From the example of the UK, we can see just how disastrous school profiling would be for a large amount of students. 39% of teacher predicted grades were downgraded by an algorithm, which could have robbed thousands of students of their futures (if not for the recent U-Turn of the British government). School profiling is frankly not an accurate assessment of student ability. All students, regardless of their background should be given the opportunity to excel in their leaving certificate without being held back by economic circumstances. Students should be assessed on their own ability and not the past performance of their schools. We recognise that we are a long way from solving the problem of inequality in our education system, but many of us are worried that this is a step backwards.

Far too frequently, this supply line bursts and impacts upon thousands of people from Buncrana, Fahan, Inch, Tooban, Burnfoot, Bridgend, Muff, Netwoncunningham and Killea. This impacts on the way of life for thousands of residents. It affects out schools, medical facilities, community centres and businesses. It is simply unacceptable and would not be tolerated anywhere else in Ireland. We are simply calling for a consistent water supply as would be expected anywhere else.

The people who produce our food are often treated the worst in society. Now, they're being exposed to COVID-19 at work, and bosses are allowed to get away with it. It's time Minister for Health Stephen Donnolly took action to make meat factory bosses protect the people who work there.

On 2nd April, 2017, while Bus Eireann drivers were on strike, Bus Eireann axed the X7 service from Clonmel to Dublin Airport. At that time both Bus Eireann and JJ Kavanagh & Sons were operating services from Clonmel to Dublin Airport. Since that time JJ Kavanagh & Sons have continued the service. However, since Covid-19 JJ Kavanagh & Sons suspended this service mid-March and left commuters in the Clonmel area without a bus service to Kilkenny and Dublin. This highlights the results and consequences of privatiisation, where profit come first and foremost and people's needs are seen as irrelevant. This is why we need a proper publicly funded bus service from Clonmel to Dublin that will serve the needs of those living in Clonmel and it's environs.

On the 2nd April, 2017, while Bus Eireann drivers were on strike, Bus Eireann axed the X7 Expressway service from Clonmel to Dublin Airport. At that time both Bus Eireann and JJ Kavanagh & Son were operating services from Clonmel to Dublin Airport. Since that date JJ Kavanagh & Son have operated the service, however due to Covid -19 the service has been suspended since mid March. Leaving commuters with no bus service from Clonmel to Kilkenny and Dublin. There are no talks of JJ Kavanagh resuming the service in the near future. This outcome has highlighted the dangers and consequences of privatisation, whereby profit is put first and foremost and peoples needs become irrelevant. This is why the X7 needs to be re-instated and a proper publicly funded bus service offered to those living in and around the Clonmel area.

Public transport is essential. 2000 people in Portlaw have no bus service since March. This is extremely worrying not just for those without cars but with Schools and Colleges gearing up for return in less than a month,people need real public transport. The wider community also need to access urban centres for work,healthcare and services.

Double decker buses would allow for social distancing and could be provided immediately by Bus Eireann, to reinstate this essential route to the city for the people of Dunmore who have been let down now for months.

Nursing homes are not suitable places for young people to live an independent life. Jennifer Hynes is a 42 year old woman, forced to live in a nursing home in Ennis since April 2019 with no plan agreed to end it. Up to then Jennifer lived in her own house. Due to lack of HSE support she was moved into a nursing home. She passionately wants her forever home in Ennis. Her own LA house is still vacant as we write this petition.

The Covid crisis has shown that recreational space in rural Cork is scarce and this is especially true for the Cork-Bandon-Skibbereen area. But with quiet roads, more people were out cycling and walking than ever before, showing how eager we are to take up active travel. Let us build the infrastructure to support it. In Ireland, we are already seeing the effects of the next crisis we have to face: The climate crisis needs bold and quick action. This is a unique opportunity to support a shift in transport modes for Cork commuters while also creating recreation space close to the home of thousands of people. With electric bikes becoming more easily available, cycling is quickly gaining attraction as an affordable, accessible and healthy alternative to the commute by car. By providing an infrastructure separate from the N71 we would not only provide a safe route for cyclists. Motorists would profit from this change, too: By reducing the number of cars on the road we would improve traffic flow and move cyclists - often seen as obstacles by motorists - off the road. The more extensive the greenway, the more likely it will also have a positive impact on tourism, with knock-on effects for local businesses. We know how many people use the Waterford greenway and the positive effects it has on the region. By contributing to Irelands cycle network we could even attract international active tourism. As a historic railway, the touristic value of the greenway would be priceless. With many of the structures still intact the former railway would itself be an attraction. We do understand that there have been prior attempts at this undertaking that have been dismissed or delayed due to the costs involved. However we would like Cork County Council to address this with the same urgency, the dedication and the budget they would use for a motor-traffic-centered infrastructure project. This is one of the bold actions required to prepare Cork County for the future. There has also never been more funding made available for active travel than ever before. The investment would benefit a very broad set of people, including motorists. We would like Cork County Council do address this project as a matter of priority.

Ireland needs a long-term plan to fix unfairness in how women, girls, and other groups are treated. Countries like the UK, Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Sweden, Denmark, and Canada have special government jobs, called Minister for Women or something similar, to look after these issues. It's time for Ireland to think about having a Minister for Women, just like these other places do. This job should be someone's only job, and they need to have everything they need - like time, power, and resources - to really make a difference. A Minister for Women would work on finding and changing the barriers that make it hard for everyone in Ireland to have the same chances in jobs, school, sports where they live, and other important areas of life. They would make sure no one is left out or treated unfairly because of their gender, if they're married or not, their family situation, how old they are, if they have a disability, who they love, their race, their religion, how much money they have, or if they're part of the Traveller community.

A still unknown decision has led to the MLU in Cavan being effectively closed in all but name under the guise of a merger with the consultant-led unit. This may be the third time Cavan MLU has faced closure and the pregnant people in the area have faced limitation of their care choices. The effective closure of the Midwifery-Led Unit on Monday 1st of June 2020 and the manner in which this decision has been taken, with no public consultation or formal announcement from either Cavan General Hospital or the RSCI group, who we understand are leading of this decision, shows a clear lack of understanding to the needs of those in the surrounding area. The claim that it is not a downgrading of service provision is simply false. For all who have accessed the MLU, either as a service user, healthcare professional or student, this closure will have significant impact on practice and care provision. To our knowledge, no rationale has been given to explain the decision. National and international evidence supports the expansion of midwifery led services. Closure of the unit limits choices for pregnancy care in direct opposition of this evidence. We cannot emphasise strongly enough 1. The retrograde nature of this decision which flies in the face of all the international evidence on best birth practices 2. And which spells the death knell of the 2016 Maternity Strategy which was specifically committed to the expansion of MLUs, not their closure Our model of maternity care relies on the majority of women going through a system of GP referral to an obstetric unit or maternity hospital. Despite the National Maternity Strategy, the dominant model of care across all our 19 maternity units is a consultant-led model of care. We have only the two midwifery-led units in Ireland (Cavan and Drogheda) and midwifery clinics across the maternity system are far too few. -- In international terms, our model of maternity care does not offer women choice of models of maternity care, something the National Maternity Strategy acknowledges clearly. Indeed, the Irish model of maternity care is at odds with best international evidence on the effectiveness of models of maternity care - The 2016 National Maternity Strategy, called for many more MLUs to be built. Instead this has not only been completely stalled - its implementation committee has met only four times up to 2019 (PQ 14615-19; PQ 14616) and the budget of the strategy has been slashed - The HIQA maternity report (February 2020) highlighted the lack of progress in supported care pathways under the National Maternity Strategy The 2003 Hanly Report on medical staffing with its overall aim of increasing still further centralisation of all hospital services continues to cast a shadow over the relevance of the small Cavan MLU – which has never had the full support of senior clinical and management staff in Cavan. If it had, it would be used to capacity and would not now be ‘merged’ with the consultant-led services. Who is affected? *this is not an exhaustive list of affected groups* Pregnant people are entitled to choice in care provision. There is no evidence at present to show that this has been supported or considered in the move to close the Cavan MLU. We hope to hear from service users to determine what plans are in place for those currently booked in the unit, those who were potentially being transferred back to the service following obstetric assessment, and those who had previously or planned to access midwifery led care in Cavan. Supporting practitioners in the Cavan/Monaghan area to continue the provision of Midwifery Led Care is vital. Evidence of support and solutions offered thus far to the midwives within the unit is needed so that as a national community of professionals and experts in normal pregnancy care can come together to save Cavan MLU. Midwives are the experts in providing pregnancy care and a wealth of evidence supports this model, referred to as “supported care” in the Maternity Strategy. Student midwives who began their training from 2018 in Dundalk Institute of Technology must complete Midwifery Led Unit placement experience as a core area, a change from its specialist area status before 2018. This reflects the importance of midwifery led care experience in well rounded learning. If Cavan MLU were to close, students would be limited to the Drogheda MLU to achieve the hours in order to qualify and register as midwives. It is already difficult for these MLU hours to be achieved between two units with the number of students requiring the necessary time in midwifery led services. The limitations that this closure will place on students has immediate and long-term consequences. Students in the 2019 cohort were due to attend Cavan MLU for placement in March/April and must make up this time due to COVID19. These students are now in limbo regarding completing these hours and gaining critical core learning experience. USEFUL LINKS; National Maternity Strategy 2016-2026 >> https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/0ac5a8-national-maternity-strategy-creating-a-better-future-together-2016-2/ HIQA Maternity Services report February 2020 >> https://www.hiqa.ie/sites/default/files/2020-02/Maternity-Overview-Report.pdf HSE / TCD 2009 MidU study >> https://nursing-midwifery.tcd.ie/assets/publications/pdf/midu-report.pdf Association for Improvements in the Maternity Service Ireland - Midwifery Led Care information >> http://aimsireland.ie/midwife-led-care/#:~:text=Midwife%2Dled%20services%20for%20eligible,further%20attention%20 AIMSI “What Matters to You” Survey 2014/2015 >> http://aimsireland.ie/care-choices/ Bump2Babe – Cavan General Hospital survey answers CLU >> http://www.bump2babe.ie/all-answers/unit/0/ MLU >> http://www.bump2babe.ie/all-answers/unit/1/

Democracy needs to come from the ground up we need for all the people see demoracy in action. Each indidvual needs to be able to voice their concern or idea as long as it is not harmful or discriminatory to anyone else in or outside the EU. Then this collective voice needs to be brought to Europe and listened to