Brazen Bev tells of her ‘hurt’ but no apologies

OUR selfish little nation was stopped in its greedy tracks last night by the anguished tears of a wronged woman — Beverley Flynn.

As Taoiseach Brian Cowen ripped the €41,000-a year allowance intended for independent TDs from the Fianna Fáil deputy’s sweaty palms, she spoke openly of her “hurt”.

With her words of sorrow echoing across the nation, the 10,000 people thrown onto the dole this month collectively hung their heads in shame at their own self obsession in the face of the real hardship endured by Ms Flynn.

Those relying on food handouts and families despairing of where the next mortgage payment would come from also opened their hearts to the misunderstood Mayo deputy.

For, less than 48 hours after defiantly insisting she was “entitled” to the cash, earmarked for independent TDs and no one was going to take it from her just because of the minor technicality that she was no longer an independent TD, Ms Flynn sacrificed herself for the national good.

Patients suffering due to the HSE frontline jobs freeze fought back their own tears as they listened to Ms Flynn’s tale of woe, their hearts beating with pride at her patriotic act.

“I’d be totally dishonest if I didn’t say that I have been deeply hurt in the past number of days about the manner in which it has been portrayed, as if this is some allowance I have been grabbing for myself when in actual fact nothing could be further from the truth,” she informed a country convulsed by guilt at the way it had treated her.

But, how had it come to this? After the Irish Examiner broke the story, the Taoiseach started off in his usual “crisis? what crisis?” way, refusing to condemn Ms Flynn’s flagrant actions, only saying he would have a chat with her “in a week or two”.

Meanwhile, in the Real World, all hell was breaking loose and Mr Cowen was forced to actually take action as it dawned on him this had become a lightning conductor for national discontent and was now that most dangerous of stories — one that could be distilled into a single sentence: “Government To Impose Pay Cuts On The Little People While Brassy Bev Gets Big Fat Bonus.”

Poor Bev then seems to have got a bit confused at the turn of events and rather than being on the receiving end of one of Brian’s ripe rollockings, she believes it was herself who contacted the Taoiseach and said she was handing back the cash, a magnanimous offer Ms Flynn claims Mr Cowen gratefully “accepted”.

Viewers of the political soap opera that is The Brassy Bev Show may remember previous episodes, such as when she was booted out of Fianna Fáil after the Supreme Court found she had not been libelled by RTÉ when it reported she encouraged customers to evade tax while working for a bank.

Ms Flynn has always refused to accept she ever did anything wrong — Bev does not do apologies, she only does brazen.

As when she got RTÉ to take just €1.25m of the €2.8m she owed them from their little legal spat — much to the anger of hard-pressed licence fee payers. But Bev is making amends, making a virtue of giving us back the taxpayers’ cash that was only ever intended for independents anyway.

Ms Flynn truly is Ireland’s homegrown cross between Mother Teresa and Princess Diana — she feels our pain and touches our hearts.

Oh Beverley, whatever did we do to deserve someone like you?

Flynn: I have not gone into politics to make money

BEVERLEY FLYNN tells Mid-West Radio she will not continue to receive the €41,000 a year payment intended for independent TDs.

Question: So you are giving it up?

BF: First of all I was using the allowance for the benefit of my constituents. It was not an allowance being used personally for myself. That was never the intention of the allowance in the first place and certainly it was never my intention to benefit personally from it, nor did I.

Q: But you don’t have to account for that €41,000?

BF: That’s correct, but I think people also know the level of service that my office provides.

Q: People may think you have decided to give it up because you were caught out.

BF: Nothing could be further from the truth. The reality is that this situation has existed for other deputies in the past. This issue has never been raised when it applied to other deputies, I don’t know why that is.

Nor did it raise its head, when in fact as an independent deputy I was in the Dáil not in receipt of the allowance whilst other independent deputies were getting it. So it seems strange to me that whilst I wasn’t getting the allowance everybody was happy with that, and while I am getting the allowance, and other people are in a similar situation to myself, they only highlight my particular case.

From my point of view I have been absolutely honest and up front. I used the allowance for the benefit of my constituents all the time that I got it. And long before I was in receipt of it I actually dipped into my own resources to provide the services I provided.

So I have been totally genuine and on the level about that.

The reason I have taken this step, it’s not that I’m not in compliance with the regulation as it currently stands. I am. But I’m taking this decision because it has developed into a controversy. There are far more important issues facing the people of Ireland than this and rather than allow this controversy continue I have decided to take this decision myself. It was I that contacted the Taoiseach and informed him of this and he’s accepted it.

Q: So you won’t take that allowance?

BF: I have to be honest. I’d be totally dishonest if I didn’t say that I have been deeply hurt in the past number of days about the manner in which it has been portrayed as if this is some allowance I have been grabbing for myself when in actual fact nothing could be further from the truth.

If anybody analyses my statements of interest in the Dáil from the day I went into politics to where I am today they would fully realise that I have not gone into politics to make money.

Timeline

* January 2: Irish Examiner breaks story Beverley Flynn continues to receive €41,000 a year payment intended for independent TDs even though she re-joined Fianna Fáil.

* January 3: Beverley Flynn: “You get the additional allowance based on what you are when you are elected. I’m entitled to that allowance as every other independent TD is and I’ll use that allowance for the benefit of my constituents — and it is certainly badly needed.”

* January 4: Taoiseach Brian Cowen: “We will have a discussion about it and we will end up with whatever is appropriate being done will be done.

“I have to take the matter up with deputy Flynn herself. I will take it up with her in the next week or two.”

* January 5: Beverley Flynn: “It is my entitlement because of the way the legislation was set up, that wasn’t a matter for me. I think it’s a bit unfair, in my case, given that any allowance I am getting is provided for legally, not by laws I brought in.”

* January 6: Community Affairs Minister Eamon Ó Cuív: “I think she’s foolish. It’s unwise for her to claim that money.”

* Environment Minister John Gormley: “It sends out a very bad signal during these very difficult economic times.”

* Taoiseach speaks to Ms Flynn.

* January 7: Ms Flynn announces she will not continue to take the allowance on Midwest Radio.