Gilmore: 'Ahern finances have taken Government's eye off ball'
The Government has mishandled major public policy issues because it is distracted by the controversies surrounding the Taoiseach’s personal finances, it was claimed tonight.
Repeating calls for Bertie Ahern to leave office, Labour leader Eamon Gilmore said attempts to cling to power will not be good for the country.
The TD was speaking in Co Waterford at a meeting of he party’s ruling body, the National Executive Committee.
Earlier this week Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny accused Mr Ahern of not paying his taxes but Mr Ahern rejected the claims as “a bare-faced lie”.
Mr Ahern revealed he is unable to produce a Tax Clearance Certificate for next month’s deadline but he insisted that he is tax compliant.
However Mr Gilmore said: “Since Mr. Ahern’s disastrous appearances in the witness box at the Mahon Tribunal last September, there has been a whole series of issues seriously mishandled by the government.
“These would probably have been handled differently by a Cabinet fully focussed on the running of the country. ”
Mr Gilmore outlined Transport Minister Noel Dempsey’s “crazy plan” to put tens of thousands of provisional licence holders off the road over the course of a bank holiday weekend.
“The government also showed total misjudgement of the public mood by its decision to accept massive pay increases of up to 38,000 for the Taoiseach and his ministerial colleagues,” he added.
Mr Gilmore listed ten areas of public concern which Labour aims to vigorously pursue when the Dail resumes on January 30. These include health, crime, public pay, jobs, civil unions the Lisbon Treaty.
“There is growing evidence already that the Taoiseach and his ministerial colleagues are preoccupied with the issues surrounding Mr Ahern’s finances and taxation and are no longer focussing on the problems of the country,” he said.
The Taoiseach is due back in Dublin this evening after a five-day official trip to South Africa and Tanzania.
Mr Gilmore also claimed the Government was failing to produce long-promised legislation in the Dail so it can be scrutinised by the Opposition.
He also called for the wording of the Lisbon Treaty referendum to be published immediately.
