Martina Devlin: Patriot act could be the gift that keeps on giving
DEAR Enda Kenny, I have a Christmas present for you: an idea for raising money. You need to hurry to avail of it, though. Your Government's popularity is ebbing at a rate of knots, and this involves tapping into residual levels of goodwill.
One way to find a foothold through the economic bog is by appealing to patriotism.
A sense of solidarity still exists in Ireland. Mind you, it is being eroded by a combination of austerity measures (unavoidable) and some crass mistakes, such as breaching special adviser pay caps (avoidable, and very stupid).
I'm not saying it's your fault, but we are poorer under your tenure and nobody likes having their income reduced -- even if Mother Teresa were behind it, people would feel hard done by.
Yet citizens continue to care about the survival of our country. For every person who moved their savings out of the State, there was another who declined to participate in a potentially damaging flight of capital. For every person who thought about clearing out of Ireland, there was another who decided to stay put, keep paying taxes and hope to weather the storms.
That understated patriotism could benefit both your administration and the State, Enda. Accessing it calls for a charm offensive, but fluff up your hair and you'll be well able for your end of it.
What I'm proposing is the issue of war bonds -- we are engaged in economic warfare, after all -- but rename them. Patriot Bonds has a ring. Then apply the war bonds' principle to revenue generation.
Central Bank figures indicate some €92bn is held on deposit by householders in the State. Train your sights on that with a well-pitched patriotic appeal. But more important again is the money which flooded out of Ireland from 2008 onwards, amid fears for the viability of our financial institutions.
Thanks to that €64bn pumped into the banks by taxpayers, there is no danger of them collapsing now. So the Government should use Patriot Bonds to target money held abroad, too.
Now, how should cash raised from a bond issue be used? It could pay down some of the debt which immobilises us. But my preference is for capital expenditure -- building schools, upgrading roads -- to create jobs and boost the economy.
I know An Post already offers 10-year National Solidarity Bonds, but the idea has been marketed in a lacklustre fashion and the take-up is relatively limp. Even the name is stodgy. Patriot Bonds could continue to be issued by the post office, but our banks ought to be brought in as well. Linking the banks to this scheme makes sense -- they are viewed as a safe bet internationally, a positive consequence of their feeding frenzy on our funds.
Simply making Patriot Bonds available isn't enough. People need to be sold on them, so an imaginative operation must underpin the issue. The bonds should be put persuasively before the public at home and abroad, and for this, Enda, you'll have to borrow the star power of others. No, I don't mean your cabinet colleagues.
Embark on a recruitment drive before the launch happens, and focus on winning over celebrities to endorse the bond issue. They won't all agree, but a fair proportion would row in behind you at this time of national emergency.
Convince Bono's gang to write a theme song for the campaign. Beg Neil Jordan to shoot a TV commercial, and Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson to appear in it. Or how about Maureen O'Hara? Here she is, a bona fide Hollywood legend living in Ireland, and we pay hardly a scrap of attention to her. I bet she could sell a bond or two.
Invite Jim Fitzpatrick to design a poster, and Seamus Heaney to write a few lines of poetry for it. Ask Bob Geldof to voice the radio ad. Appeal for prizes to be donated, and distribute them at random to customers to lend the issue some razzle-dazzle. Volunteer yourself as a cycling companion as a prize, or offer any minister of the winner's choice to conduct a guided tour of the Dail.
How hard can it be to drum up some hampers from Dunnes, a stay in a Jurys Inn, a free Ryanair flight? On second thoughts, that last one might prove beyond your wiles. Besides, Michael O'Leary proves his patriotism annually with a tax resident cheque to Revenue.
Link the whole shebang to St Patrick's Day to emphasise the patriotic element. We can put on a good display -- we did it twice during 2011 with Queen Elizabeth and Barack Obama. Mount another show. Use our assets to generate more assets.
Historically, governments issued war bonds -- known as liberty bonds in the US and victory bonds in Canada -- to finance military operations. Their yield was less than buyers might receive from keeping money on deposit, but they gave citizens a sense of community and shared goals. Above all, they enhanced social cohesion -- a quality draining away here at an alarming rate.
Such bonds were available in a wide variety of denominations, allowing people from all walks of life to make a contribution. Today, people without savings but with income might be persuaded to pay €50 or €100 a month into a bond.
But Enda, this isn't just about piggybanks being handed over to the Exchequer. It must be a safe investment opportunity, with the additional constituent of a patriotic act.
I believe people will invest at below-market rates if they are convinced it will help recovery. Not just people living in Ireland, but those who emigrated recently or whose forebears took the boat out, and who retain goodwill towards us.
Customers should be offered a choice of short-term investment with lower returns, or locking away their money for longer periods, with a correspondingly more favourable rate. Obviously, it is essential to avoid any hint of coercion or moral blackmail in selling Patriot Bonds. This is an invitation, nothing more.
So, Enda, Merry Christmas, I trust I've given you something to chew on over your turkey. And have a good rest because we need you on full throttle in 2012.
Irish Independent
