A View from the Left

RSS Feed Homepage

Articles: 1, 2, 3, 4

Yes to Lisbon
2008-05-27 11:59:00
Yes to Lisbon Originally uploaded by The Labour PartyI recently attended a meeting of the South East Labour Party Councillors Forum in Kilkenny. The meeting was addressed by Labour Party Leader Eamonn Gilmore TD who spoke about the forthcoming Lisbon Treaty Referendum.

Lisbon Treaty- Why vote Yes
2008-05-20 15:52:00
The following is the text of a letter I sent to local media outlining my position on the Lisbon Treaty. I would be interested to hear your views on the issue.Dear Editor,Next month people will be voting in the referendum on the LisbonReform Treaty. This vote will determine the future direction ofEurope for 500 million people. The 26 member States that make up theEU together with Ireland are anxiously waiting to see how we vote inour Referendum. It would be a serious set back to the future of theEU if Ireland voted No 13 States have already decided to ratify theTreaty by their own constitutional mechanisms. It would also be aserious loss to Ireland and its citizens if the result is negative. Anew set of values and principles would be lost? the social charterwould be lost and the new legal commitment to tackling climate changeand to eradicating global poverty would be lost.When these valuable provisions in the Lisbon Reform Treaty arecombined with the new democratic role of National P...
More About: Vote

Are you registered to Vote?
2008-05-20 15:41:00
Please take note that if you are not registered to vote in the forthcoming referendum, you have until this Friday, May 23rd to get added to the Supplementary Register. You can check if you are registered by going to: http://www.checktheregister.ie/If you are not registered, or know of others who may not, then download the relevant form at: http://www.checktheregister.ie/Portals/12 8/RFA2%20English%20-%20form.pdf This form must be signed in the presence of a member of the Garda Síochána at your local Garda Station, so be sure to give yourself plenty of time to get the form signed before submitting documentation to Local Authority on or before Friday, May 23rd.
More About: Vote

All politics is local
2008-05-13 16:18:00
At last night's meeting of Waterford City Council I had an opportunity to deal with two local and important issues. Firstly I had a motion passed calling for a road traffic and road users plan for the Kilcohan Road in Waterford City. This area of the city has seen unprecedented development with new houses and new businesses being built over the last few years. One of my main concerns is for the realignment of the main Kilcohan road between Avondale and the Couse roundabout and for the provision of footpaths and public lighting. I was delighted to receive unanimous backing from the Council for my proposals.The second local issue I was able to propose last night was the provision of traffic calming measures on Cannon Street in the city. If you are familiar with this area of the city you will know that it is an extremely busy road. Once again as a result of the motion this has been included in the City Council Roads programmeThese are important issues for local residents and I was ple...
More About: Politics , Local

Win ?1,000 in Yes to Lisbon Video competition
2008-05-13 01:00:00
For all you budding video makers out there the Labour Party is running a"Yes to Lisbon video competition" You can submit your entry to campaigns@labour.ie in). The deadline for entries is June 1st. I would also like to recommend the excellent Yes to Lisbon website from the Labour Party. This site sets out quite clearly the information you require on the Reform Treaty, policy issues and also an online Blog on the Treaty.
More About: Video , Competition

May Day - as relevant as ever
2008-05-01 14:19:00
Today is May Day, a day celebrated by workers across the world. It is a day of solidarity, a day of celebration of the achievements of ordinary people in this country and across the world. This struggle continues today for a fair wage, safe conditions and a decent quality of life for ordinary working class people. Issues such as equality of access to decent health services, housing and accommodation, education and training, universal childcare and a safe and healthy environment still remain a priority for the Labour movement. It is my view, that, as trade unionists and members of the Labour movement in the tradition of Connolly and Larkin we have a very important role in this regard. We need to continue our fight across the many issues which are still denied to a sizeable number of our communities, at the very least, a basic decent quality of life.As we celebrate another May Day we must continue this campaign for a fairer society for everyone. Happy May Day everyone.
More About: Relevant

Politicians of the Year
2008-05-01 14:00:00
Congratulations to both Joan Burton and Sean Sherlock who received Magill politician of the year awards yesterday. Those of us within the Labour Party are well aware of the work of both Joan and Sean and would agree that these awards are richly deserved. Joan received the TD of the year award and Sean received the One to Watch award. Well done to you both!! Full story here
More About: Politicians , Year

Directly Elected Mayor of Waterford?
2008-04-25 00:23:00
What are your thoughts regarding the introduction of directly elected mayors? The current debate seems focused on a directly Mayor of Dublin yet surely a directly elected Mayor of Waterford should also be part of Minister Gormley' plans. Let me know what you think!!

Labour Party select strong team for Election 2009
2008-04-24 00:17:00
Last week at a very well attended selection convention I was selected to once again stand for the Labour Party in next years local elections in Ward Three electoral area in Waterford City. The selection convention was chaired by Party Leader Eamonn Gilmore and was also attended by Brian O'Shea TD Party Chairperson. It is a great honour for me to be chosen as a candidate for the Labour Party and I look forward to the campaign. I was very heartened by the attendance of members and supporters and the expressions of support I received since I was chosen.Cllr Pat Hayes and Cllr Jack Walsh were also selected on the night to complete the Labour Party's team in Waterford city for the Local Election s 2009. I look forward to working with both Pat and Jack as we continue to work hard and effectively for the people of Waterford. Of course I will be returning to this issue in future posts.
More About: Team

Will Bertie go before he is pushed
2008-03-27 19:54:00
It seems that both the Greens and the PD's are finally beginning to realise that the game is up regarding the ongoing saga of the Taoiseach and the Mahon Tribunal. There is nothing like a forthcoming election to focus the mind of a sitting FF councillor or a new candidate waiting to become the new kid on the block. One thing for sure is that Bertie won't be seen in the same positive light by the voters as he has been previously. Look out for the heave Bertie -it's begun!!

I haven't gone away you know!!
2008-01-08 20:54:00
Apologies to those of you who are regular readers of this Blog. For a number of reasons I was not in a position to update "A View from the Left" for quite some time. However all going well I hope to be back to share some of my thoughts with you again - both political and non political. Despite the holiday period things have been quite busy in the political world locally. The City Council passed the Book of Estimates which sets out expenditure for 2008. I did notice that despite years of voting against the Estimates Sinn Fein made a welcome change of policy and decided to support the 2008 Book of Estimates. This is a major change of policy for Sinn Fein and it will be interesting to see whether this is a once off or whether we will see a more positive Sinn Fein in the future.However thats for another day. From my point of view its good to be back blogging again. Keep in touch!

Labour Party Conference goes online
2007-11-14 12:51:00
All roads lead to Wexford this weekend for the 62nd Labour Party National Conference . Over 1100 delegates and observers from all over Ireland and abroad will meet in White's Hotel Wexford to debate motions and to formulate policy. There are some very interesting and relevant motions on the agenda which will be debated over the weekend. The Conference will also elect a new National Executive and Party Chairperson. I also notice that the Party will be making good use of the Internet with live streaming of conference sessions, online question and answer sessions and the use of Flickr for hosting photographs of the Conference. The Labour Party is the first Irish political party to use technology in this way to bring the National Conference right to your desktop. Hope you can join us at some stage over the weekend.
More About: Online

Time for action on employment front in Waterford
2007-11-09 00:40:00
Our worst fears were confirmed this week when Waterford Wedgewood Chief Executive Peter Cameron announced that there will be job losses at their plant in Waterford. Negotiations between management and unions are currently underway and lets hope that the result of these negotiations will result in these job losses being kept to a minimum. However what is worrying is that this announcement is part of a growing trend of job losses in the Waterford area over the last few years. Last week we had another announcement from Bausch and Lomb of around 100 job losses in their Waterford plant. Yet the response from the government to what is fast becoming a crisis in Waterford has been largely disappointing to say the least.In fact the government could make an immediate positive impact to the development of Waterford by announcing the upgrading of Waterford Institute of Technology to University of the South East. I believe that such an announcement would have an immediate effect on the economic ...
More About: Action , Time , Employment , Front

Time for Noel Dempsey to resign?
2007-10-28 20:33:00
The current debacle surrounding the whole issue of provisional licences shows a government completely out of touch with the public. According to media reports today the new road safety regulation affecting drivers on a second provisional licence will not now come into effect until June next year. This is an extraordinary u-turn by the government and by Minister Dempsey in particular. It was clear from the outset that the consequences of this proposal were not thought out. However if there is a positive to come from this debacle it is that it has succeeded in putting road safety high on the political agenda. Let's hope we will see some positive action from the government in reducing the carnage on our roads.It does raise the question of the competency of a Minister who obviously is not on top of his brief when it comes to road safety. Should he resign??
More About: Government , Time , Resign , Noel

Advice Centre Continues
2007-10-25 15:51:00
I continue to hold my weekly Advice Centre in St Paul's Meeting Rooms in Lisduggan every Friday night at 7pm. If you think I can be of assistance in any matter please call in to see me. In case you are not sure where St Paul's meeting rooms are you will find them located between the Credit Union and St Paul's National School in Lisduggan Waterford.
More About: Conti

Halloween should not be like this!
2007-10-21 17:52:00
The build up to Halloween has started this week. Halloween should be a great time of fun for children and adults alike and indeed it is enjoyed by many. However in recent years it has become a time of year that has become associated with serious anti social behaviour in communities. With the growth in use of illegal fireworks and bonfires that normally go out of control some communities dread the annual Halloween festival. It should not be like this. This week Marion O'Mara in the Waterford News and Star published my concerns regarding some of the activities carried out by some youths at this time of year. You can read the full report here.
More About: Ween , Allo

Two more Public Holidays?
2007-10-18 21:03:00
Did you know that Ireland has two public holidays less than other European countries? Should we have two additional public holidays to bring us in line with our European partners. Let me know what you think.
More About: Holidays , Public

BreastCheck update for Waterford
2007-10-18 17:29:00
Waterford Regional Hospital has been approached to be a base for Brea stCheck Mobile Units according to a response I received from BreastCheck this week . I was also informed this week that the mobile units for BreastCheck have been commissioned and the tendering process is now complete. According to the information made available to me this week BreastCheck will take delivery of these later this year on a phased basis through to next springtime. At this stage the schedule is not yet confirmed for the different counties including Waterford, Kerry, and South Tipperary. This will be dictated by operational reasons. These mobile units will be located in counties in the Southern area furthest away from the static unit in Cork. The location is generally in larger cities and towns and BreastCheck will negotiate with suitable locations / hospital sites in advance. A number of hospitals have already been approached in the Hospital Network in relation to the feasibility of locating units on t...
More About: Waterford , Update

Another Green Party U- Turn
2007-10-11 20:16:00
Being in government can do strange things to people. Prior to the General Election the Green Party were very vocal in their opposition to the use of Shannon Airport by the US Military, the co-location of private hospitals on the grounds of public hospitals, the destruction of the Tara Valley and the use of electronic voting machines to name but a few. All of these policies fell by the wayside in their pursuit of the ministerial bicycle. Now the latest principle abandoned by the Green Party is their opposition to the use of incineration as a means of waste management. The latest announcement by Green Minister for the Environment John Gormley that Ireland will need two incinerators to deal with its waste must surely rate as another complete u-turn of Green Party policy. This ongoing failure of the Green Party to implement their pre election agenda must surely be an opportunity for the Labour Party .

Waterford residents to petition Minister Gormley
2007-10-09 22:17:00
Recently I assisted the residents of Birchwood housing estate in Waterford city to take up a petition calling on Minister John Gormley to allow tenants of Voluntary Housing Associations purchase their own homes. Full story here. This campaign was started in Waterford a number of years ago by Respond tenants in Waterford and has since spread to other areas including Dungarvan, Carrick on Suir and Wexford where there is also a large number of voluntary housing association tenants. Resident s in housing estates such as Birchwood and the other voluntary housing estates do not enjoy the same rights as residents in the local authority estates where there is a tenant purchase scheme. It is now time for the government to introduce a Tenant Purchase Scheme for tenants of the Voluntary Housing Associations similar to the scheme for local authority tenants. This petition highlights the demands of residents of the voluntary housing sector and will be sent directly to Minister Gormley. I would li...
More About: Petition

Joan Burton elected Deputy Leader
2007-10-04 19:43:00
Well the new leadership team is now in place following today's election of Joan Burton as Deputy Leader of the Labour Party . Congratulations to Joan and indeed commiserations to Jan. Without a doubt the leadership team of Eamonn Gilmore and Joan Burton will need to hit the ground running with the local and European elections not too far away.For the record the result of the contest for Deputy Leader was as follows:Burton: 1480 53.7%O'Sullivan 1276 46.3%The Labour Party now heads into its Conference in Wexford in November in a buoyant mood. Speaking to party members in Waterford recently there certainly is a mood of confidence with new members continuing to join the party. It is important that we capitalise on this renewed interest in the party in the run up to the local elections which will be the first real test of the Labour Party. It will also be the first real test of the leadership of Eamonn Gilmore and Joan Burton.

Solidarity with Burmese protestors
2007-09-28 00:55:00
The current critical situation in Burma can no longer be ignored by the international community. The military junta has declared curfews and surrounded several monasteries with security forces and there are now very real fears that there will be a crackdown similar to 1988 when 3000 were killed by the military rulers. Surely the international community must act now and bring pressure to bear on the Burmese government to end this now. In particular China must bring its influence to bear on a regime that continues to rule with the iron fist. Despite efforts by the military, reports continue to emanate from Burma of the current crackdown by the government on the peaceful protestors. There are a number of excellent first hand accounts available on the internet which are keeping us up to date with developments. Matthew Weaver in the Guardian provides a daily blog on the crisis. Another first hand account from Burma blogger Ko Htike is a fascinating record of what is happening on the ground.
More About: Soli

Public Radiotherapy at WRH put on the long finger
2007-09-22 16:51:00
Reports this week that public radiotherapy at Waterford Regional Hospital is to be delayed even further is very worrying indeed. Speaking at the meeting of the Regional Health Forum in Cork this week HSE Chief Executive Prof Drumm admitted that commitments by the government to have the service available by 2011 will not be met. When I questioned Professor Drumm further on this at the meeting he admitted that the current government policy of using Public Private Partnership to deliver key health projects is causing delays and is in fact not working. This is something I warned about when the PPP policy was first mentioned by the government however this policy is being driven by the current Fianna Fail led administration and was inexcusably defended this week in Waterford by Minister Martin Cullen and Brendan Kenneally TD. Surely the government must listen to the head of the HSE when he tells them that the PPP system is not going to deliver this essential service for cancer patients in...
More About: Long , Finger , Adio , Thera

Health Service cutbacks begin to bite
2007-09-21 13:11:00
The recently announced cutbacks by the HSE are really starting to bite in our local hospitals. Last week the HSE announced a total ban on recruitment and replacement of staff in the health service. It has now become evident that this ban is clearly affecting patient care in our hospitals. What is also very hard to take is that at a time when these cutbacks are being implemented Senior Managers in the HSE are being paid large bonuses of up to ?80,000!! Nice work if you can get it.The Labour Party is working hard to highlight these cutbacks and have set up HSE Watch to monitor the worsening situation. Our new health spokesperson Jan O'Sullivan TD continues the fight to reverse this draconian measure. However we need your help in doing this. Here in Waterford, for example, I have received reports of staff at all levels both medical and non medical not being replaced at Waterford Regional Hospital. This is putting existing staff under severe pressure. There are also reports of ongoing ...
More About: Health , Service , Bite , Heal

Where is our University Minister?
2007-09-11 20:21:00
The campaign to upgrade Waterford Institute of Technology to a Univers ity of the South East appears to be stuck in a rut. As a member of the Governing Body of WIT I am particularly disappointed at the lack of progress on this issue. Prior to the general election the government referred the submission which was prepared by the Insitute to Dr Jim Port for independent evaluation. Despite a number of missed deadlines we still await his findings.I have long been concerned at the relatively weak economic performance of the South-East. It is performing poorly when compared to other Irish regions under a range of socio-economic headings. It is clear that the lack of a University in our region is reflected in a lower-than-average third-level education participation rate, a higher-than-average graduate migration rate from the region and a lower-than-average level of research and development activity, spending and investment in the South East region. What is also clear is that these trends can...
More About: Minister

Eamonn lands the top job
2007-09-06 22:55:00
Congratulations to Eamon n Gilmore on becoming leader of the Labour Party today. These are important and exciting times for members and supporters of the Party who will be encouraged to hear from Eamonn that Labour's core values are not for changing. I look forward to working with Eamonn and the new Deputy Leader as he embarks on his Project of Renewal for the Party and the country. Eamonn also stated today that the Labour Party must become more positive in telling people what we are for rather than what we are against. This is something I have believed in for a long time. As a major political party we must have confidence in our policies and in our own message. However we must not underestimate the challenge that lays ahead as Eamonn sets out on this Project of Renewal. Let the words of James Connolly as quoted by Eamonn today become our rallying call.'The cause of Labour is the cause of Ireland and the cause of Ireland is the cause of Labour'.

Incineration for Waterford? No thanks!
2007-09-06 22:37:00
At a recent environmental conference Minister for the Environment John Gormley argued that landfill and incineration are the same and he wanted to encourage alternatives. This prompted me to pose the question whether plans for an incinerator in the Waterford area should now be abandoned. In light of this latest intervention by the Minister in the incineration debate let me know what you think of proposals for incineration in the South East.
More About: Incineration , Hank

Joint Policing Committee to meet on Monday next
2007-09-05 23:52:00
The next meeting of the Joing Policing Committee will take place in the Council Chamber City Hall on Monday next 10th September at 4pm. Amongst the items to be discussed are the Community Safety Strategy, Garda Report and a presentation by the Waterford Community Drugs Network. If you would like further information on any of these issues or if you would like me to raise any issue at the committee meeting please contact me.
More About: Meet

Deputy Leadership Contest
2007-09-05 22:59:00
An interesting contest is underway for the Deputy Leadership of the Labour Party between Joan Burton TD and Jan O'Sullivan TD. Both candidates have a lot to offer as Deputy Leader but of course there can only be one winner. The hustings will hopefully result in an open debate on the future direction of the party and will help members make up their minds. This debate is long overdue and eagerly awaited by party members and supporters. The dates and venues for these hustings are as follows:Dublin, Monday 10th September, Westbury Hotel, 8.00pmMullingar, 11th September, Bloomfield House Hotel, 8.00pmCork, Thursday 13th September, Imperial Hotel, 8.00pmKilkenny, Tuesday 18th September, New Park Hotel, 8.00pmGalway, Thursday 20th September, Flannery's Hotel, Dublin Road, 8.00pmIt will be interesting to hear what each candidate is proposing to bring to the post of Deputy Leader. As we now know Eamonn Gilmore will become party leader and I would like to hear a commitment from both ...
More About: Contest

This is more like it Eamonn
2007-09-02 17:00:00
Today's statement from Labour Party leadership candidate Eamon n Gilmore that he wants the US military out of Shannon Airport is more of what we expect from our party leadership. In a straight talking, straight to the point speech Eamonn said "I want to see the US military out of Shannon and I do not want to see any Irish facility used for the conduct of the Iraq war" He can't be much more clearer than that.It is refreshing to hear this type of unambiguous statement from a potential party leader. Issues such as the use of Shannon Airport by the US Military do matter and we must take the lead in the campaign to bring this to an end. The Labour Party has been to the forefront of the campaign to end the use of Shannon by the US Military. And now with the sellout by the Green Party on the issue we must continue to lead this campaign. Keep it up Eamonn.