Austerity news from Around the Globe

Austerity is a Four-Letter French Word FXstreet.com Austerity is a four-letter Anglo-Saxon – or even worse, Teutonic – word in socialist France, yet the market at some point is going to want to see a move toward sustainable budgets. Government bond investors are not philanthropists. They look for the … See all stories on this topic »   Austerity drains economic life Yorkshire Post THE latest statistics confirm that wages are increasing by well under the inflation rate, at the same time as benefits for those of working age are rising at just one per cent a year. So I’m not surprised that the economy is still struggling, as people … See all stories on this topic »   Scottish independence: ‘No’ vote austerity warning Scotsman But Labour leader Johann Lamont insisted that an independent Scotland would face even harsherausterity than the UK amid concerns that SNP “big business” tax breaks will see major job cuts. The leaders clashed today during the final First Ministers … See all stories on this topic »   Portugal: 5 million participated in general strike, say unions   Patience with the government’s austerity plan is running thin in Portugal with banners reading ‘Enough’ and ‘Government Out’. In their fourth general strike in two… read full article  Austerity: ‘unprecedented erosion’ in living standards The Guardian If you thought you were feeling the pinch, here’s probably why. Rising prices, stagnant wages and benefit cuts are creating an “unprecedented erosion” in living standards, especially for low and middle income families, according to new research from … See all stories on this topic »   Stuff your austerity! We want something different New Internationalist (blog) The idea of the Peoples Assemblies is to create a mass national and local movement against austerity. Saturday’s event brought together people of all ages and walks of life – trade unionists, direct activists, students, pensioners, hackers, disabled … See all stories on this topic » Social Justice Ireland says austerity not working RTE.ie “Austerity is not working for Ireland. Government has cut spending, raised taxes, increased unemployment, lowered wages, decimated services and allowed infrastructure to deteriorate on the understanding that austerity would lead to recovery … See all stories on this topic » Austerity leaves bitter taste as Leinster House sweet shop shuts Irish Times It was the Taj Mahjal of the mint humbug, the Southfork of the chocolate snowball, the Buckingham Palace of the fruit pastille. The notorious Leinster House sweetie shop – that glass walled monument to the Celtic Tiger notions of a discredited … See all stories on this topic »

Miliband’s offer of austerity in a red rosette is failing voters New Statesman If austerity is wrong and counter-productive when the Tories do it, it will be wrong and counter-productive whoever does it. Austerity in a red rosette is no less brutal and damaging than in a blue one. In failing to articulate a clear economic … See all stories on this topic »

Portuguese businesses attack austerity, urge U turn GlobalPost Portuguese business leaders launched on Monday a strong attack on austerity conditions tied to the EU-IMF bailout of the economy, saying that they had failed and the government should change direction to save the country from “recession”. See all stories on this topic »

Union warns austerity will spur growth of ‘zero hours’ contracts Financial Times Austerity will spur the use of zero hours contracts, as more public sector work is outsourced to providers who rely on the ultimate flexible employment option, a think tank and union have said. The contracts, which offer no guaranteed work, are being … See all stories on this topic »

Discredited Pro-Austerity Research Gets New Love From World’s Central Bank Huffington Post Our world’s troubling austerity deficit is actually not the main message of the BIS’ 76-page opus, but an entire chapter, “Fiscal sustainability: Where do we stand?” is dedicated to the topic. And this chapter sounds a rallying cry for more austerity … See all stories on this topic » Austerity Loses in Massachusetts The Nation. Gomez ran as a classic proponent of austerity. He proposed to balance budgets on the backs of working families and retirees. The Republican nominee supported raising the retirement age for Social Security benefits for future retirees and he wanted to … See all stories on this topic »   France’s Austerity Drive Pushes Country into Recession IBTimes.co.uk France’s drive to slash spending and debt by implementing strict austerity measures has pushed the country into recession, confirmed the government’s statistics office. In the first quarter of 2013, French gross domestic product (GDP) in volume … See all stories on this topic »   Lying about austerity serves “special interests” People’s World A few weeks ago, the most prestigious apologists for austerity in the economics profession, Ken Rogoff and Carmen Reinhart of Harvard University – now known as R & R – were brought up short when a blatant spreadsheet error in their published work … See all stories on this topic »   ‘Greece to avoid more austerity’ Independent Online Athens – Greece’s Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said on Tuesday avoiding new austeritymeasures to fulfill targets in the country’s international bailout was a priority of his two-party coalition government. “Our immediate priority is to return to … See all stories on this topic »   Greece: Austerity Doesn’t Involve Public-Sector Layoffs Heritage.org (blog) Slate’s Matthew Yglesias might be attacked as an “austerity denier” now that he has joined Heritage’s Salim Furth in pointing out that there is a lot of policy diversity under the broad label of “austerity.” Yglesias explained last week why a small but … See all stories on this topic »  Austerity support frays at edges among EU smaller fiscal hawks Financial Times Since the financial crisis swept through Europe four years ago, the bloc’s triple-A rated economies have been vociferous backers of controversial austerity measures as the solution to the continent’s woes. Yet as the crisis drags on, unemployment rises … See all stories on this topic »   Austerity Remains Key to Britain’s Economic Plan New York Times (blog) LONDON — Extended spending cuts, including a fresh squeeze on welfare payments, were announced by the British government on Wednesday, ensuring that the politics of austerity remain firmly center stage in the run-up to the country’s next elections. See all stories on this topic »   UK austerity: ‘Diverting money from poor to rich under guise of economic crisis’ RT (blog) The UK’s austerity policy is ideologically driven and is aimed at diverting finance from the poor to the rich under the pretext of the economic crisis, writer John Wight told RT. Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne is announcing … See all stories on this topic »   Portuguese Workers Strike to Say Austerity Has Gone Too Far Wall Street Journal LISBON—A nationwide strike froze public-transport services and shrank hospital staffs across Portugal on Thursday amid a growing consensus among workers and businesses that austerity has reached its limit. Protests and strikes have become common … See all stories on this topic »   Austerity Britain rolls on Morning Star Online In the run-up to George Osborne’s spending review, the Sunday TV discussion programmes ran with their usual carefully selected commentators. All of them accepted that there have to be cuts in public expenditure. There was not an alternative policy on … See all stories on this topic »   Britain sugars austerity pill with infrastructure boost euronews LONDON (Reuters) – Chancellor George Osborne unveiled a new round of spending cuts on Wednesday, but promised to pump some of the savings straight back into the economy to counter charges of excessive austerity. In a speech to parliament … See all stories on this topic »  More spending cuts for Britain, but austerity pill is sugared Reuters UK LONDON (Reuters) – Chancellor George Osborne unveiled spending cuts on Wednesday to try to tame the country’s big public deficit, but promised to reinvest some of the money saved to counter criticism of excessive austerity. In a speech to parliament, … See all stories on this topic »     Austerity? It’s hardly begun! Chancellor Osborne tightens the purse strings … This is Money But for all the talk of austerity, government spending is set to rise from £720billion this year to £745billion in 2015/16 – the year the latest cuts take place. Over the same period, tax receipts are expected to rise from £612billion to £658billion … See all stories on this topic »

What €325 cut means for one boy with autism

The respite care grant is soon eaten up by the costs associated with having an autistic child, writes Maeve Sheehan

IN the corridors of power, the fight to reverse the cut to the respite care grant has moved on to dissent in the Labour Party and whether its leader Eamon Gilmore is in trouble. In the real world, meanwhile, thousands of families will be sitting down with pens and papers and bills to figure out what impact the Government decision to cut €325 from the €1,700 grant will have on their lives.

The grant means different things to different families. It’s paid out in one lump sum, usually in June, to all registered carers. The payment is supposed to be in lieu of residential services to relieve those providing round-the-clock care to loved ones. Deirdre O’Driscoll, chief executive of Care World, provider of care and respite services to families and the HSE, said the reduced grant of €1,375 will buy one week’s live-in respite care (€1,025) with enough left over to buy extra care hours, which cost roughly €25 an hour.

“This is not simply a cheque that goes into a private care company. It is more of an integrated approach where the family comes up with a solution that’s best for them,” said Deirdre O’Driscoll. “They may not be purchasing home care with that grant. They may pay lump-sum bills.”

It’s basically up to families to choose how to spend the money. For one Galway family, the respite care grant means two hours’ extra therapy every week for their profoundly autistic son.

Cianan, 8, is the second youngest of Niall and Niamh O Brolchain’s five children. With an intellectual disability such as autism, the more training and therapy a child can get, the better his chances. “We do everything we can to help him,” said Niall O Brolchain.

The family have five children aged between five and 19. Niall is a former Green Party

councillor and Mayor of Galway, and was briefly a senator – although not for long enough to qualify for a pension. He left politics after the last election to set up his own e-commerce business, and is doing a postgraduate course in digital marketing.

Niamh is a full-time carer to Cianan, who needs 24-hour attention, and is a recipient of the carer’s allowance and the means-tested household benefits package that contributes to the costs of phone and heating. The O Brolchains count themselves lucky in that Cianan attends a local school where teachers are trained to care for children with autism, and has an assistance dog, a Golden Retriever, who has made an immeasurable difference to his life. Even with the speech and occupational therapy he gets at school, Cianan still needs more.

The O Brolchains pay either €30 or €40 an hour – depending on the qualification of the tutor – for a two-hour session at home each week. The cost of those two-hour sessions over a year comes in at a minimum of €3,000. So it’s easy to see how the €1,700 respite care grant would be eaten up.

There are other costs on top that again, the kind that come with having a profoundly autistic child. The cost of cleaning walls; of repairing or replacing household goods that have been smashed; of regular visits to the doctor for illness or injuries, self-inflicted or otherwise.

A child with autism can be “extremely disruptive” to a family, said Niall. “I know in lots of other areas of care it’s difficult too but autism can be very disruptive at times. As somebody put it recently, a lot of autistic kids are frightened of everything at certain stages of their lives. The merest change of routine can cause havoc, [leading to behaviour such as] throwing things on the ground.

“On an average day, you will have 10 to 15 per cent of the stuff you buy in the shop each week ending up on the floor. Things like flour, jam, we’d buy a number of cartons of orange juice and we’d find that he’s poured them all into vinegar or something. . . and he’ll very kindly come around to everyone in the family and offer it to us.”

The constant watchful caring doesn’t stop at bed time, either. For years, Cianan didn’t sleep. “It impacts on the family in a very, very big way. Anyone with autism will tell you a similar story,” said Niall.

Their son’s condition also takes its toll on their life as a

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couple. “We can’t have a normal babysitter. We hardly ever get out. It is very expensive to arrange holidays or going anywhere. We rarely do,” he said.

The family is down €1,500 a year since the Budget, between the cuts to the respite grant, child benefit and cuts to the household benefits package.

But the money spent on Cianan’s therapy and his education has made an enormous difference to himself and his family. For a child who did not speak until the age of five, he not only attends Abalta special school but is also able to go to Galway Educate Together national school for a few hours each week.

What the O Brolchains ask politicians to remember is that the respite grant is not just a hand-out – it is paid to families because the State services to look after their loved ones are inadequate. “The respite grant is given in lieu of services because they don’t have enough respite to cater for every person who is entitled to it in the country,” said Niamh.

Parents of children with autism are paying out a hell of a lot more money than is coming in from the Government. “It really isn’t close to enough to giving them the kind of care they need,” said Niall.

“What is much more useful is to have proper respite care services in the first place, where people can step or there are properly managed places where you can bring your child and there will be people on hand to deal with that. Then you wouldn’t need the grants.”

The Department of Social Protection has argued that the cut to respite care will save €26m, at a time when the core pay of carers has not been touched, that the numbers of people qualifying for benefits is rising, and all of this is contributing to the drain on the public purse.

The most recent survey on how families use the respite care grant is six years old and way out of date, in terms of the economic climate in which carers now live.

The survey of more than 2,000 carers found that more than one in four families used the grant simply to cope with their day-to-day financial expenses. After that, about 16 per cent of carers used the money to take a holiday while only 6 per cent of those surveyed used the money to buy in respite care for their loved one. At the time of the survey, the respite care grant was €1,200. (It was increased to €1,700 in 2008.)

But times have changed. During the wave of protests outside Leinster House since the cut to the respite care grant was introduced, family after family spoke of using the money to pay heating or electricity or food bills.

According to carers groups, using the money to fund actual physical respite care for your loved one is at risk of becoming a luxury in itself.

via What €325 cut means for one boy with autism – National News – Independent.ie.

via What €325 cut means for one boy with autism – National News – Independent.ie.

Over 18,000 sign petition demanding equal access to healthcare

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL IRELAND has presented more than 18,000 signatures calling for equal access to healthcare based on income to Leinster House today.

The petition which was organised by Amnesty International Ireland as part of its Right to Health campaign, which holds that everyone in Ireland has the right to health – and that the country committed to this when it became party to the International Covenant of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in 1989.

The signatories of the petition have called on the Minister for Health to enshrine in law a commitment to provide equal access to healthcare based on the needs of the patient rather than their ability to pay.

“Government has set out an ambitious programme of reform. But the reality is that our health system is broken, people are still on waiting lists, and families are struggling to pay their increasing insurance premiums”, Colm O’Gorman, Executive Director of Amnesty International in Ireland, said today.

“Access to appropriate, affordable health services is a human right, and one which the Irish public are clearly demanding. Government reforms of the health service must be underpinned by human rights standards, including a legal guarantee that everybody will be able to access healthcare on an equal basis,” he added.

Amnesty International is calling on the Government to set out their plans on universal healthcare reform and to debate them publicly.

The human rights organisation also wants the Government to use the opportunity of the proposed Universal Primary Care Act and the Universal Health Insurance Act to set out clear – and human rights compliant – guiding principles for the health service including universal, equal access to care.

via Over 18,000 sign petition demanding equal access to healthcare.

via Over 18,000 sign petition demanding equal access to healthcare.

THE PACKAGE FOR A TD –

The gravy train Breakdown

Unvouched expenses must be open to all sorts of abuse in short a laugh.

TD salary: €92,672.

• Travel and accommodation allowance: from €12,000 (those living closest to Leinster House) to over €35,000.

• Allowances for renting offices: €15,000 unvouched; €25,700 vouched.

• Secretarial assistant plus additional secretarial allowance: €41,092 vouched; or €8,888.17 unvouched plus an annual allowance of €11,591 vouched.

• Leinster House provides free telephone and postal facilities, including 1,250 prepaid envelopes a month.

• €750 every 18 months to buy a mobile phone and car kit, including installation costs and insurance.

• €8,000 one-off grant to set up an office outside Leinster House.

• Independent TDs are entitled to an annual allowance of €41,152 each (€23,383 for independent senators).

via THE PACKAGE FOR A TD – National News – Independent.ie.

via THE PACKAGE FOR A TD – National News – Independent.ie.

McGrath steps down as chair over new Wallace row

TAX cheat Mick Wallace has again caused uproar in the Technical Group of Independent TDs, with group chairman Finian McGrath resigning because Mr Wallace rejoined the loose alliance.

Mr Wallace walked into their weekly meeting in Leinster House today, even though numerous members do not want him back.

This led Mr McGrath to resign as chairman, and to walk out of the meeting. The Dublin Bay North TD had vowed to resign if Mr Wallace returned.

The Wexford TD does not need permission from the others to rejoin the group, which gives him more Dail speaking rights.

Under Dail rules, the group did not have the power to force him out in the first place, and there is nothing they can do to prevent him from rejoining. He initially left when controversy over his tax cheating first erupted in June.

In a statement, Mr McGrath said he is “fed up” with Mr Wallace.

“I am also appalled at the procedures in Dail Eireann, where rules force a group of Independent TDs to have a member that the vast majority don’t want,” Mr McGrath said.

He also took issue with Mr Wallace’s recent comments on loyalty within Leinster House, asking: “Loyalty to what? Tax evasion?”

via McGrath steps down as chair over new Wallace row – National News – Independent.ie.

via McGrath steps down as chair over new Wallace row – National News – Independent.ie.

Gilroy to live life of single mother for a week

A Labour Senator will swap the Seanad for the school run when he lives the life of a single mother for a week.

Waterford mother-of-three Andrea Galgey was so fed up with budget cuts she posted an online invitation for politicians to put themselves in her shoes.

Now Senator John Gilroy, from Cork, has agreed to take up the challenge.

The father of two admits he’s not quite sure what he’s in for: “It’s early in the project and a lot of details have to be worked out.

“It has been said, probably rightly, that policy makers are seldom affected by decisions they make so this is an opportunity to explore that.

“It is a chance to see how decisions made in Leinster House affect people in the community.”

via Gilroy to live life of single mother for a week | BreakingNews.ie.

via Gilroy to live life of single mother for a week | BreakingNews.ie.

Convoy of 15,000 farmers march on Dail in subsidy protest – National News – Independent.ie

 

UP to 15,000 farmers have marched through Dublin demanding that the Government take a hard line in negotiations on the next round of European subsidies.

John Bryan, IFA president, said failure to return the €1.6 billion package would be bad for the industry and undermine the viability of the most productive farmers.

“The next two months will see decisions taken in Brussels and by our Government that will have a huge bearing on the ability of the sector to survive and grow. Farming can help deliver recovery and jobs but only with the right policies and supports,” he said.

“Farm output will drop and the raw material for our ambitious growth plans will not be available if the EU Commission gets its way.”

The Day of Action, involving bus-loads of farmers from all over Ireland, saw a march from Merrion Square to Stephen’s Green and on to Leinster House for a rally.

A convoy of farming vehicles and tractors drove down Kildare Street as thousands of farmers flooded the narrow street.

A Garda spokesman estimated that around 15,000 people took part in the march, along with about six tractors, a combine harvester, a dairy truck and large digger.

Simon Byrne, who runs a farm in Bunclody, Co Wexford said cutting essential payments to farmers would be dire as the money is the only stability they have.

“The weather this year was so bad so a lot of us really suffered during the harvest. The Government can’t guarantee us good weather, but it can guarantee us our payments,” said Mr Byrne.

Mary Mullane, who runs a family farm in Newcastle West, Co Limerick, said rocketing prices in diesel, grain, meal and silage have had a knock-on effect on farmers, meaning they need their subsidies more than ever.

“It’s like a house of cards: if one thing goes, the rest can collapse,” she said.

Mr Bryan, who met Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney, defended the right to demonstrate from criticism by small numbers of farmers on online forums and in contributions to radio programmes.

“Like all other working families, farmers have also had to find the money to pay significantly higher taxes and charges. Today farm families are saying, ‘enough is enough’,” he said.

Mr Coveney said he understands why the thousands of farmers are taking to the streets.

via Convoy of 15,000 farmers march on Dail in subsidy protest – National News – Independent.ie.

via Convoy of 15,000 farmers march on Dail in subsidy protest – National News – Independent.ie.

 

Michael Brennan: All eyes on Ceann Comhairle Sean Barrett, Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan and John Halligan as Dail resumes – Comment, Opinion – Independent.ie

THE Dail returns today after its eight week summer break – and it won’t be boring.

All eyes will be on Ceann Comhairle Sean Barrett to see what approach he takes to Independent TDs Luke “Ming” Flanagan and John Halligan.

They had been told by the Leinster House authorities to apologise for their part in a confrontation with Mr Barrett at the end of the last Dail term.

They have vowed not to apologise – so all TDs will be watching to see what happens if Mr Flanagan or Mr Halligan seek Mr Barrett’s permission to speak in the chamber.

But that will be just a side issue compared to the live political controversies that are going to cause plenty of early headaches for the Government.

The opposition already had the property tax and the motion of no confidence in Health Minister Dr James Reilly to keep them busy.

Then they were given an unexpected bonus when one of the Government’s own junior ministers put the spotlight on “well off” pensioners.

So Taoiseach Enda Kenny will have even more briefing material than usual in his folder when he stands up for Leader’s Questions in the Dail at 3.15pm.

The motion of no confidence in Dr Reilly will be easily defeated by the Government, given its massive majority. But what will be interesting to see is how much public support he gets from Government backbenchers.

Dr Reilly will be hoping that the Seanad quickly passes a vital piece of legislation this week to require pharmacists to offer patients lower priced generic drugs instead of the more expensive branded drugs. He is due in the Seanad tomorrow as the Health Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods Bill goes through its final stages.

The Dail also has to deal with a bill this week to improve the vetting procedures for teachers, sports coaches, youth workers and other people in contact with children. Expect plenty of debate about the measures in the bill to allow state bodies share “soft information” – where someone has been investigated for suspected child abuse but not convicted.

If you are to believe the Leinster House authorities, the public are now watching the Dail in greater numbers than ever.We don’t have any audience figures but Cable TV operator UPC has now moved its Dail TV service to channel 207. It used to be was less visible on the TV guide on Channel 801.

But it won’t be just the public who are watching today – the European Commission and the IMF will also be keeping a keen eye on the Dail make sure that the conditions of the bailout are met.

via Michael Brennan: All eyes on Ceann Comhairle Sean Barrett, Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan and John Halligan as Dail resumes – Comment, Opinion – Independent.ie.

via Michael Brennan: All eyes on Ceann Comhairle Sean Barrett, Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan and John Halligan as Dail resumes – Comment, Opinion – Independent.ie.