Because sometimes taking a stand is more important than gaining a short-term benefit.

The billions of euro debt that were transferred to Irish citizens was and is a travesty due to inept administration. No one has been held accountable and the media in Ireland is stonewalling and obstructing Jonathan Sugarman's obligation to inform the Irish people.

The HSE is selling off a substantial former hospital with 46 acres in Enniscorthy, Co.Wexford for a knockdown price -right in the middle of a housing crisis. It is unbelievable that one part of the public service is effectively giving away state property assets which could be used to assist in alleviating the housing emergency by donating it to the local authority / Dept of Environment for housing. The aim of this campaign is twofold: 1. Withdraw the property from sale with immediate effect 2. For the Dept of Environment to take control of the asset and to investigate the best use of the property for housing use. http://www.irishtimes.com/business/commercial-property/hse-puts-st-senan-s-psychiatric-hospital-on-market-at-780-000-1.2930239

Irish society is fractured, unfair and insecure because successive governments has been unwilling to incorporate economic, social and cultural (ESC) rights into domestic law, which would force government to deliver policies that tackle poverty, provide housing, control rents, bring healthcare to everybody and guarantee a decent income for everyone. It’s pretty obvious that Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Minister Frances Fitzgerald have no interest in human rights measures that would oblige government to address social injustice. So, homelessness, exploitative rents and crippling mortgages are set to continue and the likelihood that your parents or grandparents will end up on a hospital trolley after devoting their life to building this nation will endure. Almost a third of the population will still be unable to afford essential items such as heating, a warm coat or an adequate meal. Yet these abominations are infinitely solvable within our existing resources - we are after all, one of the wealthiest countries in the world. Are we going to put up with this? Are we prepared to let things that were hard fought for - healthcare, affordable housing, a decent income – slip away, so wealthy people can be even wealthier? It doesn’t have to be so. Ireland has signed and ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights but has failed to incorporate the Covenant into domestic law, claiming that economic, social and cultural matters are for government to decide. Yet governments have consistently failed to address poverty, homelessness and other situations arising from an absence of enforceable ESC rights. Thomas Pringle will introduce a Private Member’s Bill in the coming months proposing a referendum to strengthen constitutional protection of ESC rights in accordance with the recommendations of the Convention on the Constitution. With your support we can make this happen. Please indicate your support by putting your name to this demand. Be part of this human rights campaign. Together we can make it happen!

This bill will facilitate evictions, increase the power of landlords to evict tenants, & allow developers to build without any real regulation or consultation. What the Bill will do: - Give landlords the right to evict tenants if they feel they could charge more to new tenants. - Allow landlords to evict households who have been in their home and community for over 4 years with no extended notice. - Increase homelessness and put almost 25% of the population under constant threat of eviction. - Allow An Bord Pleanála to privately develop plans with private developers without public consultation. This will lead to unsuitable, untenable and unfinished housing developments nationwide. - Allow for developers to be compensated by up to €10,000 if their planning applications are delayed - an obscene waste of public money. We are in the grips of the worst housing crisis Ireland has seen in a century. However, there are 5,000 empty homes across South Dublin alone. This bill does nothing to tackle the problem of vacant properties, which affects every part of the country. This Bill directly steals from the pockets of a public struggling to keep their homes, to give to private developers and landlords. . This Bill is an obscene affront to the most basic right to a home, and is an insult to the thousands of families and individuals homeless and living on the streets and in cramped hotel rooms nationwide.

The proposed College Green Plaza will be an iconic civic space in the heart of Dublin - Ireland's capital. It has the potential to rival other great urban spaces like Dam Square in Amsterdam or Trafalgar Square in London. However to achieve this the expansion of the proposed extent of the College Green Plaza to the steps of the former Parliament building (now Bank of Ireland) is of paramount significance. Given that the tax paying citizens of the State funded the Bank Bailout, and Bank of Ireland is essentially now State owned this petition calls on that Bank to allow the expansion of College Green Plaza by removing Parking in the forecourt area as a gesture of goodwill towards the people of Ireland and its capital city. A recent public consultation on the proposed plaza at College Green heard that the railings at Bank of Ireland were private and would stay, while trees would be removed. It is therefore clear that retention of railings is to facilitate parking in the forecourt of the Bank. This is not in keeping with a pedestrian plaza and or the opening of a new cultural visitor centre at College Green in 2017 which will greatly enhance the amenity value of the College Green complex. While the present railings do have historic value they should not be used to curtail the extent of the plaza. With careful planning and your input College Green can become a focal point for our nation in the heart of our capital city and once again play host to historic public gatherings from the visit of President Obama in 2011 to rallies and marches in support of issues that matter to all of us. Please sign & share and have your say !

Every one of us knows someone who has been affected by alcohol abuse. 85% of people think we drink too much and this needs to change. The new Alcohol Public Health bill is based on international research and is a package of changes proven to work. But it is under threat because the alcohol industry is lobbying our politicians to change it using a wide range of tactics. They even had to be told to stop harassing Senators on their way into the Seanad. Politicians say they have never seen anything like it. The Alcohol Industry are right in one respect. The new bill will not solve Ireland's alcohol abuse problem. It is however a vital first step in changing our culture so that children as young as 8 years are not brainwashed into thinking being Irish means drinking. Like a motor car which can't run properly if it loses a wheel, removing or changing sections of the bill means 3 people will continue to die each day from alcohol abuse. The alcohol industry is using Trump like tactics of fear and misinformation to get TDs and Senators to accept amendments. Examples include Alcohol Industry "Drink prices will increase" Fact: At the current proposed minimum unit price, drink prices will only increase if retailers are selling below cost or really cheap strong alcohol. Alcohol Industry “The Bill will damage our economy." Fact: we taxpayers subsidise alcohol industry profits by €1 billion euro each year (even after excise duties etc.) due to costs of alcohol harm. Reducing alcohol consumption to lower levels will benefit the economy. Alcohol Industry: It will cost retailers too much to segregate alcohol products as they have to build walls. Fact: Retailers can choose how they will separate alcohol products once they restrict display of alcohol products. Alcohol Industry "Voluntary advertising codes work" As the Conor Mc Gregor Budweiser campaign showed voluntary codes do not prevent children being targeted. Advertising will still be allowed under the new bill. Real change happens when everyday people like you and I come together and stand up for what we believe in. Together we can reach lots of people and help create change around this important issue. After you've signed the petition, could you also take a moment to share it with others? It's really easy – all you need to do is share below. Thank you!

A decision is imminent on the Bill to insert into the Constitution an amendment which would rule out any future privatisation of water, or water services. Forty TDs have signed the Bill including Independents4Change, Sinn Fein, AAA/PBP and a number of independent TD’s. A number of others including the Green Party, the Labour Party and the Social Democrats have said publicly that they would support a referendum on public ownership of our water, so the Bill has a real chance of passing. However, this Bill will only pass if supported by Fianna Fail. We are calling on all TD's to prove they oppose water privatisation by supporting the Bill. At this very moment in time, any government, including the current one, could legislate to sell off our public water system. Furthermore, even if a government did not want to sell off our water, the EU, IMF or ECB could force the sale in the future – like they did in Greece and Portugal – so we have to protect our vital public water system now! The devastating impacts of water privatization have been felt all around the world. In the UK, one in four people are now experiencing water poverty. In the US, Rome and parts of France, tens of thousands are having their water shut off. We can prevent much of this by putting ownership of our water in the Constitution. More information here: http://tinyurl.com/zqn5gt6

Everyone is very aware of the fight that has been taking place for our water since 2011 and hit the headlines in 2014 when 100's of thousands marched on our streets. The expert water commission is not setup to allow for a referendum on ownership of our water so please sign this petition and demand that Fianna Fail TD's support the bill next week.

We are calling on Galway based multinational C&F Group to reinstate 98 workers sacked in the Philippines for joining a trade union. On May 26, 2016, the workers, many with 3 to 12 years service, registered their Trade Union with the Department of Labor and Employment and the very next day, on May 27, the company abruptly offered a redundancy programme. The Union obtained its Certificate of Registration on May 30, 2016 and on June 6 filed for representation rights for the workers for collective bargaining purposes. On the very same day, management at the company said they were subjecting 98 workers to "retrenchment," or laying-off, of which more than 63 are union officers or union members. Three days after the lay-offs, the company replaced the sacked workers with 55 new agency staff on top of the 50 agency workers already employed in the plant. Since the workers were dismissed, they have been on strike outside the factory. It is the first ever industrial action in the economic zone in the Philippines and has been in place for more than 8 weeks now. Speaking on behalf of the workers, Esmereldo Ison said, “What has happened to us is very disappointing. Many of us have worked for this company for several years and we have been sacked for trying to avail of our international human rights.” He explained that the workers have filed for illegal dismissal cases but that process could take up to 10 years. “We need our jobs so we can feed our families. We cannot wait three or four years for this to reach the courts. We want to be reinstated immediately.” Mandate Trade Union General Secretary John Douglas, speaking on behalf of four trade unions in Ireland including Unite, the Communications Workers’ Union and OPATSI, said the actions of management at C&F are deplorable. “This is a clear case of union-busting and it’s embarrassing that it’s an Irish firm with Irish management involved in this type of exploitation.” He added, “The Managing Director of C&F, John Flaherty, needs to do the right thing and ensure these workers are reinstated immediately and compensated for any losses they have incurred due to the illegal and discriminatory behaviour of his management team in the Philippines.” C & F Manufacturing Phils. Corporation is an Irish-owned subsidiary of C & F Tooling Ltd. of Galway, Ireland. They have operations in Ireland, Germany, Czech Republic, USA and the Philippines. According to the company website, C&F Group had a turnover in excess of $100m in 2007 and the company supplies components to multinational corporations including IBM, EMC, APC, Ingersoll Rand, Glen Dimplex, Sanyo and Hitachi Koki. The unionised workers are demanding that the company: 1. Reinstate unconditionally all the 98 workers summarily and discriminately terminated. 2. Recognize and respect the rights of the workers to organise and to collectively bargain; 3. Respect the right of the workers for a one-day rest in a week and stop the inhumane practice of continuous and excessive long hours of work. 4. Investigate and impose disciplinary action on managers Paul Hynes and Damian Gavin for their attitude towards the Filipino workers. 5. Lastly, for management to make corrective actions to address the violations of the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC) Code of Conduct. NOTE: C&F Group’s code of ethics include: “FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION In conformance with local law, participants shall respect the right of all workers to form and join trade unions of their own choosing, to bargain collectively and to engage in peaceful assembly as well as respect the right of workers to refrain from such activities. Workers and/or their representatives shall be able to openly communicate and share ideas and concerns with management regarding working conditions and management practices without fear of discrimination, reprisal, intimidation or harassment.

#EducationIs a public good. The report outlines three funding options: 1) Funding Option One: A Predominantly State-Funded System. 2) Funding Option Two: Increased State-Funding with Continuing Student Fees. 3) Funding Option Three: Increased State-Funding with Deferred Payment of Fees Through Income Contingent Loans. USI know that Funding Option One is key for Irish students' future. Funding Option One: A predominantly state-funded system advocates that the state would significantly increase its core grant to institutions and the €3,000 undergraduate student contribution would be abolished. Higher education would be free at the point of entry for all first-time EU students and for part-time learners.There is also the possibility of extending free tuition to postgraduate education. Funding Option Three will have a negative effect on the lives of current and future Irish students. USI know that an income-contingent loan scheme is not a viable solution to third-level funding as a burden of €20,000+ debt upon graduation will deter people from applying to college. Financial strain of placing this debt on graduates spans across all communities and groups including parents, children, staff and teachers - not just students. The campaign is supported by members of the Coalition for Publicly Funded Higher Education including SIPTU, IMPACT, TUI, IFUT and the National Youth Council of Ireland (NYCI) so far. FACTS ABOUT LOANS America's student loan debt ($1tn+) is greater in value than the combined economies of Ireland, New Zealand, and Australia. In other words, American students owe the combined value of all transactions in those countries in a year. Home-ownership in under-40s in New Zealand has drastically fallen since the introduction of student loans, from 57% to 25%.” Charging no tuition-related fees, Germany has 41 universities that are considered by Times Higher Education to be among the best in the world. In France, where they have registration fees of under €200, there are 27. 70% of the 2015 college graduates in the UK are not expected to ever repay their college loans, according to The Institute of Fiscal Studies.

Childcare costs for stay-at-home parents - it costs 100% of their salary. It's a matter of equality that any provision for childcare in the budget needs to be paid equally to these families, who are struggling to keep their heads above water. A payment to help one family and not another pits families against each other, when all families deserve to be helped. We need to put people first. This is about giving every parent, regardless of their gender and their family structure, the right to choose how to care for their children, which is such a short period of their lives but can be such a struggle. All financial positions are comparative and what makes families poor is that they shoulder the financial burden of bringing up the next generation. This burden is every bit as real for those whose childcare costs involve them working at home for no money. It makes it harder to rent a house. It makes is harder to buy a house. And it makes it harder to put food on the table. The fact that we do not have occupations in the public eye does not mean we don't exist and it does not mean that we don't provide a valuable service for society. Help show that this matters by supporting the campaign.