I drive a lot for my job in the community sector,my expenses are around 400-500 a month. 50,000 a year is disgusting. Who checks their receipts etc?

It’s really sickening to see our elected Politicians claiming expenses like this while Ireland itself is on it’s knees.

These are the very same politicians who have or will condemn us to austerity for possibly the next 20 to 30 years. Their Motto is ; Do as I say, not as I do!

Do they not comprehend the fact that they are making more and more people sceptical about politicians, or do they just not care?
It’s immoral to get paid these amount in expenses and no amount of rationalising can change that fact!

The unfortunate thing about these expenses is that it is only the tip of the iceberg. The Independents also claim over E40,000 ‘Leaders Expenses’ as well and a lot of the others get extra pay as well as their salary by ‘Chairing’ Public Account Committees…..This can be an extra 20K to 40K.

Also, you have MEP’s, Senators, County Councillors, Local Councillors and Government appointed Quango Members also claiming enormous expense as well.

I could go on, but it is too depressing a subject to dwell on, but come election time, I for one will be asking my local Politicians to explain how they can justify these enormous expenses.
In the meantime, I will be Emailing them to let them know how I feel about this issue!

Isn’t it a pity that they couldn’t take a leaf out of Eamonn Mahonys book, but then that would be too much to hope for!!

Well done Christine on another excellent article!

Just an idea:
In the australian outback pupils don’t physically go to school because of the distances involved.
Instead they are in communication with their teacher via two way radio.
Picture the dàil convening via the web rather than having to assemble in one place.

Well for some isn’t it?!!! We’ll all be canvassing in the next general election after these revelations. I know that girl Ciara Conway from Waterford. She is in my constituency at home and i’ll tell you something, if there was work in the bed, she’d sleep on the floor!!!

Allow Politicians to travel for free on Public Transport. Give them a free travel pass but no travel expenses. It wouldn’t be long before you see an improvement in the Rail and Bus network in our Cities and towns.

Are we honestly supposed to believe they need €4,160 on average tax free a month for expenses? I mean I am all for being paid expenses for genuine reasons like travel and overnight etc, but over €4,000 a month and that doesn’t deduct for the months they are off when they SHOUDN’T be claiming!

Very surprised to see Willie O’Dea up that high given that I spotted him buying his evening meal in Burger King on baggot street on Tuesday night.

Maybe when the next election comes around ill stand for a dail seat.After all its money for nothing and there’s no questions asked about expenses.So add on 90,000euro dail salary to the 50,000 euro expenses and you get 140,000 for doing feck all.But sure as enda keeps telling us,the countrys broke.Shame that dosent apply to the dail.
Only in Ireland would you get this crap.

Remarkable that so many incur the exact same expenses. Could it be they are claiming maximum allowances rather than recouping legitimate expenses?

This indeed does look very fishy, bet they are claiming the maximum allowed under the unvouched system!

8=Niall Collins (FF) Limerick: €50,225.80

8=Michael Colreavy (SF) Sligo North Leitrim €50,225.80

8=Ciara Conway (Lab) Waterford: €50,225.80

8=Mattie McGrath (Ind) Tipperary South: €50,225.80

8=Michael McNamara (Lab) Clare: €50,225.80

8=Derek Nolan (Lab) Galway West: €50,225.80

8=Willie O’Dea (FF) Limerick City: €50,225.80

how many of these useless twats claim extra by being on committees etc ?

Jeez…Noel Harrington claimed just under 3 times my annual salary. When I think of it like that it just makes me sick, these people are robbing us blind. I do an often thankless, hazardous and sometimes vomit worthy job and that prick sits on his arse all day claiming ‘expenses’.

Probably about to get red thumbed into the ground for saying this, but they key sentence for me is “All of the TDs with the highest amount of claims vouch for their expenses.” If those living furthest away have the highest expenses then at least that seems logical.

I still think that every TD should instead be issued with a free public transport card for the duration of their term though.

This really is sickening to read: I mean if expenses cover travel, accommodation, food, drink and phone….what is the salary for??

No end to this madness they fuck the poor workers over and are laughing all they way to the bank

What a shower of filthy f***ing leeches. Jesus Christ and to think of the pay cuts and extra taxes imposed on ordinary people and more to come…….it’s time they ended this f***ing political gravy train. I feel unwell reading this.

The country is nearly broke people are suffering terrible hardship and these f***ing leeches are still on the gravy train.Have they no shame.They get paid enough without expenses.

I wish I was fortunate enough to earn half of that! College education, professional job, 2 years full time, 1 pay cut, 2 temporary lay offs, unprofessional salary, just shy of 16000 a year, time to jump ship on this country! I truly have had enough.

Great country over €1200 a week just in expenses for these fucking useless arseholes

Thought sinn Fein said they would only claim average industrial wage?.

Socialist Sinn Féin?!

Niall Collins FF LIMERICK has the EXACT SAME expense claim as Willie O’Dea FF LIMERICK….

Hmmm…… something smells……. FISHY!

couple of problems here – the expenses are 4 times too much and theres too many TDs AND senators in such a small country- JOKE!!

The feckin gobshites getting all that money whilst I work 18hr days on me farm they sit on there fat holes

3=Joe McHugh (FF) Donegal North East: €51,808.09 — pretty sure he’s a FGman Christine

Are these guys for real? Why the hell can’t the government purchase a few houses in a ghost estate for these cronies instead of them wasting more millions of tax payers money. Shame on these people elected to represent their constituents and all the bad press they will get now will most likely go unnoticed.

Did they not put themselves in these jobs? Bad enough to be paying what us the tax payer pays them but to pay them for their pleasure of doing what they have already been paid to do is just sickening. Those expenses are far more than what the average public servant will get in 30 to 40 yrs working and many travelling more than 100 miles every day and night to work. Not only that but their pension will be less than half those expenses per year. So very wrong and unjust

Why don’t we all refuse to pay our household charge until they scrap the laundry allowance and reduce their expenses by at least 60%. Send a mailto:philip.hogan@oir.ie

It’s sickening to see so many of them with ludicrous expenses. I like the suggestion of giving them a travel pass. I don’t know what’s worse, my surprise at the amount of money claimed in such a short space of time or the fact that it doesn’t surprise me that the new TDs in Galway are just as bad as the old crop that they replaced. Then again, an Irish politician with a spine is like a fish with a bicycle, they wouldn’t know what to do with it.

shame on galways newly elected tds,is this what new generation politics is about,Galway East Labour party must be cringing with both candidates involved

This is bloody scandalous our TDs should be ashamed of themselves didn’t take them long to jump on the gravy train Why can this not make headline news on our television and radio just shows who is looking after who in this country . No sign of austerity hitting our comfy TDs anyway.

The story below this on the main page sums up this rock.

absolutely disgusted that the TDs from my area ( Cork South West) are 1 & 3 on this list.

I expect my text to each of them protesting the ambulance cuts in West Cork was a complete waste of credit then!!
Never mind lads, I’ll make sure that I mention this to each and every neighbour/friend/aquaintance/anyone I get talking to in the local shops EVERYBODY etc. Ye better make hay whilst the sun shines lads, cos ye will NOT be voted back! Disgraceful – absolutely disgusting behaviour. Enda is in Bantry tomorrow – Be there if you can.

Got it now they only claim average wage which is 33k plus 50k = 88k a year. Phew I thought they were having us for mugs!!

Can we not get them one of the many Nama hotels to stay in, saved a few quid there

Why do they get paid to travel to work?? Surely the cost of getting to work should be covered by themselves as they chose where to work. I dont get paid to get to and from work – I get expenses to go to and from meetings, etc but I certainly dont get paid by my employer to travel from my house to the office.
Why should our TDs?
Ah yes, it is the age old saying – Do as I say, not as I do ???

The Truckers are having the Blockade on 22nd Feb..I am not a trucker myself,but I can understand how this recession,and all the Vat and taxes is having on them.Petrol and diesel has jumped in price,yet the barrell remains the same price.My road tax has gone up dramatically,yet the roads i drive on have not changed in years.I am fed up paying tax after tax to line the pockets,and pensions of greedy people..Enough is enough,time to stand up.Every day another cut back,or tax,yet their wages and pensions are not touched.There will be nothing broadcast about this march on Tv,because you can bet they dont want their huge salarys threatened.So it is entirely up to us to spread the word about,and take to the streets to show them we have had enough.

Dermot Murphy
Everybody try and share this with as many people as possible.We have a chance now.so lets all take it.Show these greedy fuckers we have had enough.

D-DAY – BLOCKADE DUBLIN
‎22 February at 08:00
Like · · Share · 49 minutes ago ·

Wonder what the senators claimed in expenses? Im sure its a lot more than what “Magda gets in sw. And harte had the cheek to spew out what he said about her. I think all these politicians should be sent to outer siberia and left there, and flights paid for out of their pot of expenses

no more expenses, or cap it at 10 grand, bullshit, we pay their wages, their pensions, and pay for them to eat, go stay in a hostel, cheap hotel, 50 euro a nite, they are their, its all bull , and they know it, but will keep taxing and taxing the regular joe, enda go back to school, thats the pay u deserve, they keep jobs open for politicians, so our young teachers can go abroad or work part time, they keep pensions, let them keep their professional pension but no pension from government, we will see who politicians are, and i aint labour but would vote for the man who took no expenses, imagine all that expense money going into our schools, our hospital, how many people could live off that,, why do we see it and no one else, i really think ireland is a joke and have not even started to pay for our debt, they are not business people, they are money grabbers, and get smacked around the ear by the germans and french, what foolish looking people we are, and leaving them in government, wow,,,

The politicians are just doing their bit in telling young people to feck off from the country.

Dermot Murphy
Everybody try and share this with as many people as possible.We have a chance now.so lets all take it.Show these greedy fuckers we have had enough.

D-DAY – BLOCKADE DUBLIN
‎22 February at 08:00
Like · · Share · 55 minutes ago ·

you got to love these guys

I obv meant 83k mugs pa!!

Noel Harrington is my local TD in Bantry. I am disgusted that he is claiming that amount of unrealistic expenses.

As I have said already elsewhere: This expense system, like the HSE’s and actually every public sector expense system, is archaic! It is open to abuse and totally unrealistic. For the love of logic and common sense this is a golden opportunity for reform. When public vs private sector arguments are made I usually shun them. But for f*** sake this definitely one where public sector falls down against the private sector.
This would be an easy thing to solve with a private sector vouched / approved expense system model.
The fact this archaic ridiculous system still exists tells it’s own tale.

These Bastards should be paying their travel expenses out of their salaries. When I travel to work I pay my own expenses out of my wages, these gits expenses are more than I make in wages for a year.

If you are a businessman and have a Revenue Audit – all expenses must be properly vouched and must be “wholly and exclusively incurred in performance of business activities”
Unvouched expenses are never approved or authorised by the a Irish Revenue. All TDs should now be subject to Revenue audit . We must have a level “playing pitch”.How many TDs have been subjected to Revenue Audits? Time for change and transparency in out political system.
Michael Noonan should change the tax laws to force our elected politicians to operate with honesty. Any TD found to be fiddllying his/her expenses should be suspended from Dáil Éireann without pay for a minimum 6 month term. All expenses overpaid and Unvouched should be refunded to the Irish Taxpayer!!!

Brian Walsh is FG, not Lab.

Harrington OUT!