Morning Focus began by asking if we can afford to axe the Universal Social Charge (USC).
A Department of Finance briefing document exploring alternative ways of raising revenue if the USC was abolished or phased out includes the possibility of raising the Local Property Tax by 600 percent.
The USC, which was introduced in 2011, collects around €4bn a year.
However, last February, Minister for Finance Michael Noonan said the party would abolish USC by 2020.
The document, prepared by the Department of Finance, says that if USC was abolished immediately one of the options would be to raise property tax six-fold.
Another option would be to increase indirect taxes. This could see the cost of motor fuel rise by 18c per litre, while a pint of beer would be up by €1.50.
Alternatively, there could be a rise in income taxes by 5 percent.
For expert analysis, Gavin was joined by Michéal Collins of the Nevin Economic Institute
Whatever you might think of incident at the Rose of Tralee where the interview with Cavan Rose, Lisa Reilly, was interrupted by a member of the Fathers 4 Justice group, there's no doubt that there was a serious message behind this apparent 'stunt'.
The protester was Matt O’Connor, the founder of Fathers4Justice who lives in London, but whose family come from Kerry. He held up a picture of his son before being ushered off stage by security staff.
In a statement issued immediately after the incident, Fathers4Justice described the protest as the “new Rising” and stated that 100,000 Irish children are “partitioned” from their fathers and denied their human rights.
Gavin spoke, about the underlying issue to Joe Wallace, Chairperson of FAMILES and to Seamus Scott, the group's Secretary.
Familes which stands for Familes and Men In Life Experiencing Separation is a support & information group. Familes is in Limerick, Waterford and Mallow and we support the surrounding areas.
The organisation supports families who are separating.
**Men's Meetings every Monday & Thursday evening 8 to 10 & Women meet every Week see our Familes Facebook page for times, Meetings held at 291 Fr Russell Square, 3 doors to the right of the Train Station.
Art comes in all different forms – it's much more than paintings and sculptures of course.
But that notwithstanding, my next guest is behind what must be one of the most unusual arts projects you'll ever hear of.
Galway-born Paul Quast, who's currently based in Scotland, is collecting answers from the public to a question which aims to get us thinking about the environment.
Then, with the help of the European Space Agency, he's going to beam those answers into space, akin to a virtual 'message in a bottle'
Paul Quast joined Gavin to discuss his plans.
Anyone interested in contributing to the message, can do so at www.asimpleresponse.org before 16 September.
We're still basking in the afterglow of a wonderful Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann 2016 and there's a real sense of pride in what's been achieved. Soon, we'll be looking ahead to next year's Fleadh and, with that in mind, Anne got in touch with Morning Focus. She was a volunteer during the Fleadh and was both a street ambassador as well as team member at the Senior Ceilí Band Competition last Sunday (Aug. 21) night. She's got a number of suggestions for next year's Fleadh and she's joined Gavin to share her ideas.
The Friday Panel discussed the following topics: Reforming the Universal Social Charge (USC); Rising rents prompt concerns for job creation capacity and for students ; The Rose of Tralee – a place for politics; and what schools can do more to tackle obesity.
Gavin's guests in studio were Mary Cashin, Cashin & Associates Solicitors, Ennis; Martin Waldron
Burren Escape, Burren Eco-Tourism Network, Corofin; and Brian O'Neill, Chair Promote Ennis/Rowan Tree Hostel, Ennis.
The round-up of weekend events covered the Crotty-Galvin Traditional Music Weekend in Moyasta; Heritage Week in Kilkishen; The Great Irish Garden open day at Seed Savers in Scarriff and a Heritage Week storytelling event in Lahinch with Eddie Lenihan.
