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.

At the moment, only 125 childminders are registered with TUSLA & included in the new childcare package in Budget 2017. However, up to 2000 more professional childminders are: -Registered members of Childminding Ireland or -Notified to County Childcare Committees, or -Registered with Revenue for Childcare Tax Relief Most of these professional childminders have insurance, garda vetting and training in childcare. Surveys indicate that over 50% have FETAC 5 in childcare. They are not registered with TUSLA because they are NOT ALLOWED TO, since they mind 3 or fewer children at any one time. Thousands of parents choose childminding because they feel it's the best for their children. Thousands more rural parents choose a childminder because there is no other option. Thousands more choose a childminder because they offer flexible, often very long hours, to parents, who may need childcare for over 12 hours a day. They should be able to avail of the childcare subsidies at their professional childminders. The Goodbody Report estimated that there were 19,000 childminders with as many as 57,000 children attending a 'hidden‘ childminding service in 2011. It is completely unacceptable that only 125 childminders (,0.1%) will be included in the new scheme. Ultimately all childminders should be included in some form of registration and all families who choose childminder care should be supported. In the meantime, at least include those who have spent considerable time and money in becoming professionals and engaging with professional and state agencies. IT IS UNFAIR TO EXCLUDE THEM WHEN THEY CANNOT REGISTER WITH TUSLA. IT IS UNFAIR TO THE THOUSANDS OF FAMILIES AND CHILDREN THEY SERVE. Minister, do the right thing, and include these professional childminders in the new childcare subsidy scheme.

We, the EPIC Youth Board, are petitioning the government to provide adequate funding to Tusla (Child and Family Agency) and for Tusla to implement Aftercare for all young people leaving care. Young people who are in care have been marganalised from achieving their full potential in their lives., for most of their lives. 'We face barriers and difficulties that no young person should have to face.' (Young Person) One of the key areas to allowing people in care equal opportunities and equal outcomes is an Aftercare Plan and it's implementation. 'Young people leaving care need ongoing support in order to achieve their potential. The provision of an appropriate aftercare service has been highlighted as a key element to achieving positive outcomes for young people upon leaving care. It is essential that young people leaving care are provided with the type of transitional support that their individual situation requires.' (Department of Children and Youth Affairs) The Child Care Amendment Act 2015 states all young people in care are legally entitled to an Aftercare Plan once they have been in care for twelve months or more. However the right to Aftercare itself is not placed on a statutory footing. In Ireland today there are too many young people who are leaving care with no Aftercare Plan or an Aftercare Plan but no action on it's implementation. There are many young people leaving care who have an Aftercare Plan which is being implementated with great success. This difference between those that have a good Aftercare Plan and those that have none can be the geographical area they live in. Young people who have been discriminated against for most of their lives are again being discriminated against through no fault of their own. The harsh reality for those young people is that they are at best under huge stress in a time of uncertaintity, which is affecting their whole lives, or at worst they are falling through the cracks and put in a position where they are accessing services such as homeless services. 'Our vision is to make Ireland the best small country in the world in which to grow up and raise a family, and where the rights of all children and young people are respected, protected and fullfilled; where their voices are heard and where they are supported to realise their maximum potential now and into the future' (Better Outcomes Brighter Futures, the national policy framework for children and young people, 2014-2020.) Our government makes choices all the time, we are calling on Tusla and the government to choose to give young people in care an equal chance in life. Make your vision for young people be for all young people!

Russia and Iran have been propping up the Syrian regime of Bashar al Assad for years. Assad has long lost legitimacy through his brutal campaign of subjugation against the Syrian civilian population. Unlike Assad, with whom Ireland has no diplomatic relations, Russia and Iran are trading partners of ours - although Russia is currently subjected to E.U. trade sanctions over the support it is providing to Ukrainian separatists. The Irish Syria Solidarity Movement (irishsyriasolidaritymovement.org) has long urged the Irish government to suspend trade relations with either country due to their support for the Assad regime. However, the escalation now being seen in Aleppo with intensive bombing of civilians by Russia along with a concomitant ground offensive by Iran and its Hizbollah proxies, marks a sharp and depraved escalation in this years-long conflict and requires urgent action. We urge everyone signing this petition to also phone (01 492 2048) and email ([email protected]) the Russian embassy to express your disgust in person. We also urge you to contact the Iranian embassy in the same regard (01 288 5881 & [email protected]). Please phone as frequently as you feel necessary. If you are emailing, please cc [email protected].

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.

This is simply unfair. Lone parents are being forced in to an impossible situation where they have to seek maintenance from non custodial parents, or risk having their payments cut. But, get this - at the same time the Department of Social Protection has told non custodial parents, that they don’t have to pay. This is placing an unfair burden on lone parents who have to seek maintenance from the other parent. Domestic abuse survivors have to choose to suffer a financial loss or make contact with their abuser. A lone parent without an address can not issue legal proceedings and can not comply with the condition. These are just some examples of the countless ways that this oversight by the department is making lone parents suffer. Many lone parents have lost child maintenance after the Department of Social Protection wrote to non custodial parents, it is unfair for the department to now threaten these same parents because of their own legislative error.

Caitriona Lucas died while in service to our country as a volunteer coast guard on the 12th September 2016. She was a cherished wife, mother of two, sister, daughter, librarian, volunteer Coast Guard and so much to so many including a talented artist. She died a hero and it would honour her to have her art on an Irish stamp.

Irish Sign Language is an everyday language used by approximately six thousand citizens of the Republic of Ireland, mostly Deaf and hard of hearing. Unlike English, Irish Sign Language is a language which is indigenous to the island of Ireland, a language that has been evolved over the centuries. For several decades, Irish Sign Language has never been respected as a language. It has been reported that the users of the language have very little access to information in that language. They often have no choice but to use either of the current official languages, namely Irish and English, languages that are not in their mother tongue. Not to mention, the Articles 9, 21 and 30 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, of which Ireland has been among the signatories since 1992, explicitly recognises the importance of a sign language with regard to the accessibility, freedom of expression, the participation in the cultural life of a Deaf or Hard of Hearing person. Thus, recognising Irish Sign Language as a third official language of the State would render the society far more equal than it is now. Ireland is our home and there's no place like home! Extend our arms to our fellow citizens using Irish Sign Language in their homes.

Ireland's 1993 Commission on the Rights of People with Disabilities made a statement that sadly still rings true today: "People with disabilities are the neglected citizens of Ireland... [but] they want, and are entitled to, equality and full participation as citizens." In 2016 we’re still waiting to see full equality on our public transport systems. This is especially true of DART services, which are riddled with accessibility problems. But it's time for us to say enough is enough. The Disability Federation of Ireland estimates that there are over 160,000 people with a disability in the Dublin area. On top of having to cope with various medical conditions, that's 160,000 potential DART-users relying on - lifts that are often out of order - platform ramps onto the train that don't work or don't exist - live travel information that is inaccurate or inaccessible - trained station assistants who aren't available in all stations Each of these factors makes even the most basic journeys a headache to organise, and sometimes impossible! But all of these issues could be easily fixed if the government made them a priority. Let's raise our voice for disability rights now. Call on the government to fix these issues and make DART services fully accessible for people with a disability. Disability Rights Now is a People Before Profit campaign chaired by Richard Boyd Barrett and based on the feedback of local disability rights activists in the Dun Laoghaire area.

We all have a right to adequate access to drinking water. The UN has told the Irish state that according to international human rights law, all levels of government are under an obligation to provide urgent measures, including financial assistance, to ensure access to affordable housing, and essential levels of drinking water and sanitation services.