Noonan warns of cost of electing ‘colourful people’
Ahead of the local, European, and by-elections tomorrow, the Fine GaelTD pleaded with voters not to side with “colourful” opposition candidates.
His message came as Taoiseach Enda Kenny reiterated a pledge, first made at the Fine Gael Árd Fheis in March, that Fine Gael local election candidates would oppose increases in commercial rates for businesses and property taxes, if elected.
In the party’s final press conference ahead of polling, several ministers outlined how the Coalition had stablised the economy. An RTE poll suggested yesterday that Fine Gael is facing the loss of a third of its city and county seats this weekend.
Mr Noonan said: “Nobody in the opposition stands up for the taxpayer anymore. All the opposition do is write new bills for the taxpayers and that will cause instability. That will stop the growth in the economy.”
He said that departments, under new rules, operated spending ceilings and the Government proceeded in a “prudent” way.
Stability was the absolute foundation stone of all progress, including job creation, he claimed.
Mr Noonan said there were a lot of “colourful people” opposing coalition candidates for the elections but that all schemes and proposals did ultimately cost money.
Mr Kenny said he understood that people were hurting from the austerity. But he said that 90% of adjustments had been made and water charges would be the last of them.
Voters needed to elect MEPS who had clout and councillors who would be given significant new powers in local government, he told reporters gathered at the Royal Irish Academy in Dublin.
Mr Kenny focused on Sinn Féin and said they needed to explain the consequences of abolishing any charges and what the alternatives would be.
“It would wonderful to have easy solutions to complex problems. Unfortunately life and reality are not that way. This Government went into this challenge with its eyes wide open,” he said.
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