We could make a positive and impactful difference to the community of Killester and surrounding areas if the Legion Hall was brought into public ownership, refurbished and reopened once again as a community centre which for decades was a focal and central hub for the community of thr Killester Garden Village and surrounding areas.

The Mount Keefe Chalice is one of Ireland's oldest artefacts. It is currently on display in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. What's disappointing about this is that this artefact is an object that belonged to monks of the late 17th Century in Ireland. It is presumed to have been used to celebrate mass when Penal Laws were very strict in Ireland. The Mount Keefe Chalice was said to have disappeared after the murder of two monks in the region of Newmarket, Co. Cork. The chalice appeared again, 200 years later! Eventually, in 1929 it was sold by an heiress of a large estate in Co. Cork to the value of £400 (approx. €25,000) to the Victoria and Albert Museum, London. [1] I would like us, the people of Ireland, to reevaluate it's placement in the UK. Why is it displayed in a museum in the UK? Can we reclaim this Chalice and any other artifacts like it, bring it back to it's cultural land of origin. The heritage that this chalice, and artefacts like it could be brought back to Ireland in an appropriate context that can be shared and valued by all. Photograph: Public Domain Pictures | Pixabay [1] https://lovin.ie/news/calls-for-stolen-irish-artefacts-to-be-returned-from-british-museums

Homework for younger children can cause unnecessary stress just before bedtime and eat into what little leisure time families have during during the week. In a typical household with working parents, by the time children are collected from childcare, have eaten dinner and completed their homework, its already time to being bedtime routines. Instead, parents could spend valuable time playing with their children or engaging in physical activities with them that would allow them to sleep better and have a more positive and fun time with their parents. Take Finland as an example. Finland regularly tops international polls for their high educational standards and Finnish schools do not have homework. For the wellbeing of families and educational outcomes - homework in primary school children should be banned now. Homework can be very important for developing independent learning skills in older children but research shows that it has little impact on the learning development of younger children and can actually increase the gap in attainment for disadvantaged students. https://theconversation.com/primary-school-children-get-little-academic-benefit-from-homework-181652 https://www.jstor.org/stable/1501844

Because until members of Dail Eireann are insulated from the horrors of the public health service there will be no impetus to tackle a problem that has existed for many years well before the arrival of COVID and computer glitches. This problem existed when the country was awash with money.

Rural Ireland needs balanced afforestation that protects communities, farmers and biodiversity. Large scale corporate owned plantations will accelerate the destruction of livable communities and nature.

Our hospitals are more overcrowded than ever before. There are almost 1,000 patients without beds in Irish hospitals today as the trolley crisis hits a new record high. The Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation (INMO) said this is the largest number of patients left without a hospital bed since the union started counting trolley figures in 2006. Hospitals are now dangerously overcrowded. The Irish Nurses’ and Midwives’ Organisation (INMO) has advised the worst-hit hospitals to enact emergency protocols. In 2020, in anticipation of possible surges in hospitals, the Irish government reached an agreement with private hospitals to access their capacity for three months to alleviate pressure on the public system, as part of its comprehensive response to the pandemic. The overcrowing situation in Irish hospitals is now critical and so we're asking the government to respond to this crisis in the same way they did the Covid-19 crisis when they reached agreements with private hospitals to ease capacity in public hospitals. Allowing public patients to use private hospitals is the fastest way to alleviate the current dangers facing patients and staff in overcrowded public hospitals.

There is nothing more important to us as a nation than to care for, nurture, protect and preserve the health and well-being of our children and grandchildren. A very close second is the need to protect and preserve our natural environment for those generations that follow us, who will depend upon it. A recent submission to the Citizens Assembly examining Bio-Diversity Loss in Ireland confirmed that our natural freshwaters are being deliberately, unlawfully polluted by 5000 defective (leaking) slurry/effluent storage tanks that were built on NI farms, thousands of which were built in the border counties of Derry, Tyrone, Fermanagh and Armagh. https://www.citizensassembly.ie/en/assembly-on-biodiversity-loss/submissions/bio507_redacted.pdf The toxic contents leaking from those defective tanks pollute/poison local streams rivers and lakes that flow across the 310mile border and pollute/poison the freshwaters in the border counties of Donegal, Leitrim, Cavan, Monaghan, Louth and the counties beyond them, killing the marine life and flora and fauna that exist in those freshwaters and causing/contributing to the pollution recorded by the EPA in their reports. RTE reported the EPA Studies that confirm the levels of pollution in our natural freshwaters. https://www.rte.ie/news/environment/2022/1014/1329164-epa-water-quality/ https://www.rte.ie/news/2022/1020/1330259-epa-sewage-report/ Those streams, rivers and lakes are the source of the water that we all use/drink every day. Think of this when you pour your next cup of tea/coffee or hand your child a glass of tap-water to drink. Furthermore, we , the Irish people, will likely face significant fines/penalties from the EU for "our" failure to meet acceptable water quality targets. Please sign this petition and forward it to your elected representative and please also share it with your friends and family and ask them to do the same.

We, the patients and public are demanding better care from our NHS and better care for our NHS staff. While government ministers line up to criticise your decision to go on strike, we understand your decision - and we’ve got your backs! Thank you for all that you do.

To save these wild native brown trout.

Every empty house is a family made homeless. While hundreds of people have died on the streets, the government left €700 million of the housing budget unspent. There is an all-time high of 11,397 people in emergency accommodation, 3,480 are children. Vacant council homes have been left to rot. There are nearly 4,500 empty council homes across the country. We demand that all city and county councils renovate these homes and house those in need immediately.

Throughout Ireland, rental prices outside of rent pressure zones (RPZ’s) are rising sharply. Right now, residents of the McNulty's yard apartment complex on the Main Street of Ennistymon, Co.Clare face rent increases ranging from 82% to 125%. The tenants of McNultys Yard are unable to pay these exorbitant rent increases during a cost-of-living-crisis and are now at risk of eviction. The national tenants union, ‘CATU’ considers these actions exploitative and immoral. If we ignore this threat to the normal working people of the town a new ‘market rate’ will be set in Ennistymon. Imagine your own rent or mortgage doubling. Could you afford it? This apartment complex houses 16 people. It is the home for families who live and work in the town. They provide their experience to the industries that help Ennistymon thrive. With nowhere to go their livelihoods are under threat. With the backing of friends, neighbours and CATU , residents of McNultys Yard are asking these rent increases be renegotiated and threats of January evictions be rescinded. Please show your support by signing this petition. Together we are strong. #McNultysYard #NoChristmasEvictions #EnnistymonSaysNoToEvictions #CatuClare

Castlemartyr National School is based on the busy N25 Cork to Waterford road, less than 200 metres from a busy junction as well as having an adjacent road servicing an estate. The school has been supported by a traffic warden for over 30 years but since November, the school has had to do without a warden due to the safety concerns expressed by a number of wardens who have held the position. Although this position is actively being recruited for, it still leaves the issue of safety around the area of paramount concern. Traffic surveys carried out at the areas have shown that a large percentage of passing traffic will regularly break the speed limit which is set at 50km/h. Footpaths opposite the school are extremely narrow and passing traffic is less than one metre away from anyone using those footpaths. This can mean that large trucks and other vehicles can be traveling at 50Km/h less than one meter away from children or families with buggies walking to and from school. The School has 245 students with over 170 families as part of its community with many having to travel to the school, particularly families from Mogeely. Children cycling or using a Scooter to get to school have no option but to use the road or narrow footpath. Parking in the locality is extremely limited due to the size of the car park in the school. Many people have to find parking locally and then walk to the school. The entrance to the car park at the school is less than 5 metres from the entrance to Kiltha park which means that there are three lanes of traffic that need to be navigated when crossing the road close to the school. This also causes concern for local residents as driveways may be used for turning or parking when dropping or picking up children. The N25 sees upwards of 15,000 vehicles pass through Castlemartyr each day. With such a large volume of traffic passing through a populated village it is vital that the safety of pedestrian and motorists alike is addressed with the highest urgency. https://trafficdata.tii.ie/sitedashboard.asp?sgid=XZOA8M4LR27P0HAO3_SRSB&spid=5229D2644906 The list can go on but we need action and we need your support, we want Castlemartyr to be a safe place for children going to and from school. Some form of traffic calming has to take place. Please sign and share this petition to show your support and help us ensure our children can walk safely to school.