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Entries matching the category "finance"
NAMA CAUSED FURTHER AIB BAILOUT: I PUBLISH COMMISSIONER ALMUNIA LETTER
Posted on January 10, 2011 by Alan Kelly
I have just published the letter from EU Commission Vice President, Joaquin Almunia, explaining how AIB passed banking stress tests last July but was eventually nationalised by year-end. (See text of letter below this blog.)
It is clear that the latest AIB bailout was effectively caused by NAMA and the failure of the government to predict these losses while also taking the bank’s position at face value.
Commissioner Almunia makes it clear in his letter that NAMA’s second discount on AIB loans immediately required an additional €3b cash. This could only come from the Irish taxpayer.
When the government first stress tested the bank, it underestimated the NAMA discount – even though NAMA is a state-body. Was there no co-ordination on this by the Finance Minister?
Permanent link | Categories: Finance • Foreign & European Affairs • Alan Kelly • EU • Current Affairs Irish
Visiting the White House and New York
Posted on December 10, 2009 by Alan Kelly
I was on my first trip as an MEP representative to the US over the last couple of days. It was a very interesting and informative few days, where I visited the While House and met with members of the US House of Representatives. We visited both Washington and New York. I met with Cass Sunstein who is I understand quite close to President Obama and is over Information and Regulatory Affairs in the Us Administration. I also met with Susan Rice, who is the US Ambassador to the United Nations.
Permanent link | Categories: Finance • Foreign & European Affairs • US • Alan Kelly
Calling on the Govt to Apply for EU Solitary Fund to Aid Flood Relief
Posted on November 23, 2009 by Alan Kelly
I am urging the Irish Government to apply for the EU Solidarity Fund in order to aid those areas across Ireland that were devastated by flood damage in the last week.
The EU Solidarity Fund was set up after the catastrophic flooding in Germany and Austria in 2002. The EU has done a lot in the area of flood preparedness in the aftermath of the 2002 flood in central Europe. It has been used on 26 occasions since then and I am calling on the Government to apply for this fund. Ireland has been devastated by flood waters this week. Cork, Tipperary, Galway and many other areas been affected. Under this initiative, there are funds which the Government may be entitled to.
Permanent link | Categories: Finance • Foreign & European Affairs • EU Solidarity Fund • Flood Damage
Morale of Public Service is a Major Worry
Posted on May 24, 2009 by Alan Kelly
Running across the country trying to meet as many people and shake as many hands as possible at the moment. Many of the conversations involved light-hearted banter, but when you get into the serious nitty-gritty with people, you come across some disturbing trends.
Right now, public service morale is at a disturbingly low level. Whether it is teachers, nurses, administrators, engineers, every public servant you meet has plenty of valid reasons to angry. The worry is if will this start affecting performance, as it is bound to and will the vulnerable people who need the public service the most, suffer the most?
Permanent link | Categories: Communications • Community Rural & Gaeltacht Affairs • Defence • Education • Finance
Budget Proposals Launch
Posted on April 02, 2009 by Alan Kelly
Today I was part of the Labour team that launched our 2009 Budget proposals ahead of the emergency budget next Tuesday (7th). I was particularly glad to get some of my suggestions into the proposal, especially in relation ot the areas of re-prioritising Broadband in the NDP and securing more job placements for college graduates. In order to get this economy turned around we need to invest in new ideas and young people and these are two areas in which I think we can do just that.
The following are the key points from our proposals:
Permanent link | Categories: Finance • Budget • Eamon Gilmore • Joan Burton
National Conference 09
Posted on March 27, 2009 by Alan Kelly
Our National Conference was held over the weekend in Mullingar or 'Penrose' country as we like to call it after our local TD there. It was an excellent conference and I was highly impressed by the volume of new and young people I met at it. It was also a confernece that showed that my party is the party of values. Values that have stood the test of time and are more relevant now than ever before.
It was also a conference of ideas. So many motions were excellently researched and showed that there is a bright future out there if we could just as a country invest in our own creativity and capacity.
Permanent link | Categories: Arts Sport & Tourism • Enterprise Trade & Employment • Finance • Health • Martin Schulz • Eamon Gilmore • Conference • Mullingar • Willie Penrose
New Ideas Campaign and Conferences
Posted on March 07, 2009 by Alan Kelly
Over the last couple of months I have been working on a concept to help stimulate jobs. It is time to be pro-active and I have been looking at ways to promote innovation and give people with new ideas a voice. With this in mind I developed a website called www.newideas.ie. This site is aimed at encouraging new ideas, new concepts, new thinking that will help stimulate new enterprises that will develop the Irish economy and create jobs. This site is dedicated to providing a platform for people with innovative ideas or concepts that are currently finding it very difficult to get support. It will also look at the finance and infrastructural needs of businesses that are trying to get into or compete in sectoral areas where there will be future economic growth.
Permanent link | Categories: Enterprise Trade & Employment • Finance • Limerick • New Ideas • Innovation • Jobs • Broadband
Waterford Crystal - A Way forward
Posted on January 31, 2009 by Alan Kelly
The Labour party in Waterford wish to offer every support to the staff at Waterford Crystal who have received such a devastating blow that their jobs may no longer be there.
European Candidate, Senator Alan Kelly was in Waterford along with Brian O'Shea TD and Labour councillors from the city. The Labour party was present at the factory as the news broke and remain hopeful that a buyer can be found so that the jobs can be protected.
Permanent link | Categories: Equality • Finance
2008 National Conference Address
Posted on December 01, 2008 by Alan Kelly
Speaking at the 2008 National Conference in Kilkenny on the party's finance debate
Comrades, the world has changed since we were together last November.
And what has happened? After decades of living with the smug arrogance of free marketers there is a new dawning for the left. As we witness the collapse of greed, its philosophers and their disciples there is a huge reawakening to the simple truth that people are first, that the human person is central and that the market and economics exist to serve society.
Permanent link | Categories: Enterprise Trade & Employment • Finance • National Conference • Kilkenny • Nenagh • Limerick • Killarney
