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THE DÁIL ADJOURNED for the final time today ahead of election campaigns kicking off.
The final day of the 33rd Dáil was spent debating a motion from the Social Democrats on genocide in Gaza, followed by a heated discussion on phone pouches as well as the Tánaiste getting embroiled in a back and forth on being the child of a bus driver.
Today marked the final day of work in Leinster House for a number of retiring TDs who used their time to bid their final farewells to the chamber.
Signing off on his last day as Ceann Comhairle, Sean Ó Fearghaíl said that he had “thoroughly enjoyed the job”.
He told TDs that he could “get a bit frustrated from time to time”, adding that he wanted to wish the exiting deputies “a long and happy and healthy retirement”.
Among them is People Before Profit TD Bríd Smith, who joked about how she is looking forward to “not banging her head off the wall” anymore.
“I have done it for the past nine years and have had enough of it,” she laughed.
“I have fantastic colleagues and we have worked really hard to make a difference,” she said, adding that radical Bills put forward have been blocked by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael.
Former Labour leader and Wexford TD Brendan Howlin also spoke for the last time in the House today after serving in nine Dáileanna.
“If I can, I want to thank the people of Wexford for giving me the privilege of serving here for 38 years,” he said.
Social Democrats TD Róisín Shortall also gave her last contribution yesterday evening, thanking voters of Dublin North-West who placed their trust in her over a period of 32 years.
Kerry TD Brendan Griffin, one of the 18 Fine Gael TDs retiring from politics, also bid farewell, stating that he wanted to issue a warm, heartfelt thank you to everybody in the Oireachtas.
He said it had been a massive honour to be part of the Oireachtas over the last 14 years.
Griffin said it has been an enormous privilege to serve in the national parliament since 2016.
“I always did my best for people. I am sorry if there were things I did not get done. I am glad there were certain things I did get done.
“Many of us who are here realise that we are only ever passing through Dáil Éireann. We are only here for a while. We do our best while we are here and try to make as much of a positive contribution as we can,” he said.
He told the Dáil when he was first elected, he did not have any children, but said he now has two little boys.
“They are 11 and nine and I am looking forward to being around for the remaining years of their childhood. It is something that has been a massive influence in terms of my decision to leave here,” he said.
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Until insurance companies are sorted out the cost will continue to rise. Its not about insurance claims as they would tell us but its about share holders and profits.
@Dave Barrett: Pearse had em in the Orictas
@Geoff Bateman: and where else were they entertained.
Insurance costs are mental here. Is it same in other EU states?
@Arya: no, Suzuki Grand Vitara 2lTD 3rdParty €189. Road tax €42 , in aIreland same car last I looked €701..Portugal
@Arya: in France there’s no road tax, this is included in the fuel. There is a one-time payment for the registration. This is for New and used cars and depends on the fuel consumption of the vehicle.
The insurance in France was 40% lower then Ireland for us: same car, but without a no-claim bonus and a full comprehensive breakdown insurance included.
@Gus Sheridan: can’t get third party insurance in Ireland as they won’t even quote me for that, and I’m claims free and no penalty points over 55 years nor. #pearseontheircase
@Arya: I moved to Germany it cost more. Then Spain it cost less.
@Geoff Bateman:
My son 34, came back from Oz, with a truck license, has worked and driven in Canada, Australia and Scotland, every kind of vehicle.
Has to go back to a learner permit, 12 lessons etc, because his license had just expired!
Ridiculous!
So they AA Insurance company tells us that ‘more needs to be done’ on insurance? Maybe they should actually do more themselves instead of just talking about it? The AA isn’t a motorist representative organisation – it is an insurance company that sells products to motorists.
@Shane Hogan: As much as I dislike the AA they are in fairness a broker & not an actual insurance company. I.E. they don’t control pricing. They’re right in what they’re saying
@Josephus Miller: They’re a player in the market. Maybe they should be using their purchasing power as a broker to bring down pricing, rather than lecturing others.
@Josephus Miller: I was with the AA for house, car and motor insurance. I also had breakdown roadside assistance. The house insurance was around €500. The car was €550 and the roadside assistance was increased to €160. That’s when I shopped around. I got exactly the same house cover for €380. The car cover was only €470 which included breakdown assistance. I have saved a lot by switching. Give 123.ie a look. Is was good for me.
@Josephus Miller: Faughnan was on Highland radio earlier this year, he was very awkward when asked about high insurance costs and kept trying to change the subject , don’t be surprised if he runs for FG in next election
Greens gonna put things way better for exchequer , I mean planet…
Stop darkening the doors of dealerships every couple of years going into debt or getting a bad value PCP just to keep up appearances.
Subscribe to bangernomics, learn some basic maintenance to keep costs down and you’ll not even spend half of that figure no matter how much the government & insurers try to dissuade you with higher tax & premiums
@Josephus Miller: but I couldn’t be seen in that with the P Grady’s in their 192
Besides everyone would think I’m not successful
I’ll pay up the wazoo to have it .Pride pride pride
(I drive an e38)
@Means of escape:
But does your 740 have ALL the extras????
@Josephus Miller: So basically in your argument you shouldn’t change your car due to the government allowing a complete gouging on the price of insurance so you’ll save the money there instead…probably the most ridiculous argument I’ve ever seen…talk about a skewed logic.Maybe you rely on your car for work and need something totally trustworthy but you won’t buy because the cost of insurance is distorted..ver6y clever alright..I hope this works for you and I look forward to seeing you on the side of a road somewhere soon.
@Paul Gurney:
I have never had a vehicle newer that 6 yrs old , drive an 08 now and I haven’t been left on the side of the road in 25 years. (30,000 kms per year)
I’m not a mechanic but I do trust one.
If you want to criticize the government, do ahead, it’s a popular sport here but the OPs post is still accurate.
@Josephus Miller: you do have to be very lucky to get a good older that doesn’t break down- I have tried it a number of times. It’s quite a risky proposition and can be very expensive
And you don’t get a break from the insurance companies either- in fact some will quote you more for an older car. The tax is often more as well. If you compare costs of a new car and an old one you won’t find much difference most of the time.
The way things are owning a car is expensive no matter what you do
@Patrick Nolan: paddy spec
@Paul Gurney: Still trying to work out how exactly you came to that conclusion from my post? That driving an older car is some sort of protest against high insurance costs & tax? The only protest is my wallet when I have more important things to spend money on (house over our heads). I don’t begrudge anyone a new car and maybe hopefully when I can I’ll buy a brand new one but for now bangernomics works for me. Cost of insurance is nothing to do with it as an ex broker I’m aware older cars cost more. I do believe current insurance costs for all motorists and businesses are gouging. Right now running my car costs nowhere near 10k and that works for me. And yes I do rely on my car for work and for that very reason I ensure its maintained properly. Believe it or not new cars also break down. No machine is completely 100% trustworthy.
Skewed logic is binding yourself into debt to keep up with the Smiths
@Josephus Miller: o
@Josephus Miller: one can also argue that the older car has already paid its carbon debt and the destruction of it and energy required to replace it is v environmentally unfriendly
@Josephus Miller: exactly
Not for long, wait until they screw the motorists when they up the diesel tax in the up and coming budget.
@Charles Coughlan: interesting that the cost of owning a car is more than the dole. How do so many unemployed people have cars??
@john doe: Because there’s no public transport. Towns over 25km away. Have ancient clapped out vehicles. Skimp and scrape and do without, just to run a car. That’s how.
@john doe: They are counting in HP payments in the 10k, unlikely to have payments if unemployed so 1k for tax/insurance, 1k for fuel, few hundred for maintenance/NCT, so cost is around 2500-2700 a year. Never take headline figures seriously, they’ll make you stupid
@john doe: how do elderly people afford it?? Country is a joke.
Insurance companies are ripping Ireland off. I had a private motor policy for years, I started a business and switched vehicle to a commercial they accepted my no claims built up over years on my private policy and gave me a reasonable quote. After years on the commercial policy I tried to switch vehicles and return to a private car , they would not consider the no claims bonus as it was deemed solely commercial.
I had no choice but to go like a totally new driver with no bonus whatsoever. My cost of insurance was multiplied by four.
This is totally unjust, if anything the private vehicle has far less risk than the commercial, it is on the road only about 75% less, I should be paying far less than the previous commercial policy.
60 euro to put my father in law on my insurance to do two short runs ilto Dublin Airport..less the 50 miles in total… it’s extortion..
Added a sibling who lives in the UK to my insurance for a week recently. No charge.
Until the gates to insurance companies in Europe are opened we will continue to have our pants pulled down in this country.
@Adam Gibson: no idea why we can’t insure here from EU company as we’re all in the eu
€10k+ to run a family car for a year is ridiculous. We really are getting screwed from all directions.
@Artugal: It’s not that high , HP and depreciation included in that figure.
Petrol only 1.27 a litre in the applegreen on the Lucan road in palmerstown
@Marila: always wondered? Why petrol is way cheaper in some garages. After all ,does it not come from the same refinery . If the price of oil per barrel stays the same for a period off time how can petrol prices vary.
@Dave Barrett:
Some stations sell petrol or diesel at close to or even below cost to get people into the shop.
I hear automated coffee machines have good margins.
@Dave Barrett:
Bacause fixing prices would be illegal.
@Dave Barrett: same reason as the price of a pint I suppose, overheads maybe.
@The Great Unwashed: in this country?? LOL
@Marila: 1.20.8 in Clones …2 different filling stations
@Marila: ONLY?
CKPP
Cars Keep People Poor I once heard. Your average joe soap burns money buying new cars. Unless your minted a new car is just a nice to have as it makes no financial sense.
Can Dublin People drive?
@Adrianh_80: yep…. all the way for 5
@Adrianh_80: Ye, we all pile drive your ma
@Thomas Byrne: classy
@Thomas Byrne: your ma…love it..reminds me of my youth
Here’s a tip.
Do what I have done.
1…. drive to Poland and register your car there.
2….. buy Polish insurance which covers all the EU … apx 250 quid each year
3…… whilst you’re here – find yourself a garage that does lpg conversions – they r very cheap here ( my Honda one cost me about 500 quid)
My effective miles per gallon has gone up from 43 miles per gallon to 68 miles a gallon.
As a bonus – Polish insurance covers the car …..NOT the driver – so anyone can drive it
Drive bk to Ireland and you’re sorted….mąkę the return journey just before the Polish mot expires.
@jackbello:
how much was the cost of fuel to Poland?
@Patrick Nolan: at 68mpg equivalent in petrol, who cares ? 1000 miles to Poland. ..SO about 15 gallons
1 gallon of petrol in Poland about 6 quid
Fill right up b4 u go bk to Ireland …6×15= about 110 quid …..or…. Fill up with lpg at 40 pence per litre in Poland .on lpg gas my honda does about 39 miles for litre (at 40p a litre in Poland. .. or about 65 p a litre in the uk. 1000 miles ×40 pence …equals 40 quid …65 quid for the thousand miles if u fill it up with lpg in UK
A lot cheaper than paying expensive Irish petrol and insurance
Don’t know why more cars in Ireland aren’t lpg’d …it’s cheap to do and cheap to maintain
@jackbello: Did you tell your Polish insurance company that you are resident in Ireland Jack? If not, your insurance policy is probably null and void.
@jackbello: Fine till revenue pull you over and confiscate you car.
You can’t legally drive you foreign registered vehicle if you resident in the country.
@Shane Hogan: the insurance terms are very specific. Unlike Irish and UK policies – there is no restriction on the amount of days the car is outside the borders of the Republic of Poland. UK ones typically allow 60 days each yr… Polish ones – no limits
@jackbello: You didn’t really answer my question Jack. Did you tell your Polish insurer that you are resident in Ireland? And is the car registered in Ireland or in Poland?
Who does these surveys Bertie what a load of b#ll#x
Spin
My car cost 19000 cash. Insurance 450 tax 190 fuel 2400 a year. 200 for a service. How does that cost over 10000 a year. It’s a 1 year old avensis
@John O Reilly: have you priced in depreciation?
@Clark Griswold: tolls and parking also, although I think John may not have a grasp on what average means.
@Clark Griswold: well if I keep it 10 years that’s 1900 a year. I think they include everything at the highest level….intetest etc
@Darren Byrne: you are wrong and insulting….my point is if the average is 10k plus and tax prsi usc means you take home 50% of your gross pay….22k of your gross earnings are needed to buy an average car. And the average industrial wage is 37k a year….doesnt make sense
@John O Reilly: Its an Average
@John O Reilly: again failing to grasp averages. If this is the average car then you take average wage which is 47000 not average industrial wage or any other average you deem to fit your point. People don’t lose 50% of their gross to tax. Even people earning 70000 will only lose 32%, the average wage only pay 25% of their gross and someone on your industrial wage is only paying 18% of their gross. You seem to have an issue separating the idea of yourself from population as a whole
@John O Reilly: depreciation (this is an important factor in cost of owning any asset), tyres, the cost of occasional replacement parts, clutch, timing belt etc spread over the life of the car, tolls, cleaning, parking
It all adds up. Lot of hidden costs.
@Darren Byrne: you are quite ignorant. If the average cost of a car is over 10k a year most people could not afford it with childcare and rent/mortgage costs.
My insurance costs up again and I saw diesel in Carlow last Tuesday at 123.9 and here in Castlecomer at 134.9. Whosegouging
@Geoff Bateman:
I pass through Carlow a lot.
There is a station that drops his prices dramatically at the weekends to get all the commuters filling it up for the week. Often seen ques outside.
@Geoff Bateman: and these guys claim to be only making one cent on each litre….surely if one can sell for 11 cent cheaper than the other that argument doesn’t stack up..
@Patrick Nolan: Circle K is where I saw 123.9 on the roundabout
Could The Journal investigate the comparison between
1. The increase in premiums over the last 10years
2. The amount paid out in claims
And
3. The profits earned
Not the individual companies but the motor insurance industry as a whole. I’ll bet there’s an imbalance to be found.
bullshit ! dont know where the cso got their figures from but it wasnt ireland ! fuel prices are rising by the week – talk of rises in road tax in the budget and as for insurance costs ! do me a favour ! got my renewal quote last week – gone up by another 70 euro for the year – on a 05 1.2 ltr car – 40 yrs driving experience -no penalty points ,no bans , no claims EVER (both here and in the uk) so i dont fall into any of the categories mentioned in the article (young driver ,returning immigrant , penalty points etc) so where is the 6.7% reduction in insurance costs ? no one i know has seen their insurance drop in price – the opposite in fact -most have risen by between 50 and 150 a year .. fuel this time last year was around the 1.38 a ltr mark -not 1.50 as stated !
@Eric Davies: correct, don’t know who gets these stupid figures
@Geoff Bateman:
Maybe you both need to get out more. A month ago it was costing me 134, now I’m getting 129.
@Patrick Nolan: oh I get out alright. Longford, Dublin, Thurles, new Ross just last week. #keepempeeled
not that surprising considering 12% of new car sales are are battery or hybrid electric cars. Huge savings to be made on running costs.
@Darren Byrne:
Genuine question, is there any difference in the cost of insurance?
@Patrick Nolan: it did go down but then again that could have just been because it was a new car, they have more safety features. Cost of charging it is about 200 a year with night meter but because we had to switch to night meter we set things on timers to come on for the morning and the electricity overall has come down including charging the car. Road tax of 120 also helps.
@Darren Byrne:
Looked into the whole electric car thing 2 years ago, considerable savings especially on a second car but my partner point blank refuses to drive an automatic car. Haven’t figured a way around that yet….
@Patrick Nolan: get them to take a test drive in Leaf using the e-pedal. Stop on hill by which i mean take your foot up slowly off the pedal, no need for breaks. Then put it back down and off you go. So much more comfortable to drive also as you’re not moving your legs in and out all the time. And remember its not an automatic as there’s no gears.
Insurance – an entreched age-old scams
The Green Party will sort this. Once they implement carbon taxes on poor people it will be grand
10k per year average? Sounds like nonsense.
Is that counting the cost of a brand new car + yearly depreciation at the same time?
I’d accept that as a high end number but average?
@Vin: @Paul GurneyFaughnan hadn’t heard his makey up accent on the radio for a few weeks so throws out some random calculation done on a Merc S-class brochure and passed it off as fact(oid)
Insurance companies need to be forced to repay the money STOLEN from its customers. Their lies should result in them being jailed. GREED is the only thing keeping premiums ridiculously high.
Fuel costs are sky high and going up at least every week.
worlds_smallest_violin.gif
Start paying for the costs of your air pollution, then come back to me. Start covering the cost of the billions pumped into roads, then come back to me. Start covering the cost of storing your car(s) for free or almost free on the streets, then come back to me.
The age
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