RADIO REVIEW:AS OUR economy stumbles from recession to depression, Minister for Social and Family Affairs Mary Hanafin wants to tackle those people who are actually depressed and, as a result, claiming disability allowance, writes QUENTIN FOTTRELL
Hanafin told Sean O'Rourke on Monday's News At One(RTÉ Radio One, weekdays), "It's the rise in what is called mental illness, which is stress and anxiety and depression, and we're going to start a project to try and see if these people who are claiming social welfare benefit because of these particular anxieties might actually be better off working."
This sounded like a plot from Logan's Run, a plan to create a state where there are no sick people by either providing a health service that doesn't take care of them properly or, failing that, forcing them back to work.
O’Rourke saw a problem with Hanafin’s plan. “Does that not pre-suppose there are jobs?” But the Minister was determined to turn their frowns upside down: “We are aiming this year to look at these people who are claiming to have anxiety and depression and stress . . . and try and ensure what they can do at work is looked at and not what they can’t do.”
On Tuesday's Lunchtime With Eamon Keane(Newstalk 106-108, weekdays), Fianna Fáil MEP for Dublin, Eoin Ryan and Libertas MEP candidate for Dublin, Caroline Simons (right) went head to-head over nepotism and expenses for MEPs. Keane lit on Ryan over a flat-rate flight allowance averaging €1,300 from Dublin to Strasbourg or Brussels, which allows MEPs to book cheap round trips and pocket the difference.
Ryan said he spends half of his expenses on his staff, one of whom is a family member. He takes about 120 flights on average a year but said he regularly changes flights at the last minute due to meetings.
Keane asked, “Even if you take 100 flights you can make fortunes on that. For the last number of years, you and other MEPs have been claiming that money. Do you think that was morally right?” Ryan replied, rather lamely, “That’s why we changed it, because we felt that it was excessive.” When Keane asked Caroline Simons about Libertas candidates naming family members as substitutes should they not take their seats, she tried throwing Ryan under the bus, even though he’d effectively thrown himself under it already: “You can look at Eoin employing one of his family . . .” Keane shot back, “I’ve dealt with Eoin, I’m asking you this question.” Her sharp, scolding tone disappeared. “Substitutes will not be called upon,” she finally said, showing that the inability to answer a straightforward question is not only the preserve of elected politicians.
There was blanket coverage of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse report. On Wednesday's The Right Hook(Newstalk 106-108, weekdays) Christine Buckley, former resident of the Goldenbridge industrial school in Dublin, said, "Sexual abuse in Goldenbridge, I felt it was glossed over." Fr Brendan Purcell told George Hook, "Certainly, as a priest in the Catholic Church, I hang my head in shame." Some of those from organisations representing the abused were not allowed into the launch of the report. "We've been marginalised as children and we're marginalised again," one man told Newstalk. "We should leave here with dignity."
On Thursday's Morning Ireland(RTÉ Radio One, weekdays), Fine Gael education spokesman Brian Hayes described as "scandalous" the government compensation deal with the religious congregations that capped the latter's payments at €128 million. Minister for Foreign Affairs, Micheál Martin arrived in the last few minutes of the programme, and gave the faintest hint that he might revisit the deal, saying, "I think we can look at that again," but he was more circumspect on the €2 million funding cut to the Redress Board. He highlighted the Government's education fund and the national counselling service. "And is all of this enough?" Lawlor asked. "No," the Minister replied.
Another former Goldenbridge student, Bernadette Fahy, called for criminal records of those who were put in these schools to be expunged. "The biggest crime," she said, "was poverty." Morning Irelandused actors to tell the story of those who gave evidence. One woman said she could not even bring herself to attend parent-teacher meetings in her children's school because she could not speak up in public. "I was afraid that if I told people . . . I was afraid I'd be locked up." All these years later, and she was still a prisoner of the past.