The North Wall CTC has been closed since February 2020. Over the last four and a half years, it has become an eyesore to the surrounding areas. It is a prime example of the neglect and abandonment experienced throughout inner-city communities. This failure should not be allowed, and our community should not accept this either.  However, despite the unanimous agreement at the Dublin Docklands Oversight and Consultative Forum in September 2022 that the building should be repurposed for education and childcare needs, there has been a lack of drive or will to push through the necessary restoration works. The issue seems to have been dropped due to an estimated repair cost of approximately €3 million.  Since 2021, Mary Lou McDonald and Sinn  Féin have called for this site for public use, such as the after-school support programme. Utilising this site for childcare provisions or something similar will benefit the entire North Wall area community.  Our community deserves respect, and €3 million is a tiny expense compared to money  other government departments spend. The value of this building to the community as an amenity is worth multiple times the estimated costs for renovating it.  The North Wall community deserves to have this building refurbished and put directly to community use. The potential benefits include childcare, healthcare, training and education, a Men’s Shed, Senior Citizens centre and many more. The community now needs to drive this issue and demand these works occur.  If you support this campaign and wish to see positive investment in your community, please sign this petition. There will also be community days of action where we will call on the community to attend a demonstration outside the centre 

Cork City Council already once denied planning permission back in June for proposals by a casino to expand into Ballincollig after receiving almost 50 objections from local residents and businesses. Locals in Ballincollig rally against the proposal, as another casino in town provides no benefits, encourages gambling and can lead to all sorts of negative behaviours.  SAY NO TO ANOTHER CASINO IN Ballincollig

The health and well-being of mothers and their new-borns are fundamental to the fabric of our society. By prioritising post-natal care, we can ensure that every child gets the best start in life, and every mother receives the care and support she deserves.  Please join us in advocating for better post-natal care in Ireland by signing this petition.

Around 135 people are directly affected by each suicide death.The pain felt by the family and friends of the deceased will ease over time but never goes away.Unless we commit to eliminating suicide it will continue  to cause untold pain and pass through the generations.

Prior to April 2023 an Enduring Power of Attorney (EPA) only needed to be registered in the event that the person who created it subsequently lost mental capacity.  Approximately 1,200 EPAs were registered each year up to 2022.   It is estimated that only 15% of EPAs created under that old system subsequently required to be registered, which would mean that approximately 8,000 EPAs would have had to have been created each year to produce the figure of 1,200 registered, or 670 a month. In April 2023 the Decision Support Service (DSS) was established and the system for creation of EPAs was radically changed.  It was expected this new system would enable wider uptake of EPAs by the public and ensure greater protection of vulnerable people as they age.  However, as of 28 February 2024, it was stated in answer to a parliamentary question that only 697 EPA applications had been submitted to the DSS for registration in its first ten months of operation, roughly what would have been created in one month under the old system. In other words 10 times less than before.   The new system intended  to increase the number of people with EPAs has resulted in a collapse in the numbers being created  in contrast with the old system which worked very well.  The problem is an online platform  imposed on the creation of EPAs  by the DSS which does not enable a professional adviser to access the platform on behalf of anyone wishing to have their assistance with the creation of the documentation to ensure that it is done correctly. Anyone wishing to have professional assistance in the creation of an EPA via a digital platform should be facilitated in doing so and is entitled to have their professional adviser access the system on their behalf  to advise and assist in preparing what can be complicated and profoundly important documents with serious legal consequences. Revenue’s online ROS system allows a tax adviser to prepare and file returns for a taxpayer. The Injuries Resolution Board’s web-portal allows an agent to prepare an injury claim on behalf of a claimant. The Land Registry, the Companies Registration Office and others all do likewise.  The DSS platform does not and that needs to be fixed urgently  to allow people who want help from their professional advisers in creating an EPA to get it by providing professional advisers with access to the new online platform on behalf of anyone wishing to have their assistance. This is a change required to fix the system for creation of EPAs that can and should be made immediately to end this crisis in the creation of  EPAs which is causing serious problems for vulnerable people who need to have them in place. We are signing this petition to ask the Minister for State to fix this problem as soon as possible.

*WARNING* Possible wake up call ahead, be prepared to grab the wheel! To all the parents like myself on all the WhatsApp groups, checking the time of GAA training for tomorrow... Recently driving home from work I felt I was nodding off a bit, a product of this modern world, too much on, too much running around, too much technology coming at me, I'm exhausted to be honest! When I got home and after doing the domestic dance of who's making dinner that night, I fell in front of what was my "babysitter" growing up - the TV. At the same time my kids are spread out all over the house in front of their modern "babysitter" - the mobile phone. Why did I get them these devices? Because you got them for your kids, and you got them because I got them for my kids, peer pressure at its worst! The internet is an amazing tool, the reason you are reading this message, but we all know there is the dark side that we don't like to think about, is it a case of modern life has us so tired that we are asleep at the wheel or are we just turning a blind eye? The internet is like a car, difficult to live without one, safe and practical in the hands of an adult, but give a car to a 12-16 year old and it's possibly a form of abuse! Dangerous to the child and dangerous to those around that child! The state has a dark history of child abuse, something you would think would not happen again in our modern society, that we would not let it happen on our watch, however abuse can come in many subtle forms! Are we all guilty of staying quiet like all those cases years ago, choosing the easier path!? The media is awash with the side effects of these devices - social media anxiety, mental health issues, shore attention span, behavioural issues, desensitization to violence, social disruption, sleeping disorders, eating disorders, underage sex, teenage pregnancies, underage sex crimes - the list goes on, it’s some punishment on our kids and on our communities just so they can be "connected" and watch a few dance videos! Even with something as trivial as dance videos you start to realise the algorithms are pushing more and more sexualized content towards you! The sexualization of our kids at such a young age and the normalization of that fact is a serious modern-day issue. "You need to build a relationship with your kids, educate your kids" - this is what most internet guides tell parents. Good advice but it only addresses "pull" technology i.e. educate your kids not to go looking for the darker side of the internet. The problem is exacerbated now by "push" technology such as Snapchat where the darker side comes looking for you! Everything is not how it seems when it comes to Snapchat, on one side there is what appears to be a harmless app where kids can swap funny photos etc. On the other side it’s an unregulated, unfiltered, hidden, dark network, where kids can make and receive any kind of content they like, and I mean ANYTHING! Sure, wasn't there always a playboy magazine knocking around back in the day I hear you say, but the playboy magazine didn't contain graphical content of underage kids, and wasn't interactive, asking you to create content back! If you said 20 years ago that we're going to create a device and put it into each child's pocket and one thing it will enable is for kids to send naked pictures and videos of themselves to each other, then people would have thought you were crazy! Snapchat knows this but are too busy making millions, it will argue they are only supplying the pipes, the kids are the ones pushing the toxic water through. It's the gun manufacture debate, they only make the guns, you're the one pulling the trigger. Just like web email has filters, Snapchat could implement filters, they choose not to, they could even put AI software in place that says “we know that's you, cop yourself on”! As a 16-year-old, I would have been all over Snapchat, it has the thrill of a new relationship, aspects of gaming (fishing for better rewards) as well as the titillation! The content circulating on Snapchat can trigger kids to have an interest in porn, they then go looking for stronger content in other places on the internet. There's also a known sextortion scam circulating on Snapchat which has led to numerous shocking suicides! People say you can't change Society, but Society is the people, Society is us, we can change! Why did we get the phones in the first place? Society put peer pressure on us to get them, so let’s put peer pressure back on Society to change, then Society can go full circle and remove the phones! I believe most parents deep down know we've made a mistake with access to these phones at too early an age. Forget all the serious issues above, even just to get rid of the domestic arguments around screen time would make them worth removing! This is the cigarettes of our time causing the cancer in our Society, I truly believe in 10 years’ time people will look back and say, “what the hell were we thinking?!” Our government knows they are awash with social and underage issues but are they asleep at the wheel or is it a case of too little too late? Are they willing to take on the phone manufacturers?! The ask here is that you put your name to this petition asking for a public vote on smart phones. I believe if the vote was put to the public, the public would do the right thing! If you want to get involved in our movement, please join our Smartphone Free Childhood Ireland WhatsApp Group Invite And/or please take this quick poll (only two questions - do you believe there should be a minimum age and if so, what age?) https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/8PJK9SH Thanks for reading, let's keep our kids safe out there! Sound Bytes Sam References: Jonathan Haidt on the Mental-Health Crisis and Smartphones https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6NfPHrVilc The Anxious Generation Evidence  https://www.anxiousgeneration.com/research/the-evidence

For the past 7 months, the state of Israel has brought death and unimaginable destruction upon the civilian population of Gaza in a stark escalation of 75 years of colonial violence. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, more than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed, 14,500 of them children and 9,560 women. More than 79,000 people have been injured. 1.7 million people have been forcibly displaced, many of them multiple times. Famine is imminent - half of Gaza’s population is facing food insecurity due to the intense bombardment of the Gaza strip and the severe limitations being placed on humanitarian access by Israel. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO) in February,1 in 6 children under the age of 2 was acutely malnourished. An interim damage assessment by the World Bank, EU, and the UN, has estimated the total cost of damages in the Gaza strip at 18.5 billion US dollars and has found that 60% of homes in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. The WHO conducted a preliminary assessment of the extent of destruction wrought on Al-Shifa hospital during an Israeli siege on the facility. The WHO have described the hospital as “an empty shell” - most of the buildings are destroyed, the medical equipment is unusable and no patients remain. Israel’s latest bombardments over the last 7 months have further intensified the occupational deprivation and injustice experienced by Palestinians by denying them access to the safety and opportunity to engage in even the most basic of essential occupations. Despite ongoing advocacy by Occupational Therapists worldwide, (Arab Occupational Regional Group, Occupational Therapists and Scientists against Occupation, Palestinian Justice is Occupational Justice) the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT) have remained silent on these violations of human rights and international law, and have failed to call for a ceasefire. WFOT issued a tweet on November 6th 2023, stating that their “fundamental beliefs mean that [they] are unable to take positions on political agendas of any nation” (WFOT 2023). This stance is inconsistent with the federation’s own commitment that “WFOT, its Member Organisations, occupational therapists, assistants, and students are obligated to support occupational justice and human rights. WFOT affirms its commitment to challenge and address systemic racism and continue to advocate for people, communities, and societies.”  The inadequacy of WFOT’s stance on Gaza however goes beyond its failure to call for a ceasefire, and extends to its stance on the fraught international status of the Occupational Therapy degree program currently being taught in Ariel University, in the settlement of Ariel in the Occupied West Bank. The consensus of the international community is that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are illegal under international law. This view has been upheld in the International Court of Justice and by repeated resolutions of the United Nations Security Council. Ariel University therefore must be regarded as having been illegally constructed on stolen Palestinian land. The university is currently subject to an academic boycott by the Boycott Divestment Sanctions (BDS) movement. Despite this international legal consensus, the World Federation only last year took the decision to accredit the degree programme at Ariel University. WFOT has incorrectly listed this programme on its website as located in “Israel”, a designation that further normalises illegal settlement. This is unacceptable from a professional organisation that ostensibly takes an anti-racist, human rights based approach.  As Occupational Therapists, we have an ethical duty to fight for occupational justice for all people and to do what we can to ensure that all people have equal access and opportunity to engage in occupations of necessity, obligation, and choice. 

What greater act of solidarity would it be than for Cork to twin with Gaza City? Gaza was a beautiful and vibrant city before the repeated, violent Israeli attacks. Both Cork City and Gaza City have suffered from acts of vengeance. “The people of Cork have been on the streets ever since October. The solidarity has been heartwarming for me as someone who was born in Gaza and who has many friends and family still there suffering unimaginable hardship. It would be the greatest honor for them if our two great cities were to be connected by ‘twinning’. ” Nasser Al Swirki. A son of Gaza living in Cork UCC links: Gaza is a University City. All of Gaza’s universities now lie in ruins. The Gaza City university has developed partnerships with 142 higher education institutions around the world. Let’s make UCC one of those partners! CUH links? Al-Shifa Hospital was the largest medical complex and central hospital in the Gaza. We will need medical partners. Environmental Links? Now destroyed. Wadi Gaza: In 2023 the Gaza Strip’s only wetland was slowly coming back to life.

Breast cancer survivor Réaltán Ní Leannáin has said she was forced to remove her breast prosthesis in public view when going through security at Dublin Airport. This is a horrific violation of her dignity and it must never be allowed to happen ever again. We demand that Dublin Airport Authority put clear policies in place so cancer survivors know exactly what to expect when going through airport security. These policies should be available on the Dublin Airport website and should be based on dignity and respect for anyone who has undergone cancer treatment.

We don't have enough pools in our area so when a new pool is planned it needs to be a modern and flexible design to accommodate as many groups as possible.

Norma Foley's assistance is crucial because she is responsible for education in Ireland. Here's why her help is important: 1. Promised Improvement: The school has been promised a new building for 17 years. As the current Minister of Education, Ms Foley can fulfill this promise, ensuring that the school finally gets the improvements it desperately needs. 2. Safety and Health: The current conditions pose safety and health hazards to students and staff. Minister Foley can allocate resources to address these issues, ensuring that the school environment is safe and conducive to learning. She can issue the letter the school needs for the new building to start. 3. Financial Support: Ms Foley can provide financial support to address the costly heating bills associated with the poorly insulated buildings. By investing in energy-efficient upgrades, she can help reduce expenses for both the school and the community. 4. Educational Environment: A safe and healthy environment is essential for effective learning. Minister Foley's assistance in upgrading the school facilities will create a better educational environment for students, enabling them to thrive academically and socially. 5. Community Well-being: Improving the school facilities will benefit the entire community. Foley's support will demonstrate a commitment to the well-being of disadvantaged communities and provide them with access to quality education resources. Overall, Norma Foley's help is vital in ensuring that the school receives the necessary support and resources to address its longstanding issues and provide a better future for its pupils and the community.

Having a large mural of US president Joe Biden in Ballina reflects very badly on the people of Ballina, Mayo and Ireland who hold very different views to Joe regarding the ongoing genocide in Gaza.