Is Government too big in this country?

[Question R24U]

(posted here because the space is free).

€58bn is paid out every year by the Government. They will only collect €34bn, but so long as €21bn is paid to people not to work and a slightly smaller sum if paid to public servants. Then the cost of borrowing to pay for those too items. Then non-pay public services and capital spending.

There are over 850 Quasi autonomous non-governmental orgainisiations, which include 96 planning authorities, a host of VEC and other educational bodies.

The Government regulates the employment through 33 statutes, providing different means of redress for employees (rights commissioner, equality trubunal, EAT, Labour Court, Circuit Court, High Court).

The Government requires licences to own a TV and conducts 18,000 inspections a month (according to his adds on the station which most benefits from the Licence fee after the administrators of it who collect 8% of that which is raised).

Budgets in the Public Sector start where they left off the year before, even if €30,000 worth of paper clips was ordered to ensure its budget was met.

Failed public servants get paid off in the same way as failed football managers.

The income people earn is taxed. The savings people create from their income is taxed. Spending is taxed. Inheritance is taxed.

50 Social welfare programmes exist, spending over €20bn of taxpayers money, so that no incentive exists for these people to work (but they get a house, a medical card, €204 per week and 640,000 people get a bus pass).

There are 370,000 public servants. It appears to be quite difficult to sack them in a summary way for laziness, incompetence, mild dishonesty, being in the internet all day, turning up late, abusing sick pay. We even have to pay them when they go on strike!

And you can't leave without paying a €10 airplane tax (like a third world country), that is if you can get pass the DAA workers on strike, Aer lingus on the pickets.

If you want buy a bicycle in the cheapest rate, you must get your employer involved, instead of allowing the bicycle salesman not charge VAT.

If you drive to work, you pay VRT on the car, duty on the petrol, 2% levy on the insurance, Road tax to pay the administrators who collect the tax and to pay for everything bar the roads (see NRA) and then €200.00 per year to park in a space provided for you by your employer.

Is Government in Ireland too big?
Here is a list from the government website
http://www.gov.ie/en/sites/

[TradCat]

Yes, but those who think so appear to be a tiny minority. Most business people from property developers to publicans to taxi drivers appear to think the government exists to rig the market in their favour.

The Unions think the same on behalf of their members.

Have a child? Demand that the state pays for childcare, provides Catholic, Irish language, Inter-denominational education depending on what suits your world view.

Also smoke, drink, eat sh1te all your life and expect the state to have doctors and nurses standing by to look after you. For free.

While they are at it they should give millions in aid to the third worlds, let anyone with a sob story into the country and provide them with welfare plus have a local TD get you stuff you are not entitled to.

We need a peaceful revolution to transform the relationship between the individual and the state. It looks like it will be forced on us by economic circumstances.

[smitchy2]

It certainly is too big and was bloated up by 20-30% under the watch of your party.

I hear Mattie McGrath is trying to make a name for himself now by calling on the Dept of Sport & Tourism to be demerged.
Fair play to him for calling out for this but I am sure it is politically motivated.

Cowen before the last election insisted that savings could not be found between desks before the last election. He has been left eat his words now as many of the gravy trains have been exposed.

Its time to slash some of the old boys clubs that FF have created and get people working in jobs where they are needed.

[sandar]

Yes it is waste and governments go together, thats why government should be as small as is coailly possible, and economic policy shoukld be supply rather than demand side...

[irish_bob]

Yes, but those who think so appear to be a tiny minority. Most business people from property developers to publicans to taxi drivers appear to think the government exists to rig the market in their favour.

The Unions think the same on behalf of their members.

Have a child? Demand that the state pays for childcare, provides Catholic, Irish language, Inter-denominational education depending on what suits your world view.

Also smoke, drink, eat sh1te all your life and expect the state to have doctors and nurses standing by to look after you. For free.

While they are at it they should give millions in aid to the third worlds, let anyone with a sob story into the country and provide them with welfare plus have a local TD get you stuff you are not entitled to.

We need a peaceful revolution to transform the relationship between the individual and the state. It looks like it will be forced on us by economic circumstances.

us irish dont do personal responsibility , we want to have our cake and eat it and we want someone else to bake that cake too , your right in saying we want the state to nanny us but at the same time we dont want to pay high taxes , the danes are willing to pay high taxes for the state to nanny them , as david mc williams said , we want danish services with denver taxes

[onthefence]

(posted here because the space is free).


Is Government in Ireland too big?

I would not agree with some of the items but I do agree with the sentiment expressed.

[cHeal]

Also smoke, drink, eat sh1te all your life and expect the state to have doctors and nurses standing by to look after you. For free.

It's not free. I pay tax, which pays for the medical services provided and I pay duty on cigarettes which, as far as I'm aware, pretty much covers the cost of treating smoking related health problems. So for all intents and purposes I am already paying a mandatory health insurance through my taxes, I see why I should be paying for private health insurance too.

Yes the government is far too big.

[ellie08]

too big too fat and too dumb, most of them anyway.

[Big Bobo]

No of course it's not too big, if anything it's not big enough. The market has proved time and time again that it is unable to provide services and jobs.

The "free" market means poverty, unemployment, wage cuts and poor services for ordinary people and massive profits for the bosses.

[sandar]

and the absence of market has historically meant workers under feudal control rather than market control, famine, totalitarianism an absence of human rights and much more......