the lending institutions, they will start to act like properly functioning banks. House hunters will also be incentivised by only having to stump up a five per cent deposit.

•The way we were: A familiar Dublin landscape during the Celtic Tiger years. FILE PHOTO

Clearly, something needs to be done. Years of stagnation in the construction industry has led to a shortage of family homes, particularly in the capital. This is seeing a rise in the value of certain property types across the city and - worryingly - an increase in rents as greedy landlords cash-in on the situation.

But the reluctance by the banks to lend is only part of the problem. Many young couples bought shoebox size apartments during the boom to get a foot on the property ladder. Their expectation was that they would trade up to suitable family homes after a few years. Some have since gone on to have children and now need extra space but find themselves trapped by negative equity.

Other families have had to put their lives on hold while they wait for the Government to sort out the mess caused by the pyrite scandal. While there is finally a State-led process underway to deal with this sorry mess, it has taken years of campaigning to get to this point. So far the Exchequer has made €20m available for a remediation programme. It is a welcome step in the right direction and gives hope to the innocent families hurt by the negligence of others. The psychological and financial burden placed on many of those affected by pyrite has been considerable and - along with the likes of Priory Hall - is one of the most shameful legacies of the property boom.

The situation outside Dublin also remains problematic with ghost estates continuing to be a blot on the landscape in parts of the country. Some will have to be demolished. These developments are widely considered to be scars from the Celtic Tiger years and few will lament their removal. It says a lot about a planning process that allowed such estates to be built outside the commuter belts where there were few employment opportunities, inadequate services or no public transport.

It's hard to believe there was a time when gullible investors might have been tempted to invest in a three-bed semi in the middle of nowhere to add to their growing portfolio of properties in Bulgaria. Irish dinner parties (remember them?) were once dominated by conversations about property values. Those who didn't participate in this modern day gold rush were not just considered to be risk averse - they were nothing short of fools for failing to cash in on the boom. But as we all know now, the boom was just a credit-fuelled illusion. Wealth was judged on how much you were able to borrow, not on your ability to repay it.

While the Government's latest motives for stimulating the first-time buyers' market and the construction industry may be well intentioned, it is vital that they get it right as there are reasons to be fearful. The last thing the Coalition needs to do at this point in our 'recovery' is artificially inflate a new property bubble. Because if we can't learn from the mistakes of the past decade, then clearly there is no hope for us at all.

Sometimes Irish politics can be too local

A friend of mine gets annoyed when I refer to a certain former Taoiseach as 'Bertie'. He believes it confers on him a cosy familiarity and gives unwarranted credibility to Ahern's man of the people image.

When you look back on Bertie's - sorry, Mr Ahern's - tenure as Taoiseach, there is something distinctly Irish about how he portrayed himself as just an ordinary Joe, sipping on a pint of Bass with his best mates in Fagan's. Such whimsical folksiness seemed out of kilter with his day job. Can you imagine Tony Blair or David Cameron popping across the road for half a bitter in Ye Olde London Tavern after a hard day's work as British Prime Minister, chewing the fat with some salt of the earth Cockney geezers? Somehow you can't.

•Bertie Ahern gets an early makeover. FILE PHOTO

And what about Ahern's successor, Brian Cowen, the man we affectionately refer to as Biffo? This was a politician who marked his elevation to the leadership of Fianna Fail and the highest office in the land with a rousing ballad in front of an appreciative home crowd. But that's just the start of his talents. Cowen is also a noted mimic, although it has to be said he does a pretty lousy impression of a Taoiseach.

•A baby-faced Biffo

Let's go back further. It took a tribunal of inquiry to confirm what we long suspected about the source of Charles Haughey's wealth, yet many of us still refer to the former Taoiseach as 'Charlie' as if he were some casual avuncular acquaintance and not the crooked, dishonest politician he was found to be. Haughey personified the nod and wink politics that would eventually result in the loss of our economic sovereignty. But he was met with messiah-like affection by many of his constituents in Dublin North Central for decades. To them, whatever their misgivings, 'Charlie' could do no wrong.

•Head the ball: Charles Haughey on the campaign trail in 1989. FILE PHOTO

In Ireland we have a tendency to celebrate the conviviality of our politicians. We like the easy access we get to them at their clinics in the local pub or community centre. Fair play to that councillor for buying two books of raffle tickets at the school fundraiser. And Janey Mack, wasn't that TD great to show up at me granddad's funeral even though they had never met when he was alive?

But such over-familiarity between politicians and their constituents isn't necessarily healthy for our democracy. Politicians should not be put in a position where they feel pressurised into making representations on behalf of their staunchest supporters. For example, they could be asked to intervene in a planning row or may be approached for help by the family of a convicted criminal.

With the local elections taking place on May 23, our council chambers will soon be filled with many new faces along with some familiar ones. We will want our councillors to keep abreast of local issues and represent our interests fairly and effectively. For our part, we should let them do their work without them feeling a sense of personal duty to us in return for our vote. In this country, politics can sometimes be too local to the detriment of the national interest. If politics is to change, we need to change with it.

Putting child safety before sex offenders’ rights

A disturbing newspaper article was recently circulated on social media, reporting that 12 paedophiles who had been released from prison were now living in my community and in three nearby towns. Four of these individuals were considered at “high-risk” of reoffending by gardaí.
 
A closer look at the report showed that it dated back to November 2012. But its re-emergence last week still had a chilling effect on local parents. This type of story changes you. You become wary of every random stranger; you eye slow-moving cars and vans with suspicion. Your kids can't understand why they're suddenly not allowed out on the green unsupervised to kick a ball or call around to their best friend's house. 
 
How do you explain to them that it was ok to do it yesterday but not today? Sometimes the 'don't talk to strangers' chat isn't enough when there are sexual predators at large.

This week the issue of sentencing for sex offenders was in the news when a man was given four years in prison for sexually assaulting two teenage girls on the Luas. Controversially, the judge decided to suspend the final two years of the term with conditions attached. 

•A man was sentenced last week for sexually assaulting two teenagers on board a Luas tram. FILE PHOTO

Over the years there has been much criticism of how the courts have sometimes dealt with convicted sex offenders. Judges may well have the legal scope to hand down suspended or short prison sentences but when they do it can create a perception of leniency in the public mind. 

All crimes of a sexual nature – be they carried out against children or adults – should be dealt with severely and consistently by the courts. Attending treatment programmes should be a mandatory condition attached to all early releases for convicted offenders. 

That said, if I had my way there would be zero remission granted to sexual predators who target children. Putting them on a sex offenders' register is not enough. I believe they should be electronically tagged for a substantial period of time after their release and that residents living in close proximity to convicted paedophiles are entitled to know exactly where high-risk offenders are located. Gardaí could help ensure that mob rule does not prevail.

I've no doubt that the more liberal-minded in society would take issue with my approach. But in my personal opinion, breaching the human rights of sexual predators would be a small price to pay for the protection of our children.

Do election posters still serve a purpose?

I recently discovered that my doorbell wasn't working. It was just little over one month to the local and European elections and not a single candidate had darkened my door.

Clearly, something was wrong. In the run up to the 2011 General Election they were tripping over themselves to get some face time at my front door. There weren't too many from Fianna Fail, though, which was understandable given the political and economic climate at the time.

So I checked my doorbell last week and discovered it was on the blink. Case closed, or so I thought. But neighbours of mine with fully functional doorbells and knockers also reported a dearth of canvassers on their doorsteps. There were leaflets hastily shoved through letterboxes, right enough, but no one was seemingly willing to engage with householders on the pertinent issues of the day. I would have welcomed the opportunity to have chat. Who knows, they may even have been offered a cup of tea and a scone.

In fairness, you'd have to feel a degree of sympathy for candidates from Fine Gael and Labour, particularly those seeking election for the first time. They have to run the gauntlet of public anger over everything from property tax to water charges - not to mention that pothole at the end of the road. Like a bloody moon crater, so it is.

Similarly, the Fianna Fail boys and girls will be getting a hard time over the state they left the house in last time they were in charge. Biffo and Bertie may be gone but their ghosts still haunt the party.

We are always polite to the Independents when they call to the house, as we are to the various left wing candidates. It's somewhat disappointing when we learn that they're not from one of the bigger parties because we can't really have a go at them over anything. It would be different if we had Ming or Mick Wallace in our constituency, I suppose.

Last week we were reminded that the local and European elections were just a cat's whisker away when the ubiquitous posters went up. ESB Networks warned against placing posters on its poles or structures. Apart from the obvious risks to life and limb, the company has previously experienced incidents where election posters have caught fire following contact with the electricity network, resulting in loss of supply to customers and damaged infrastructure.

So instead of debating the election issues, we got caught up in issues such as posters falling down; being up too high; being down too low; posters blowing down; blocking traffic lights etc. And what about the cable ties left behind when the posters come down? It would keep poor Joe Duffy busy for a week, so it would.

A colleague of mine mused if election posters were somewhat archaic, a relic of the past in an era dominated by social media. He had a point. But even the most tech-savvy candidate can only reach so many of the electorate through Facebook and Twitter and not all voters have embraced the brave new world of the internet. So posters remain the favourite tool for building a profile with voters. It's an expensive and labour-intensive way of getting your message out there. Personally I'd prefer if candidates spent their limited budgets on advertisements in their favourite local newspaper but I would say that, wouldn't I? If nothing else, the very presence of posters - annoying and unsightly as they are - might help remind people that there are two elections taking place on May 23 and they should get out and vote.

In the meantime, I hope to see an increasing number of candidates at my door in the remaining weeks of the election campaigns. Just remember that the doorbell doesn't work so please knock.

Is confusion over water charges all part of the plan?

They've done it again. After creating a cloud of confusion around the introduction of the Local Property Tax (LPT), the Government seems intent on ensuring that we are kept in the dark for as long as possible about the full impact of water charges.

This week the issue descended into pure farce, starting with reports that a €100 standing charge would apply annually before a single drop of water leaves our taps. Within 48 hours Government sources were indicating that a figure of €50 or less was more likely.

•The installation of water meters is well underway. FILE PHOTO

Then in advance of today’s Cabinet meeting it was suggested that the average household would be charged around €248 a year for their water usage. There were all sorts of vague promises being bandied about regarding extra allowances for people with special needs and additional children, as if this was bringing a good news element to the story.

The Labour horses were spooked and started throwing their toys out of the pram, with some within the party describing the water charges proposals as “half-baked”. With the Local and European Elections little over a month away, you can understand their heightened interest in the issue. Just imagine the abuse that Fine Gael and Labour candidates are getting on the doorsteps over LPT and water charges. The ongoing uncertainty will not help their campaigns and I would have a degree of sympathy for the candidates, particularly those seeking election for the first time.

The water charges issue is a political time bomb and could well prove to be a tipping point in our fragile tolerance for austerity. The sense of injustice is compounded by the fact that there will be a standing charge in the first place. This gives lie to the fiction that water charges are mostly about conservation and responsible usage and not just another State-led money grabbing exercise.

I personally believe that the €100 standing charge rumour was a stalking horse designed to put the fear of God into us all. The fact that it is likely to be lower – at least initially – is supposed to be met with relief and make having to pay the new tax that little bit more palatable. 

 A cynic would suggest, rightly or wrongly, that the Government is deliberately setting out to cause maximum confusion. I suspect that a similar approach was taken when LPT was introduced. There was so much uncertainty created over payment methods and house valuations that it was easy to overlook the unjust and immoral imposition of a property tax as a matter of principle. Hitting mortgage holders with LPT in the wake of a spectacular property crash is akin to increasing taxes on potato farmers during the blight. 

Like many others, I filed my return last year for property tax due in 2014 and then largely forgot about it until a sizable chunk of my month's salary was sucked out of my bank account in mid-March. This was disposable income, by the way, that would ordinarily have been spent in local shops, pubs or restaurants, helping to sustain employment and keep businesses viable. Correct me if I am wrong, but didn't this Government vow to tackle the jobs crisis?

Fine Gael and Labour may be telling anyone who'll listen that LPT and water charges are a legacy of the last Government and to an extent this may be true. However, this Coalition's ham-fisted handling of both issues remains nothing short of shameful. You really couldn't make this stuff up.

A case of 'much done, more to do' for Sinn Féin

If a week is a long time in politics, it seems that three years is an eternity. Back in May 2011, Sinn Féin (with the exception of the now deceased Mayor of Cashel) decided to snub the Queen of England during her historic state visit to the Republic of Ireland.

In doing so, the party badly misjudged the public mood. The royal visit was widely hailed as a political and symbolic success, cementing relations between our once warring nations. As Queen Elizabeth bowed her head in the Garden of Remembrance and recited her cúpla focal as Gaelige in Dublin Castle, the Shinners were nowhere to be seen. Talk about missing out on a photo opportunity!

•Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, then Minister for Foreign Affairs Brian Cowen and Sinn Féin's Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness pictured outside St Luke's, Drumcondra, May 2003. PHOTO BY DARREN KINSELLA

 

Nothing much has changed in Anglo-Irish relations since the Queen's visit and we continue to get on famously with our nearest neighbours. The peace process, despite attempts by dissidents to derail it, has largely held solid. At the time it struck me as curious that key signatories to the 1998 Good Friday Agreement should boycott a visit from the royals. Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland, Martin McGuinness, didn't seem to have any problems pressing the flesh with the Queen when she was in Belfast in 2012 so why did he not greet her in Dublin a year earlier? Would this have been a concession too far for the party's grassroots members in the 26 counties?

Three years on and we're no closer than we were back then to achieving a united Ireland, yet Sinn Féin seems to have softened its stance and has belatedly come to the royal party. Don't get me wrong, the fact that McGuinness attended the state banquet this week at Windsor Castle was a welcome move and can only but further progress made by Sinn Féin in presenting itself as a legitimate political force on both sides of the border.

Under its present leadership, I believe Sinn Féin is unlikely to make the electoral gains that the polls suggest. For all his new cuddliness and whimsical tweeting, Gerry Adams remains both the party's greatest strength and weakness. He is a symbol of Sinn Féin's Republican ethos but is arguably too close to the party's past for some people's liking.

Unlike Gerry Adams, Martin McGuinness has not denied his previous role in the IRA and is all the more credible for it. Adams has stuck to this mantra for so long now that he's damned if he does and damned if he doesn't.

Mary Lou McDonald will undoubtedly be the heir apparent when Adams eventually decides to stand aside. She performed particularly well during the Dail's Public Accounts Committee hearings into Rehab and her contribution to the recent Garda scandals has been articulate and forceful. She will also appeal to middle-class voters and doesn't have the pre-peace process baggage of some of her party colleagues. And even though Sinn Féin is perceived to be weak on economic issues, the party is starting to find a more coherent voice through impressive Dáil performers like Pearse Doherty.

But to gain a wider acceptance among the electorate, Sinn Féin needs to be unequivocal when it comes to condemning previous acts of violence by the IRA. On a recent television programme, one member of the party refused to condemn outright the murder of gardai by the IRA. He repeatedly trotted out the view that the killing of gardai needed to be seen in the historic context of collusion with security forces in the North, or some old blather along those lines. This is a spurious argument that does a great disservice to the memory of gardai like Jerry McCabe who was killed by members of the Provisional IRA during an attempted robbery in Adare, Co Limerick, in 1996.

Sinn Féin is making strides politically but it might do well to borrow an earlier election slogan from Fianna Fáil - 'much done, more to do'. Martin McGuinness breaking bread with Queen Elizabeth in Windsor Castle was a positive step in the right direction.

Free legal aid for criminals an unsavoury reality

As the Garda controversies drag on, it's difficult to know where to direct your anger. Whether you blame Garda management, successive Governments or politics at large, the thing that galls many of us is the notion of vicious criminals attempting to overturn their convictions in the belief that their telephone calls may have been recorded without their knowledge.

Some of Ireland's most reviled crime figures have already engaged their solicitors. Ultimately it will be up to the courts to decide if they have an arguable case or not. We may not like it, but we will simply have to let the judicial process take its course if an unsavoury ragbag of convicted murderers, rapists and armed robbers look for their day in court, as is expected.

The latest scandal over the recording of phone calls will clog up an already overburdened court system. Cases that are pending will be put back as defendants' solicitors seek to establish if the guards were eavesdropping on their private conversations while in custody. Some of those already behind bars will be having an opportunistic pop at the State as well - even if their guilt has been well established through corroborative evidence presented at their trial. Sure why not? What have they got to lose?

Each appeal will have to be decided on its own merit so it's too early to second guess the outcome at this stage or be able to gauge what impact - if any - the recordings had in securing convictions.

So who'll be paying for these expensive, drawn out appeals? In many cases I imagine that the taxpayer will be footing the bill through free legal aid as thugs without alternative means of income seek to challenge their convictions.

Free legal aid may be a central tenet of our court system but I am personally uncomfortable with the the State providing such a potentially unlimited resource for repeat offenders, particularly those with multiple convictions for offences at the higher end of the scale.

Former hurling legend DJ Carey touched on this issue over the weekend after a relative of his was the victim of a robbery. A national newspaper reported that he lashed out at the millions being spent on "scumbag" thieves through the free legal aid system while at the same time Garda resources have been cut.

On one hand it's easy to have sympathy for this view. Would there be merit in considering a 'three strikes and you're out' approach to free legal aid for certain offences? For instance, if you have had three convictions for armed robbery, should you have to pay for your own defence or represent yourself if you come before the court on a fourth or subsequent similar charge?

In an ideal world, perhaps. However, the latest controversies have shown that gardai don't always behave the way we expect them to in the administration of justice. I still believe that the majority of the force are ethical, dedicated servants of the State. But history has taught us that the Garda Siochana is not above scrutiny.

Thanks to the practice of recording phone conversations in certain Garda stations and in prisons, our courts will almost certainly have to consider related applications for free legal aid. Law abiding members of the public and victims of crime will simply have to stand by and watch through gritted teeth.