Today's papers reviewed (courtesy of newstalk and twitter)

[Stanley 2]

The IT says Shatter has brought a draft corruption bill to cabinet that seeks to give courts the power to sack TDs.

"Courts will be empowered to order officials to forfeit their position if they are convicted of corruption. This will apply to county councillors, company directors, ministers, TDs and civil servants."

This would be a dangerous and possibly unconstitutional measure. Hopefully opposition TDs wont feel intimidated into staying quiet about it for fear of being labelled soft on corruption.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/...318358595.html

Something weird in seeing an FFer, Dara C, supporting this Bill, must have a death wish.

Would be an excellent Bill of Law, Wallace and Lowry to be the test cases, what joy, Justice Peter Kelly to provide the red cards.

[DCon]

tax hikes?

THE IRISH TIMES

REILLY RAISES PAY RATES ISSUES IN TALKS ABOUT SPIRALLING HEALTH COSTS

VIBRANT CO MAYO TOWN SHOWS IT’S MORE THAN JUST A PRETTY PLACE

RABITTE’S CHEESE BAN PLAN GRATES ON COVENEY’S NERVES

THE IRISH INDEPENDENT

GAS PRICE HIKE PUSHES FAMILY BILL OVER €2,000

ULSTER BANK CRISIS BACKLOG WILL NOT BE CLEARED FOR DAYS

JOURNALIST MURDERED IN ASSAULT

BUS-CRASH HERO SAVES PENSIONERS

THE IRISH EXAMINER

COALITION URGED TO REVEAL PLANS FOR TAX HIKES

GREYHOUND BOARD MAY HAVE TO SELL TRACKS TO COVER DEBT

http://www.newstalk.ie/2012/featured...5th-june-2012/

[Baron von Biffo]

Leo the Loon is on his hobby horse again calling for pay increments in the PS to be 'deferred' (read abolished). Attacking the lowest paid in each grade will get him the sort of positive media cover he'll need if he's to succeed Gump.

http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/v...ts-556633.html

[C. Flower]

The IT says Shatter has brought a draft corruption bill to cabinet that seeks to give courts the power to sack TDs.

"Courts will be empowered to order officials to forfeit their position if they are convicted of corruption. This will apply to county councillors, company directors, ministers, TDs and civil servants."

This would be a dangerous and possibly unconstitutional measure. Hopefully opposition TDs wont feel intimidated into staying quiet about it for fear of being labelled soft on corruption.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/...318358595.html

I completely agree with you there. It would be hopelessly open to political abuse.

[Baron von Biffo]

Would you mind if I turn this into an OP ? We might have a go at naming it.

Go for it.

Ponte Biffo has a nice ring to it dontcha think?

[DCon]

House prices up. Is the boom finally back?

THE IRISH TIMES

CYPRUS SEEKS EU BAILOUT AS SPANISH BORROWING COSTS SPIKE

COALITION RIFT AS GILMORE SPURNS FG DEMAND ON CROKE PARK PACT

CLINTON IS A WARM BATH – OBAMA A COLD SHOWER – MAUREEN DOWD

THE IRISH INDEPENDENT

JOURNALIST KILLED INA RANDOM ACT OF MURDER

HOUSE PRICE RISE SPARKS HOPE OF RECOVERY

TWO MORE BANKS HIT BY BREAKDOWNS

CYPRUS ASKS FOR A BAILOUT

GILMORE REBUKES VARADKHAR OVER PAY

THE IRISH EXAMINER

BANKS ORDERED TO REVIEW PAYMENT SYSTEMS

‘A BEAUTIFUL YOUNG MAN HAS BEEN TAKEN FROM US’

CAUTION AS HOUSE PRICES RISE FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE 2007

http://www.newstalk.ie/2012/featured...6th-june-2012/

[Baron von Biffo]

The IT letters page has a sweet dissection of a Stephen Collins rant :-

"Sir, – Stephen Collins’s article on the stark choice between cuts to pay or services is a classic example of conflating fact with opinion (Opinion, June 9th).

Collins argues that one of the biggest reasons for the rise in support for Sinn Féin is its condemnation of overpaid public salaries. On what survey evidence is this based? He then argues that our partners in Europe are reluctant to ease the terms of our financial loan because of the over-inflated pensions of some Irish civil servants. On what evidence is this based? These peculiar arguments are then used to justify a renegotiation of the Croke Park agreement.

But it is obvious to anyone who interacts with European officials that they see the latter as a crucial part of Irish fiscal stability. The possibility of renegotiating the troika loan would decrease if the Government tore up the Croke Park agreement, primarily because of the industrial strife and uncertainty it would unleash.

Ireland has a fiscal crisis because of a collapse in tax revenue. Between 2008 and 2009 Irish revenues collapsed by €18 billion. It is the refusal to countenance a change in Ireland’s business-friendly tax regime that makes a renegotiation of the debt more difficult with our partners in the EU, not public sector pay. – Yours, etc,

Dr AIDAN REGAN,

Researcher at Amsterdam

Institute for Advanced Labour

Studies (AIAS),

University of Amsterdam,

The Netherlands."

http://www.irishtimes.com/letters/in...#1224318725908

[DCon]

breaking from d'Examiner

A man in his 30s is to appear before court in Co. Tipperary later after he held up a pharmacy and took four workers hostage.

It happened in Ladyswell in Cashel at about 10.15am this morning, where he threatened four staff members and held them hostage using an imitation gun.

Gardaí and officers from the Regional Support Unit were called to the scene along with trained negotiators.

The man was eventually caught after Gardaí shot him with a taser gun some two hours later at around 12.20pm.

http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakin...on-556804.html

[DCon]

Enda has no evidence

THE IRISH TIMES

KENNY CALLS FOR BANK DEBTS TO BE SHARED AT EU LEVEL

COALITION BREACHES SALARY LIMIT FOR INCOMING VHI CHIEF EXECUTIVE

HIGH GRADE COCAINE HAUL COULD HAVE FETCHED €200M ON STREETS

THE IRISH INDEPENDENT

HELP US FIND €500M, OR FACE JAIL, QUINN TOLD

‘MR CLEAN’ HELD OVER €250M COCAINE SEIZURE

GREEN LIGHT FOR SMOKING BAN IN CARS CARRYING YOUNG CHILDREN

NAMA IN A FLAP AS BIRDS HALT DEMOLITION

THE IRISH EXAMINER

MORTGAGE HOLDERS LEFT IN THE DARK OVER DEBT PLAN

TROIKA TARGETS FREE SOCIAL SUPPORTS FOR ELDERLY PEOPLE

QUINNS ‘BLATANT, DISHONEST AND DECEITFUL’ IN HIDING ASSETS

TAOISEACH: I HAVE NO EVIDENCE THAT BANK GUARANTEE FILES WERE SHREDDED

http://www.newstalk.ie/2012/featured...7th-june-2012/

[Binn Beal]

Why I will cheat on paying tax:

THE GOVERNMENT has for the first time breached the official pay level it set last year for the starting salary for the chief executive of a commercial State company.

The new chief executive of the VHI, John O’Dwyer, is to be paid a salary of €238,727 – nearly €50,000 more than the starting rate for new chief executive officers in the State-owned health insurer which was set out by the Government a year ago.

To put this in Endanomic terms - it's only an extra €1,000 a week above the exorbitant salary cap.

[Binn Beal]

Sorry, link to above Irish Times story: http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/...318805839.html

[Baron von Biffo]

Gump admits he was pulling things out of his arse.

""I did not intend to suggest that I have evidence that documentation was destroyed or otherwise removed," said Mr Kenny. "

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland...ed-198876.html

[DCon]

is any of this news?

THE IRISH TIMES

REPUBLICANS MOVE FROM CLENCHED FISTS TO OPEN HANDSHAKE

FORMER COUNCILLOR JAILED FOR TAKING BRIBES

GOVERNMENT TO INTENSIFY CAMPAIGN OVER EUROPE’S DEBT FIASCO AT SUMMIT

THE IRISH INDEPENDENT

I’LL STAND BY HIM, SAYS FORSEY’S YOUNG LOVER

COUNCILS ON ALERT AFTER FLOOD WARNING

ULSTER BANK FACES DELUGE OF REFUND CLAIMS BY CUSTOMERS

THE IRISH EXAMINER

HANDSHAKE OF HISTORY

UNEMPLOYED FACE 12- MONTH WAIT FOR MORTGAGE AID

http://www.newstalk.ie/2012/featured...8th-june-2012/

[Baron von Biffo]

Charlie Flanagan is stating the obvious when he says the new smoking in cars law wont be enforced. Given that basic traffic law enforcement is so patchy that most penalty point offences only notch up token detections there's not a hope of this being seriously implemented.

Another law to get the Irish disease treatment.

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland...nt-198978.html

[Baron von Biffo]

Journalist sacked also being a stripper.

Why does that look like it's the wrong way round?

http://www.independent.ie/world-news...d-3152751.html