Article taken from Issue #4 of THE PEOPLE’S PAPER
Our Councils have voted to increase Local Property Tax (LPT), saying that the funds are needed for salaries and to maintain existing services. Commercial rates are also increased, but spending on ‘white elephants’ and junkets is to continue.
Dozens of top earners in city and county hall are paid well in excess of €100k, and also receive top-ups, expenses, extra long holidays and pensions. Like most politicians they are overpaid – part of an elite doing the work of vested interests.
Budgets are decided in advance, before they get to Council meetings. Members are left to argue the small bits and allowed to score points off one another playing the game of politics.
It is the same nationally, the Troika still directs our finances, the ECB holds its ‘right’ to dictate and, of course, the Bundestag in Germany sees everything even before Dáil Éireann does – all to keep us ‘on track’, within their parameters. Everyone except those whose money is involved gets to see the budget in advance, we get told when it is all decided.
The Budgets pretend that we are in control. What do you say when ‘Leprechaun Economics’ can distort our GDP by 26% without Government even knowing? Or when large Corporations can avoid tax completely, or when NAMA decisions arrive in cases full of cash… what use is budgeting? All is run smoothly to ensure that the finance monopolies get their ‘pound-of-flesh’ and that the Corporate world is facilitated in every way.
This is anarchy, it is the non-planning of our economy, it is surrender to ‘the markets’.
