FINE GAEL leader Enda Kenny has said he will not support a cut or tax on child benefit in next month’s budget.
Mr Kenny said he believed the way to tackle the crippling public expenditure on social welfare was not to adjust the rates but to get people back to work.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Marian Finucane radio programme on Saturday, Mr Kenny said there were many thousands who relied on child benefit as a direct source of income. He said there were other ways of dealing with people on higher income who may not need the allowance as much.
In a wide-ranging interview, Mr Kenny admitted he had not consulted party colleagues last month before announcing his intention to hold a referendum on the abolition of the Seanad if returned to power.
He denied the move represented “an edict” to party members, insisting there was a requirement from all leaders to take “leadership positions. “The Seanad has lost its focus and its original vocation and was now seen as a step down from the Dáil.”
Also at the weekend, Mr Kenny confirmed he would like to see a reduction in the presidency’s term of office by two years. This would lower the maximum length of service to 10 years from 14.
The Fine Gael leader also said Dáil committees should be given powers of subpoena to force witnesses to give sworn evidence at inquiries. This would allow them to be used as an effective alternative to tribunals.
Mr Kenny said he favoured a system where all details regarding political expenses were published so as to make the process “transparent”.
Asked if he felt the electorate saw him as a future taoiseach, Mr Kenny said he was “much happier” to maintain a strong support for the party rather than pursue his own approval rating. He said the problems faced by the country were “beyond the competence of any one individual” and he had assembled “the strongest possible” team to lead the country.
