New Limerick mayor John Moran raised concerns about the amount of work involved when he was interim chairman of the nascent Land Development Agency (LDA) in 2019-2021.
When departing the role, Moran questioned whether the suggested four to six days per month were enough to do the job. In the end he didn’t apply for the €31,500-a-year permanent position when it was advertised, saying the time required to do the job was “considerable” and “it is likely to require more than the time commitment proposed in the new advertisement”.
Records released under the Freedom of Information Act relating to Moran’s time at the LDA suggest that his relationship with the Department of Housing was already fraught not long after he began his term as chairman in early 2019. In May that year, Moran wrote to John McCarthy, then secretary general of the Department of Housing, complaining about his lack of pay to date.
“I am hesitant to put this in writing but I have reached a point of great frustration. Now we seem to have the CEO position’s T&Cs sorted, can you let me know when I might see my own letter of engagement?” he wrote. “It is not at all fair that I am left with no payments at all for the very considerable work that I am doing, not even for the revised offer made to me more than two months ago but still not offered in writing so that I can understand exactly what its terms are.
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“I suspect no other official in the department would have been happy to have effectively their salary payments cut for six months now and no urgency in resolving the issue. I would remind you that I have been serving in this role for nearly six months with this issue unresolved. I have been very loath to escalate this to ministerial level so as to avoid any adverse publicity for the LDA or the department.”
Moran subsequently received an offer of €31,500 a year, plus expenses. Presumably the €154,000 salary in his new role, along with five staff and a budget of €8 million a year, will suffice.
Ní Mhurchú’s political pay cut
Cynthia Ní Mhurchú had a circuitous route into politics, working as a teacher and journalist before spending 27 years as a barrister. A European Parliament declaration by Fianna Fáil’s Ireland South MEP shows the former Eurovision Song Contest host had a lucrative practice in the family law courts before her election last month.
All MEPs are required to submit a statement of earnings when taking up office. Last week Ní Mhurchú declared annual earnings of €180,000 from her career as a barrister. With MEPs paid about €124,000 a year, she couldn’t be accused of doing it for the money.
Ireland’s woman in the US is in the frame
Geraldine Byrne Nason, the Irish Ambassador to the United States, appeared in newspapers and websites around the world last week. The reason for her sudden fame? She was photographed sitting directly behind Rupert Murdoch at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Murdoch’s presence made global headlines given Fox News’s sometimes testy relationship with Donald Trump, although relations have improved since it became the first US network to declare Trump had lost the vote in Arizona in 2020, leading to his supporters chanting “Fox News sucks” at rallies.
We don’t know if Byrne Nason had a word with the “dirty digger” or if she overheard any of his conversation with the Republican senator Lindsey Graham, who was seated beside him. But she was certainly busy in Milwaukee, where she was interviewed by the BBC’s Caitríona Perry and spent a night with the National Association of Irish American Republicans at Mo’s Irish Pub. She also posed for a selfie with Donald Trump’s son, Eric, and expressed “our sadness at the attack on his dad”.
The Department of Foreign Affairs said that it was common practice for ambassadors to attend conventions and that Byrne Nason also plans to attend the Democratic convention in Chicago next month.
Coveney sails again
Simon Coveney hasn’t been putting his feet up since announcing he is not going to stand in the next general election. Last week the Fine Gael TD for Cork South-Central pulled on his deck shoes and helmed the Artful Dodger, an Irish Defence Forces yacht competing in the annual Volvo Cork Week. Coveney and his crew won the Beaufort Cup against teams from Ireland, the UK and the United States.
“To be honest, we were getting better as the regatta went on, especially in terms of manoeuvres,” Coveney said afterwards. “On board we have two Army, three Navy, and three Air Force sailors. This win is all about working together as a team.”
Were it not for bean counters worried about the potential costs of hosting the America’s Cup, the former tánaiste would be looking forward to hosting the world’s greatest yacht race in August. Alas, it’s being held in Barcelona.
Fill circle for surgeon Ray Moran
Surgeon Ray Moran, brother of former Manchester United player Kevin, is responsible for ensuring clients such as Bernard Brogan, Colm Cooper and Josh van der Flier can twist and turn at high speed without buckling their knees. But turning a car around at his Upper Leeson Street home in leafy Dublin 4 isn’t so straightforward. Due to the tight space available, it’s not possible to carry out a three-point turn in the driveway of Moran’s home, necessitating reversing out into two lanes of traffic. The Sports Surgery Clinic founder took a novel approach to the dilemma, installing a vehicular turntable in his driveway – an automated circular platform that turns a car 180 degrees at the touch of a remote control.
Dublin City Council wasn’t so keen on the surgeon’s solution, though. Last week it refused retention planning permission for the contraption, ruling the turntable and its accompanying “hard landscaping” are “incongruous and unsympathetic to the character of the area”. Moran will now have to carry out some surgery on his front garden, removing the gizmo and reinstating softer landscaping.
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