Press Release - Looney Welcomes Imminent Publication of Cllr Expenses

Cllr Dermot Looney, a Labour Party Councillor on South Dublin County Council (SDCC), has welcomed confirmation that all Councillor expenses are to be published online in the coming days. Cllr Looney has campaigned for the publication of the information since his election to SDCC in 2009.

Following a question on notice from Cllr Looney at June’s Council meeting, and a motion in his name passed at September’s meeting, Council officials have confirmed the imminent publication of all Councillor expenses and remuneration on the SDCC website. Councillors have been written to in the last week with a draft of the published list, and full publication is expected within the coming days. The details will be posted along with details of Councillors’ attendance at County Council meetings since 2009.

“I am delighted that this important information will be made accessible to the public,” noted Cllr Looney. “Several other County Councils already publish such data under Section 142(4)(g) of the 2001 Local Government Act. Some national newspapers also publish the raw data on an intermittent basis. However, the Council’s plan to publish fully-annotated expenses and remuneration online will give a fairer and more complete account of these expenses.”

“These statistics will show that, in general, Councillors receive a modest income and a level of expenses far below what is highlighted in some of the media. Myself and my Labour colleagues on SDCC refuse, for example, to claim any expenses for Conferences at home or abroad. In the interests of accountability and transparency, I am releasing a full list of my own remuneration and expenses, including all non-Council related expenses, since 2009. This list shows that I am, consistently, one of the lowest-claiming Cllrs on SDCC.”

“Some politicians milked the system for too long – and got away with it. Now it is important that we never let this happen again. Opening up the Council’s books and publishing this information will go some way in ensuring transparency and accountability at local level.”

ENDS

Cllr Dermot Looney – Remuneration and Expenses 2009-2011

2009 (June-Dec): Representational Payment €9,731.10;
Annual Allowance €3,587.47; Home Conferences €0; International Travel €0; Phone & Broadband €300; VEC Expenses €283.64; Other Expenses €0. Total Expenses: €4171.11

2010: Representational Payment €16,797.26;
Annual Allowance €6,306.65; Home Conferences €0; International Travel €0; Phone & Broadband €829.35; VEC Expenses €810.40; Other Expenses €0. Total Expenses: €7,946.40

2011: Representational Payment €16,723.92;
Expenses €6,486.87; Home Conferences €0; International Travel €0; Phone & Broadband €985.72; VEC Expenses €769.88; Other Expenses €0. Total Expenses: €8,242,47

Notes:
The “Representational Payment” is, in essence, a Councillor’s ‘salary;’ it is fixed at one-quarter of a Senator’s salary and is dependent on attendance at meetings. As it is subject to PAYE, PRSI, USC and other deductions, I receive approximately €7,900 per annum nett.

“Annual Allowance” refers to travel, subsistence and other expenses incurred in carrying out the duties of a Cllr. “Phone and Broadband” refers to the payments made for mobile phone and broadband usage. “VEC expenses” are €40.52 for every meeting of the VEC or its Subcommittees that incurs more than 3 hours work. Expenses do not apply to Community School boards or meetings which take less than 3 hours.

Press Release - Looney Elected Youngest-Ever Tallaght Area Chair

Labour Councillor Dermot Looney has been elected Chair of the Tallaght Area Committee at the Annual Meeting of South Dublin County Council held on June 29th. The 29 year-old is the youngest ever Chair for the Tallaght Area and is also the first Tallaght Area Chair from the Dublin 12 area, which became a part of the Tallaght Central ward prior to the last local elections.

The Tallaght Area Committee comprises 11 Cllrs from Tallaght South and Tallaght Central, who in turn represent over 100,000 residents in the area. It is the largest Area Committee on South Dublin County Council and one of the largest in the country. The Chair of the Committee is an unpaid position which includes the chairing of monthly area committee meetings and, on occasion, representing the Mayor of the County at events. Cllr Looney was unanimously elected at the Council meeting, having been nominated by outgoing Chair Cllr Mick Duff, and seconded by Cllr Marie Corr.

“I am honoured to have been elected as Chair of the Tallaght Area Committee,” said Cllr Looney, “and look forward to working with the new Mayor Cathal King, and the other Cllrs for the Tallaght area, in continuing to promote our communities at Council level and beyond.”

Press Release: Looney Slams Greyhound “Mischief-Making”, Calls on Govt to Implement Waiver Scheme

Cllr Dermot Looney, a Labour Party Councillor on South Dublin County Council (SDCC), has said that today’s call on the Government by Greyhound to pay them millions for a waiver scheme in SDCC is “daft and mischievous.” Looney has re-iterated his call for the Government to proceed immediately with a national bin waiver scheme, and to provide interim support for 18,000 households in South Dublin who are due to lose their waivers in a month’s time.

“This is a daft and mischievous call by a company who have behaved disgracefully since the bin service in our area was privatised. I and my Councillor colleagues fought tooth and nail against this privatisation but the service was sold by the management, without regard to the opposition of elected representatives, in a deal whose finer details we are continuing to look for.”

“The latest mess in the privatisation saga is the impending loss of bin waivers for some 18,000 households. There are almost 2,000 households on a waiver in my own immediate area of Dublin 12, almost all of whom are elderly residents of limited means who will be forced to pay for their collections if nothing is done by the end of March.”

“I have consistently called on Labour in Government to implement their Programme for Government pledge to introduce a national bin waiver system for all households. This appears to have been put on the back burner by Fine Gael’s Minister Hogan, but it is now time for Labour Ministers and TD’s to put on the pressure to ensure those on low incomes are given waivers.”

“As this will take time to implement, I am calling on the Minister for Social Protection, Joan Burton TD, and the new County Manager of South Dublin County Council to meet to thrash out how those on a waiver can be accommodated in the interim. However, not one red cent should go to Greyhound given their treatment of residents in South Dublin and Dublin City and their appalling customer service record. Instead, the Government should investigate options outside this company.”

Press Release: Looney Welcomes Reversal of Local DEIS Cuts

Cllr Dermot Looney, a Labour Party Councillor on South Dublin County Council, has welcomed today’s announcement by Minister for Education and Skills Ruairi Quinn that 235 posts in disadvantaged schools in the DEIS scheme will be retained. Looney, who works as a primary teacher in Tallaght, was involved in attempts to overturn the cuts since the announcement in Budget 2012, in particular with the Band 2 schools in the area.

“I am giving a cautious welcome to news that posts in DEIS Band 1 and 2 schools are being reinstated across our area. This was a scandalous mistake by the Minister, and one which was rightly opposed by school communities across Dublin South-West. Today’s u-turn is a tribute to the schools, parents and activists who worked to save these crucial posts in our disadvantaged schools. I also want to thank our local Labour TD’s, Eamonn Maloney and Minister Pat Rabbitte, who were involved from the get-go in trying to save these posts. Schools and parents across Tallaght will breathe a sigh of relief tonight as the news breaks.”

“However, many issues remain. St Mary’s NS in Tallaght Village, which received some support as a disadvantaged school but did not fall into the DEIS Scheme, is set to lose a number of teachers. Four local post-primary schools which are in DEIS are also set to lose out. This is in addition to a decrease in the capitation grant and a swathe of other cutbacks which schools are already forced to deal with.”

“With billions of further cuts promised, I would call on Labour Ministers and TD’s to protect education and develop an economv strategy which promotes growth and investment, and not the failed policies of austerity, to meet our international obligations and grow our economy. Otherwise, the axe will continue to fall on crucial services and our communities will continue to suffer.”

Press Release: Looney Welcomes Support for Earned Regularisation Scheme for Migrants at SDCC

Cllr Dermot Looney, a Labour Party Councillor on South Dublin County Council, has called for the government to act with haste in implementing an Earned Regularisation Scheme for undocumented migrants in Ireland. Cllr Looney was commenting after the unanimous passing of his motion at South Dublin County Council (SDCC) in support of such a scheme. The motion was similar to one passed on Dublin City Council, proposed by Cllr Rebecca Moynihan, in December.

“I am delighted that Councillors from all parties supported my motion in support of undocumented migrants on both sides of the Atlantic; both the undocumented Irish living in the USA, and those migrants who have come to Ireland,” stated Cllr Looney. “We are rightly concerned with our friends and family members who are living and working, undocumented, in the USA. But now the government must also turn its attention to the thousands of people living in a comparable situation in Ireland.”

“The Migrants Rights Centre Ireland, with whom I have worked on this campaign, estimate that some 30,000 undocumented migrants are living here. Many have lived and worked here for several years, paying taxes and contributing in many positive ways to our communities. They are often engaged in employment in catering and cleaning, and given their irregular status they are frequently subject to exploitation by ruthless employers.”

“An Earned Regularisation Scheme would provide a humanitarian response to the issue of undocumented migrants, regularising their status, generating more in tax revenue and protecting against exploitative employers who are undermining the working conditions of all workers. Now that two of the largest local authorities in the country have unanimously supported this scheme, I am calling on the Minister for Justice and Equality to act immediately to prepare and implement such a scheme.”

Edel McGinley, Irregular Migration Project Leader at the Migrant Rights Centre Ireland said, “we very much welcome this development and the leadership shown on this issue by South Dublin County Council. A motion such as this recognises the contribution that undocumented migrants make to Irish society and highlights the urgent need for a solution to be put in place”.

For more on this please see http://www.mrci.ie

TEXT OF MOTION

SDCC MEETING JANUARY 16th 2012 - MOTION NO. 5

MOTION: Councillor D. Looney

That this Council supports the Undocumented Irish campaign in the USA to introduce an earned regularisation scheme. This Council also notes with concern the high numbers of undocumented families and children living in Ireland without rights and under tremendous stress and fear. This Council supports the introduction of an earned regularisation scheme in Ireland, based on criteria set down by the Department of Justice and Equality, so that undocumented migrants living in Ireland can participate fully in the social, political and economic affairs of the country. This Council will forward a copy of this motion to the Minister for Justice and Equality.