Cowen: Bord Snip cuts next year at earliest

THE Taoiseach Brian Cowen has indicated sweeping recommendations from Bord Snip Nua will not be introduced until next year.

On Wednesday Finance Minister Brian Lenihan said there were parts of Colm McCarthy’s report which were non-budgetary and could be implemented on an ongoing basis.

However, Mr Cowen said it had been an exercise in informing the budget and remained so.

He said the economy had taken all it could in 2009 and it would be the December budget before changes could be introduced.

“We have taken two budgets during the course of the last financial year and of course the pensions levy decision and other expenditure savings.

“So Government has to sit down now and work through this process and listen to the views of people on this report,” he said.

Mr Cowen said no cuts would be ruled out, even to areas like social welfare. He asked people not to focus on their patch but on what is right for the country.

This applied to interest groups and his ministers who had been told to avoid knee-jerk reactions. Yesterday they stayed on message.

Community Affairs Minister Eamon O Cúiv, whose department was targeted for abolition, said it would be for all of the Government to decide what course to take.

If the McCarthy group had its way Environment Minister John Gormley would have to close 12 city and county councils. Mr Gormley said no cuts could be discounted.

Today he leads a crucial party policy conference on its future in Government and the Lisbon treaty. A vote is scheduled for 5pm.

Labour Party leader Eamon Gilmore said the Government could not hide behind external reports it commissions: “The Government are trying to pretend that this report has nothing got to do with them at all, this is by some guy called McCarthy who has come up with all these ideas.

“They are going to see now what way the wind is going to blow in terms of the different proposals there are and then they’ll make decisions on it. The ones that aren’t flying, they’ll blame on Colm McCarthy.”

Amid a proposal to close half of Garda stations, Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy said resources would remain focused on frontline policing.