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Why Vote Labour - Reason 2
2007-04-25 11:17:00
In this series of posts I am highlighting some of the reasons for voting Labour in the forthcoming election. The Labour Party's 5 Commitments for Change as promised by Party Leader Pat Rabbitte set out 5 clear reasons for voting Labour and have been well received by the electorate and will make a difference to our quality of lifeReason 2Pre-school education for all our childrenThe Labour Party is commited to providing pre-school education for all our children. To give our kids the best chance they can is the wish of all parents, and we all know that the start they get is crucial to that. It will support hard working families and will amount to five half-days of pre-school education, provided free of charge to all children. This is the commitment as given by Pat and the Labour Party and it is a commitment that will improve the quality of life of many parents and children. As we wait for the Taoiseach to name the date for the election it is important that we use this time to high...
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Why Vote Labour?
2007-04-24 19:53:00
Why Vote Labour is a question I am being asked quite a lot at the moment. Of course there are many answers to this question and many reasons for voting Labour in this election however over the next few posts I will highlight 5 clear reasons, 5 Commitments for Change made by party leader Pat Rabbitte.Reason 1. More beds in clean hospitalsThe Labour Party is committed to providing 2,300 more beds in hospitals that are clean. We need more beds to deal with our health needs. We need our hospitals to be cleaner so that you can be sure that going into hospital doesn't mean catching MRSA.

Labour's 100 Day Plan leads the way
2007-04-23 13:06:00
You often hear it said that there is no difference between the main political parties. Well nothing could be further from the truth. Today the Labour Party's 100 day plan was launched by Pat Rabbitte and it demonstrates clearly how we differ from other parties. This plan shows that we are a party that will bring change to government and will put the focus back on improving the quality of life of people .Within 100 days of being in office, Labour will:1. Cancel all plans for super private clinics.2. Instruct the HSE to identify locations for additional hospital beds.3. Appoint a Director to roll-out a programme to deliver pre-school education, based in the Office of the Minster for Children.4. Instruct the Garda commissioner to implement the civilianization programme and begin deployment of 1,000 additional community Gardai.5. Make a Government decision that the means test for carers will be abolished in our first budget and Social Welfare Bill.6. Instruct the National Treasury M...
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De La Salle win All Ireland Colleges title
2007-04-23 00:29:00
Congratulations to De La Salle College Waterford on their magnificent win today over CBS Kilkenny in the All Ireland Colleges Hurling final. In a very exciting finish De La Salle won by a scoreline of 0-13 to 1-9. This was a great achievement by a team that have brought great honour to their school and to Waterford by winning the Harty Cup and now the All Ireland Colleges final. It also sets the scene for next Sundays National Hurling League Final where Waterford meet Kilkenny in the Final.
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Election 07 - 5 more years No thanks!!
2007-04-21 11:16:00
The general election campaign has really began in earnest in Waterford over the last few weeks with all the parties now on the campaign trail. According to the recent Red C poll the result will be predictable in this constituency but who knows there may be a surprise yet. Each constituency has issues that are unique to that area and Waterford is no different. The lack of inward investment into the South East and to Waterford in particular is a serious issue for all of us. The subsequent hemorrhaging of jobs from Waterford and the failure of government to replace these jobs with other quality jobs has resulted in an area that is underachieving economically. A fact recognised by the South East Regional Authority and the Irish Regions office. Undoubtedly there has been progress in areas such as the development of our airport and road infrastructure but when you consider the resources that were available to this government over the last 10 years there should really have been significa...
More About: Election , More , Years , Thanks

BreastCheck - Government must end this scandal now!
2007-04-19 19:47:00
The news today that Breast Check , the national breast cancer screening programme, is to provide a mobile breast cancer screening unit for women in Roscommon is to be welcomed. However surely it raises the question as to why women in Waterford are once again being ignored for the provision of this essential service. BreastCheck announced today that a new digital mammography mobile screening unit is to be made available in Roscommon prior to the development of a static unit in that area. Following a series of delays, the Minister promised in 2005 that rollout would be completed by 2007. Now the Minister informs us that rollout will only commence in 2007, and not be completed until 2009. All along we were being told that BreastCheck would not be available until the static units were built and the mobile units ready. This news today that BreastCheck will be providing screening for women in Roscommon prior to the development of their static unit proves that women in Waterford continue to ...
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Waterford City Community Challenge 2007 - your opportunity!
2007-04-19 00:50:00
Waterford City Council launched the Community Challenge 2007 this week. This innovative initiative from the Council is offering a total fund of ?50,000 for a Community Challenge scheme. The scheme is aimed at encouraging and supporting genuine and active volunteer participation in the community. The scheme is also designed to provide financial support for community based projects that might not otherwise qualify for or have access to other sources of funding. I noticed that there are advertisements in this weeks local media for the scheme.There is a long tradition of volunteerism in Waterford and I belive that the Community Challenge will help encourage that tradition even further.The projects will be assessed by an Independent Assessment Panel and will be judged under the following headings - community involvement, community benefit, level of genuine volunteer involvement, long term sustainability of project and capacity to deliver the project within timescale and budget. The ...
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Red C Poll in Waterford points to no change
2007-04-11 14:59:00
The recent Waterford News and Star/Red C poll which was published today would imply that it will be "as you were" in the Waterford constituency after the next election. Now I am one of these people who believe that the only poll that matters is the one on election day. However these opinion polls do give an indication of where we are with about six weeks to go to polling day. According to this latest poll Fianna Fail support will drop by about 6% with Fine Gael increasing its share of the vote. However Fine Gael's strategy of running 3 candidates may come back to haunt them as it would seem that both Cllr's Coffey and Darcy are not polling sufficiently high enough to capture that second Fine Gael seat. Sinn Fein must be disappointed with the showing of its candidate Cllr Cullinane who is polling at 9% which falls far short of what Sinn Fein were predicting here locally.From a Labour Party point of view Brian O'Shea polling at 14% would seem to be in a strong position to hold on ...
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US Military use of Shannon must become election issue
2007-04-05 01:07:00
The following is the text of my letter to local and national newspapers regarding the use of Shannon Airport by the US Military . The letter has been printed by a number of newspapers today and I have received positive feedback from a number of people since it was printed."Lest we forget, as we contemplate the very serious issues that effect our lives during Election 07?, our current government continues to actively participate in an illegal war which has caused the slaughter of many innocent Iraqi citizens. Shannon Airport or ?Warport? as it has come to be known, continues to offer its hospitality to thousands of US troops heading to Iraq at the behest of the war mongering President George W Bush and his comrade in arms Prime Minister Tony Blair. Not only does our government allow ?special rendition? flights to land but also continues with its refusal to search these aircraft, thereby implicating Ireland in serious violations of International law. It would seem that Irish neutral...
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Labour Party Ward Three Branch AGM
2007-04-04 12:23:00
The Waterford City Ward Three Branch of the Labour Party held its AGM in Connolly Hall this week. This well attended AGM was opened by our branch chairman Sean Roche who spoke to members about the upcoming General Election campaign. What was really heartening but not surprising was the large attendance at the meeting. The branch has been growing steadily over the last while and is now the largest branch in the Waterford Constituency. In my own address to the meeting I thanked the officers and members of the Branch for their support during the past year. Without this support it would be very difficult to carry out my work as a Councillor. In my address I also spoke about the ongoing problems in the health service and warned of the crisis in our hospitals where despite government promises to end waiting lists patients must still wait for necessary treatments . I also congratulated members of the branch for their ongoing role in the campaign to bring BreastCheck to Waterford.This was a...
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Waterford City Council Boundary Extension falls on deaf ears.
2007-04-01 19:16:00
This months online poll asks the question "Are you in favour of Waterford City Council s Boundary extension application into South Kilkenny". I was prompted to ask this question following the comments made by Minister Dick Roche recently where he dismissed Waterford City Council 's application for a boundary extensioin into south Kilkenny. Now Minister Roche has not read the application where an undeniable case is made by Wateford City Council or else he is just playing politics with the issue in the run up to the General Election. What do you think? Why not register your vote on the right hand side bar on this site.
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CCTV announced for Waterford - again!!
2007-04-01 01:51:00
Forgive me for being cynical about the most recent announcement made on Friday regarding the provision of CCTV for Waterford City. This is an issue that I have raised on Waterford City Council a number of times only to be told that we were still awaiting government approval. It is also something that has been announced by at least two Ministers over the last number of years. So when I read yesterday that the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice Michael McDowell had announced that 17 new CCTV systems will be in place in towns and city suburbs across the country by the end of the year I failed to get excited. This is typical of this government who promise a lot but deliver little.There is certainly a need for a CCTV in Waterford City Centre as there is in any city centre. Such a system would be of great benefit to Gardai in the combat against crime in this part of the city. Lets hope that the government will deliver on its promise - this time!!
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University of the South East must be delivered by government
2007-03-31 20:30:00
During this general election campaign there is one issue that will unite all political parties in the South East and in Waterford in particular That issue will be the campaign for a University of the South East based in Waterford. The governing body of Waterford Institute of Technology, of which I am a member, made its submission to the government to upgrade Waterford Institute of Technology to University of the South East. The initial evaluation by Dr Jim Port is now complete and we now await the findings of Dr Port. This report should lead to the appointment of an international panel to assess the application.The chairman of the Governing Body Mr Redmond O'Donoghue set out the case in his recent speech to the "Forum on Higher Education Policy" which was held in Dublin. As Mr O'Donoghue said in his wide ranging speech "The decision to establish University of the South East will be entirely consistent with the Government 's policies to devolve and decentralise."All the indic...
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Work Thursday - Vote Saturday
2007-03-23 01:46:00
It seems our Taoiseach wants to hold the General Election on a Thursday rather than a weekend. If this is true it will disenfranchise a large section of the electorate. Thousands of students who are in college away from home will be unable to vote. Also many people working midweek will also find it difficult to exercise their democratic right to vote. Surely the government should be doing all it can to encourage people to vote rather than putting barriers in the way of those who wish to vote. Well done to the guys over on Irish Election who have started an online petition calling on the goverment to hold the election at the weekend rather than midweek. Why not sign it and circulate it to your family and friends. Also contact your local government representative over the weekend and let them know that you disapprove of the election being held midweek.
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BreastCheck: why are we still waiting?
2007-03-21 22:45:00
The failure by the government to make Brea stCheck available to all parts of the country is a scandal. Worse still is the fact that the delay in rolling out this essential service is being tolerated by members of the government in my own area of Waterford. Each year over 600 women die from breast cancer which is a highly treatable cancer when detected early. BreastCheck is the free breast cancer screening programme which was first made available in certain parts of this country in 2002. Yet here we are 5 years and many promises later the service is still not available to women in my own county of Waterford. The Labour Party in Waterford has played its part in collecting over 3,000 signatures in a petition calling on the Minister for Health Mary Harney to make BreastCheck available to women regardless of where they live. I have also collected over 700 signatures on my online petition athttp://www.PetitionOnline.com/051/petit ion.htmlI wish to thank all those who have signed the petitio...
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Job losses at Sanofi - Aventis in Waterford
2007-03-14 22:39:00
Today's news of 200 job losses at the pharmaceutical plant Sanofi -Aventis in Waterford is a devastating blow for an area that has seen more than its fair share of job losses in recent times. Of course at times like this our thoughts must be with those who are losing their jobs. This will be a very difficult time for these workers and their families as they try to come to terms with this news. Every effort must be made by the Government to find replacement industry for Waterford as soon as possible. This is another in a long list of companies to either close their doors permanently or to shed jobs. Companies such as Waterford Crystal, Bausch and Lomb as well as Hasbro have all seen job cuts and now the news of the loss of these 200 jobs in Aventis will further damage the economy in the region. What is important now is that the states job creation agencies provide assistance to those workers in order to help them secure alternative employment in the months ahead. It is time now ...
More About: Loss , Losses

Up Up and away with South East Regional Airport
2007-03-13 18:05:00
News today that the South East Regional Airport in Waterford is to benefit from investment of ?27.5m will be welcomed by air travellers in Waterford and the South East. Considering that the Airport was in financial difficulties only a short number of years ago this is good news indeed. Graham Doyle, chief executive of Waterford airport is reported to have said this week that the extended runway which is hoped to be in place by summer 2009, will allow the airport to handle large jet aircraft, including the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737. This will open up the airport to new destinations including many holiday destinations such as Spain and Portugal. The airport serves an area of over 450,000 people and has a bright future ahead of itself. However it is important that the airport is supported by air passengers from all over the South East.

My Name is Rachel Corrie
2007-03-10 19:50:00
Next week March 16th is the fourth anniversary of the death of Rachel Corrie. Rachel was a 23 year old college student and human rights and peace activist from Olympia, Washington who on March 16, 2003 was run over and killed by an Israel i military bulldozer in Rafah, Gaza , while defending a Palestinian home from demolition. Rachel had been working with the International Solidarity Movement to protest Israeli actions in the occupied territories when she was killed in 2003. In a series of emails to her family Rachel described what she experienced in Gaza. These emails and letters were later published by The Guardian and provide a unique insight into life in that troubled region."My Name is Rachel Corrie " a play composed from Corrie's journals and e-mails from Gaza and directed by British actor Alan Rickman , was presented in London in early 2005. The play was also scheduled to open at the New York Theatre Workshop however due to political pressure, the play was ?postponed indefinite...

Government in Exile!!
2007-03-08 23:52:00
The term government in exile takes on a new meaning this week with reports of our government ministers taking their annual St Patricks Day break. It seems this year is to be no different with a total of nine ministers, including the Taoiseach and Tánaiste, and one junior minister travelling to the United States to attend events marking the country's national day, while other members of the Government will attend events in far flung parts of the world including Argentina, Vietnam and China!What is new this year though is the reason given for the exodus. Is it to promote tourism or to attract industry or indeed just to celebrate St Patricks Day? No in a statement issued tonight by the government it seems the ministers are leaving our shores in such large numbers in order to highlight the global threat of climate change and promote Ireland. Well if that is not jumping on a bandwagon I don't know what is.
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Waterford City Council Roads Programme 2007
2007-03-06 00:37:00
At tonight's meeting of Waterford City Council we adopted the Roads Prog ramme for 2007. This was particularly welcome as it set out important road improvements throughout the City over the next year. The overall projected expenditure for 2007 is almost ?34million with just less than 50% coming from the Council own funds and the balance coming from state grants. Expenditure on the upkeep and improvement of the National Road network is funded from State grants and includes the N25 Waterford City Bypass, National Primary Maintenance, Rice Bridge maintenance and Bus priority measures. Waterford City Council is also committed to spending nearly ?23million on the Non National Roads. I was particularly pleased to see the inclusion of traffic calming on Ballybeg Drive and improvements on the Old Tramore Road and Kilbarry Road. I have been raising the poor condition of the Old Tramore Road for some time now and I am pleased to see this road finally included for improvements.All in a...

Shannon Airport and the US Military - March Online Poll
2007-03-02 12:39:00
This months online poll asks the question whether it is time for our government to withdraw the use of Shannon Airport from the US Military . The phrase "troops out" long associated with Northern Ireland, has certainly taken on a new meaning in the last decade. Shannon Airport has been used by the US Military to refuel its aircraft for nearly ten years now. In 2005 approximately 330,000 US troops travelled through Shannon on the way to Iraq. It has also been estimated that in total more than half a million US military personnel have been through Shannon. All of this has happened without a proper national debate on the issue and in my opinion the Irish government has no mandate to continue its policy of assisting the US Military in this way. Cast your vote and let me know your thoughts!!
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Dangerous Dogs require stricter regulations
2007-03-01 14:45:00
I recently sought a report from Waterford City Manager on the issue of Danger ous Dogs in Waterford City. I did this because I believe there is evidence that there is an increase in the number of these animals in Waterford. I believe that there is a need for stricter regulations in the keeping of these dogs in housing estates and public places in Ireland. Recent reports of tragedies in Dublin and Liverpool show the need to legislate for these breeds. Under the Control of Dogs Regulation 1998 there is a list of dogs that are subject to strict controls however this does not go far enough. Breeds such as American Pit Bull Terrier, Rottweiler and Bull Mastiff must be muzzled and kept on a leash not more than 2m long, in a public place and supervised by someone aged over 16 years who is capable of controlling the animal. Yet these regulations are not always adhered to with tragic consequences.An interesting point to note is that in England it is illegal for anyone to own a pit bull terri...
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