Eirgrid has an important job to ensure our energy needs are met. However this can not be at any cost. The only issue of placing lines underground for Eirgrid is an increase in cost. Surely protecting our beautiful country is worth the increase in cost. It is also important to protect important landmarks, such as the Hill of Tara, which is seeking UNESCO status. It is time to start looking to the future and build the Interconnector and other national projects underground where they will be safe from storms, and keep our country beautiful for the next generations (and tourists).

Janet is under severe stress not knowing where she will be sleeping next. At her age she should have a secure home where she can have her pets and concentrate on getting better.

Currently Carlow Women's Aid are a frontline service for women and children experiencing violence and domestic abuse. The staff are a lifeline in Carlow and have helped to obtain 254 court orders and attended 388 court sittings in 2016 alone. SAFE Ireland provided a snapshot of one day in Ireland in 2015 - 505 women and 269 children sought support from a domestic violence service.112 women and 147 children were accommodated in a refuge. 18 women couldn't be accommodated in a refuge (SAFE Ireland, 2015). This huge lack of essential support services results in: Unmet requests for refuge everyday; Accommodation problems and homelessness; Staying in abusive relationships; Increasing likelihood returning to violent and abusive homes; Fear of reporting the abuse due to the lack of emergency accommodation available; This failure of affects women and children living with violence and abuse in their homes - people who are silenced and among some of the most vulnerable in the population.

As per the Irish Times article on November 29th by Kitty Holland, homelessness among single adults is up 44% in the Midlands in the year since October 2016 and this shelter, having already cut its staffing is now facing closure (1). The assertion by the Department of Housing that "the needs of regions are kept under review on an ongoing basis" and "it will help to meet the costs faced by housing bodies." is clearly not of any value here. This shelter which also serves the needs of people in Laois, Longford and Offaly needs to be kept open and Midlands Simon has to be given concrete assurances that it will receive adequate funding as a matter of urgency. https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/sole-westmeath-homeless-shelter-likely-to-close-over-funding-1.3308697

7 people have died on the streets of Dublin in the past 12 weeks. In our towns and cities there are thousands of people facing the winter without a roof over their heads - sleeping in cars, in tents, doorways, under bushes. Emergency accommodation is needed for everyone and must be made a priority this winter.

The planning committee have a duty to represent ratepayers and seek to establish if these are unlawful decisions. These decisions may be unlawful if there has been no study of the combined health impacts on the people living in the area. Downwind, and in the six miles between these two developments, lie the homes of tens of thousands of people, as well as recreational water bodies, holiday sites and the shores of Belfast Lough. The human cost of poor air quality is huge causing the deaths of more people per year, in Northern Ireland, than passive smoking or road accidents combined and costing the NHS over £20 billion per year. (1) At a time when the World Health Organisation are saying that the greater Belfast area air already exceeds safe levels by 20% we deserve a cumulative health impact study before any further work proceeds. (2) Read more on FB @Stop the Newtownabbey Pig Factory & Stop Hightown Waste Incinerator 1. https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/belfast-air-pollution-levels-among-the-worst-in-uk-35636923.html 2. http://breathelife2030.org/ 3 https://ukhumanrightsblog.com/2017/11/13/air-quality-breaches-stops-development-which-threatened-to-exacerbate-them/

We believe - and all evidence suggests - that homelessness is caused by an absence of public housing, by evictions, and by sky-rocketing rents. It is offensive to homeless people to suggest in any way that they themselves are the cause of their homelessness - rather than the landlord who upped their rent or evicted them, or the local authority that hasn't built any new houses in years. Homeless people need to have faith in the services they depend on. We want Eileen Gleeson to apologise and retract her comments, as a start to restoring some small level of trust.

Dublin Region Homeless Executive should be a body that understands homelessness, that supports homeless individuals and their needs. Recent comments by Ms Gleeson show a lack of empathy and understanding of homeless individuals and families [1] stating that homelessness is a result of bad behaviour. Saying that volunteers who offer soup or tents are being unhelpful shows that Ms Gleeson is only focussed on homelessness as a problem to society rather than a symptom of society. These public comments do not reflect the person-centred approach advocated by the Homeless Executive's mission and show that Ms Gleeson is unfit to lead an organisation that so badly needs to embody a more humane approach to their cause. NOTES: [1] https://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/tents-and-soup-will-not-fix-homeless-emergency-1.3291978

Profiting from the incarceration of vulnerable peoples is not in line with Trinity’s statement that they “will fearlessly engage in actions that advance the cause of a pluralistic, just, and sustainable society”. Aramark’s actions should not be tolerated or endorsed by the college. This termination of contract must occur at the next available break clause. If replaced, the replacement must be a contractor that is not involved in the direct provision system. Aramark Ltd. have gone from being a relatively obscure American company in Ireland to being at the forefront of Dublin life. They recently purchased Avoca Ltd., as well as having new catering contracts with Trinity College Dublin in the new Westland East food court and Dundrum Shopping Centre. Aramark received €5.2 million in investment from the Irish government in 2016 for services to three direct provision centres - Kinsale Road in Co. Cork, Lissywollen in Co. Meath, and Knockalisheen in Co. Limerick. Residents of these centres do not feel that this large sum is being invested responsibly. In 2015 residents carried out a brief hunger strike in the Aramark run centre in Knockalisheen, Co. Limerick, after some were hospitalized as a result of the poorly produced food. A year earlier a hunger strike occurred in the Lissywollen Accommodation Centre in Athlone, Co. Meath, also run by Aramark- this time due to small portion sizes, poor hygiene, and unacceptable living standards. By continuing their contract with Aramark the board of Trinity College Dublin are supporting these inhumane conditions, and are ignoring the voices of some of the most vulnerable people in society. We need to give asylum seekers their basic human rights by providing them with decent food, housing, and acceptance in our country. 1 - https://www.tcd.ie/strategy/strategic-plan-201419.pdf 2 - http://www.universitytimes.ie/2016/11/as-part-of-new-deal-three-new-food-outlets-to-replace-westland-cafe/ 3 - https://www.businessworld.ie/news/New-Chopped-outlet-for-UCD-567576.html 4 - https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/state-paid-43-5m-to-eight-direct-provision-operators-in-2016-1.2987004 5 - http://www.limerickleader.ie/news/local-news/198585/Hunger-strike-at-Knockalisheen-asylum-centre.html 6 - https://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/asylum-seekers-refuse-food-in-protest-over-conditions-at-direct-provision-centre-1.1918296?mode=sample&auth-failed=1&pw-origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.irishtimes.com%2Fnews%2Fsocial-affairs%2Fasylum-seekers-refuse-food-in-protest-over-conditions-at-direct-provision-centre-1.1918296

We need to do everything we can to help support people to stay in their homes.

The current system, in which local authorities are responsible for the inspection of properties in the private rented sector, is not fit for purpose. The present system relies on landlords being caught. But the prospect of being caught is slim. There is no fear of the consequences, in the absence of regulations and proper inspections. The current reliance on the fire service to enforce fire safety standards is too much of a demand on overstretched frontline services. A certification system needs to be put in place NOW, where the onus is on landlords to prove their compliance with minimum standards. If a certificate does not exist, the penalty for renting should be severe, so that there is no excuse for being outside the system. Inspections would then focus solely on whether the landlord held a certificate of compliance.

People are being forced to live in rental properties that are in breach of Health and Safety Laws. Many are overcrowded and dangerous.