Tag Archives: Sinn Féin

CLARE Sinn Féin TD, Violet-Anne Wynne, has called on the Department of Education to immediately clarify the finer details around the July provision transportation grant. “I have been contacted by a number of families who are still in the dark in terms of when this grant will be paid. In this unprecedented time of Covid-19 families are forced to budget every penny of their household income to ensure they can keep going. Every year the department would have normally supplied transport via a contract through Bus Eireann, this year that was stopped due to Covid-19, leaving families to have to arrange their own transport to and from schools,” Deputy Wynne stated. “While parents were happy to arrange same, they have since been left in the dark by the department on when they will be able to reclaim these expenses from the grant scheme. Some parents have told me how they have been making round trips of 130km twice a day …

VAGUE, disappointing and unambitious were some of the terms used by Violet Anne Wynne to describe the Programme for Government this week. She claimed the concerns that were raised during the general election campaign are not being tackled. “I think the big issues of the election were ignored, affordable housing, the health service in crisis, the cost of childcare. Looking at it overall it’s very vague, there’s loads of flowery language about reviews and revisiting things but as for commitments and definitive targets, they seem to have left those figures out.” The new Sinn Féin TD said that more affluent people are being looked after, rather than low and middle income families and individuals. “It contained a series of stealth taxes that will hit low-income households hardest. All the while, they plan to spend €123 million a year to provide a tax cut to individuals earning more than 100 thousand euro a year through the removal of the USC surcharge. …

CLARE Sinn Féin TD, Violet-Anne Wynne, has raised with the Minister for Finance Paschal Donohue, the issue of workers paid under the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme who have failed to receive their correct wage payment from employers, despite the set wage criteria existing as part of the scheme. “The Temporary COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme is operated by Revenue and enables employees, whose employers are affected by the pandemic, to receive significant supports directly from their employer. The scheme has operated from March 26. The Temporary Wage Subsidy replaces the previous Employer COVID-19 Refund Scheme and provides for a significant increase in the €203 per employee payment that previously applied,” Deputy Wynne said. “Despite the generous terms to employers by the Temporary COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme, I have been made aware that some employers are failing to pay employees their required wage based on the stated calculations  for employer participation in the scheme. Application for the Temporary Wage Subsidy Scheme is …

DEPUTY Michael McNamara is to wait to see how members of the three coalition parties vote on the Programme for Government before making his mind up on whether to support the history-making arrangement. The view of grassroots members of Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party, who will be balloted individually by post, are expected to be made public by June 26. In the meantime, the Independent Clare TD said he saw very little in the 126-page document which would benefit the midwestern region. “There would appear to be no input from this region in the document,” he said. “I would have to ask what influence, if any, TDs from Fianna Fáil, the Greens or Fine Gael have. There are lots of details about planned infrastructure for Dublin, but no definite details for many projects outside of it. There’s no reference to Shannon Airport or to balancing aviation policy. When it comes to farming, there seems to be great …

Former Clare TD James Breen has thrown down the gauntlet to Fianna Fail leader, Michael Martin to put the people before power and get a new government in situ. “It’s time for the talking to stop and to get a deal done. We need political stability and a new government, not a caretaker one running the country. We need to get the country back on its feet and our workforce back to work. We need Michael Martin to put people before power,” he declared. Mr Breen, who resigned from the Fianna Fail party and was elected an Independent TD in the 29th Dail from 2002 to 2207, said that it seems national interest has gone out the window given the protracted nature of discussions between Fianna Fail, Fine Gael, The Green Party and now the independents. “At the Clare election count I spoke a lot about national interest. Now, 300 days on from that election it appears national interest has …

A West Clare charity has received an unexpected windfall of €12,116 following the transfer of funds owed to another charitable organisation by General Election poll topper, Violet Anne-Wynne. John Lynch of John Lynch and Company Solicitors, Newcastle West, has transferred a payment of rent arrears owed by Deputy Wynne following her eviction from a Rural Resettlement Ireland house to their solicitor, John Nolan. On receipt on these funds, RRI founder, Jim Connolly decided to donate this money to the West Clare Cancer Care Centre in Kilkee as the RRI no longer exists. Last February, Mr Connolly proposed that Deputy Wynne should make a donation of €12,000 to charity in view of the fact she will earn an annual salary of €96,189 and is now a Dáil legislator. Deputy Wynne and her partner John Montaine were asked to respond to a claim notice issued by RRI for the sum of €12,126 being the amount of four years’ rent arrears of rent …

CLARE Independent TD, Michael McNamara has said he doesn’t expect the new Covid-19 Dáil committee, of which be became chairperson this week, to be a star chamber or to make a political football of public health guidelines. Responding to questions from The Clare Champion this week, Deputy McNamara said he expected the high-profile committee to treat witnesses, who will include Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Tony Holohan, with respect and to focus on matters of public interest and information. The committee, which is the only one sitting currently, is made up of four members each from Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and Sinn Féin, with one seat each for other parties and Independent groups. On Tuesday, it elected Deputy McNamara, by lunchtime, to be its chair, before a longer-than-expected private session which continued into the late afternoon. For reasons of social distancing and to ensure the committee has legal privilege, the meeting took place in the Dáil chamber, with the Scariff-based …

CLARE’S Independent TD has questioned the view that a coalition of Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and the Green Party is the only option when it comes to forming the next government. Deputy Michael McNamara, who has been involved with talks, alongside fellow Independents Michael Fitzmaurice (Rocommon-Galway) and Marian Harkin (Sligo-Leitrim) about supporting such a coalition, said it may be the case that alternatives are viable, if not preferable at this point in time. This week, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar told the Fine Gael Parliamentary Party he is confident a government can be formed by June. However, Deputy McNamara said it may still be the case that Fine Gael’s preference was for another General Election. “The prospect of another election might seen attractive to Fine Gael right now,” he told The Champion. “They will have to be seen to exhaust all possibilities for government formation, then to persuade President Higgins to dissolve the Dáil. The president has some discretion in that regard …