Head 2 Head

IT'S TIME FOR CHANGE
The Government has forged closer links with big business and other vested interests while neglecting those in real need, says Rory Hearne, People Before Profit Alliance candidate, Dublin South East.
It is said that if something is repeated often enough then you’ll believe it.
The current Fianna Fáil/PD government certainly hopes so. Bertie Ahern and his Ministers have reiterated again and again how everyone has done so well out of the Celtic Tiger. The reality is that inequality has greatly increased, with 750,000 people at risk of poverty (a proportion higher than anywhere in the EU). Tens of thousands of families rely on charity in order to have enough to eat (St Vincent De Paul spends almost €5 million per annum on food support). Most households on social welfare or low wages are in crippling debt as they struggle to cover the rising costs of mortgages, rent, education, health costs, bin charges, ESB and Gas prices. Over 48,000 families are on social housing waiting lists around the country. How can the government deem their tenure a success?
The truth is the government has squandered the boom. It had an historic opportunity to address poverty, inadequate public services, homelessness and educational access, but instead decided to further enrich the golden circle of the developers, banks and mortgage lenders.
But it’s more sinister than that. People are dying on hospital trollies because the government hasn’t provided enough hospital beds. Privatisation means many public patients cannot afford necessary operations or attend their GP when sick. In my constituency of Dublin South East, the government is closing St Luke’s Cancer Hospital. It is illogical to close much-needed hospitals when the government has a budget surplus of billions.
The recent tragedy in Wexford highlighted the shameful lack of State support for people at risk. Hundreds of (mainly young) people are attempting suicide every year – yet support services are not available on weekends or late at night when they need them.
Then there is the myth of free education (third level registration can cost €1000), the disgraceful criminalisation of youth through McDowell’s Anti Social Behaviour Orders, and youth clubs closing because of insufficient funding when we urgently need non-alcoholic entertainment venues and cafes for young people.
This government has ignored the majority of people in this country, who oppose Ireland’s facilitation of George Bush’s illegal and immoral war in Iraq by allowing US troops to use Shannon Airport. They are actively excluding young people from exercising their right to vote by holding the election on a Thursday and refusing to reduce the voting age to 16.
The government has been let away with all of this by a compliant media (hotpress excluded) and weak opposition parties such as Fine Gael and Labour, whose policies differ little from those of the government.
I am standing in Dublin South East as a candidate for the People Before Profit Alliance. We are uniting with independents, socialists and other candidates of the left to offer you a real alternative in the election. We encourage you not only to vote for us so we can rattle the walls of the establishment but please, also, to get active on the issues that matter to you. Campaign, disrupt, make noise. It’s the only way to force those in power to hear your voice. Together we can reclaim our democracy.
For information on Rory Hearne’s election campaign go to www.roryhearne.org or email [email protected]
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NO NEED TO ROCK THE BOAT

Effective government leadership has left Ireland strongly placed for the future, says Fianna Fáil Tipperary South election candidate Siobhan Ambrose

In the past 10 years, Ireland has undergone a remarkable transformation. In that short time it has evolved from being a country renowned for mass emigration to being one of the world leaders for economic growth. Now, we live in a time of unprecedented prosperity where peace is a reality, no longer a dream.

I grew up in the 1980s. I remember the hard times, the redundancies, the dole queues, the bombings in the North and the sense of utter despair that permeated this country.
But I am also part of a new generation of Irish people, whose ambitions for Ireland are no longer stifled by a lack of opportunity. I am now asking what I can do for my country, not what my country can do for me.
Ireland today has more opportunities, and there are more people at work, than ever before. Our social mix has been enriched by the many immigrants who have reversed the traditional flight from Ireland, so characteristic of our history, and who now account for over 10pc of our population.
Through record investment in education, infrastructure, health and social welfare, this Government has fostered the conditions that inspire the envy and admiration of the world’s nationalities.
Our economy is strong because we’ve a responsible Government, working in partnership with the Irish people. We’ve gradually cut the national debt from 70pc of our GNP to just 25pc and we are committed to reducing this further.
We’ve kept corporation tax low, a vital stimulus for job creation, while the income tax system has been truly transformed with large cuts in the rates and increases in credits. This has had a profound impact in rewarding those at work and has put more money in the pockets of all the nation’s workers.
It was Fianna Fáil who first introduced and who continue to support the Artist’s Exemption Scheme and it is also under Fianna Fáil that film production in this country has been supported and encouraged, resulting in films like Braveheart and Saving Private Ryan.
Social partnership has transformed our industrial relations landscape and created a broader forum for the consideration of policy.
Regarding the Northern process, the Taoiseach’s handshake with Ian Paisley in Dublin last month was a watershed moment that bridged two enormously different Irelands, politically, socially and economically.
Of course, Ireland is not without its challenges. No country is. But the creation of wealth and the fair distribution of that wealth to those most in need is the cornerstone of Fianna Fáil’s social policy.
That is why some €50 billion will be spent over the next five years on promoting social inclusion under the new National Development Plan.
Together, let’s take the Next Step Forward for the New Ireland we’ve created. Ireland is doing alright, this is no time to rock the boat.b

Siobhan Ambrose is a county councillor and general election candidate in Tipperary South for Fianna Fail.