On Wednesday a Solidarity- People Before Profit Dáil motion will be debated to unblock over 50 opposition bills currently stuck in limbo because of the governments use of what is called ‘The Money Message’.

The motion which will be debated in the Dáil on November 6th would change current standing orders that govern the progress of opposition bills.

This motion will recognise the right of the Government of the day to have control, over the appropriation of public monies but it will stop the misuse of the constitutional clause that standing orders is based on. It will remove the use of incidental expenses and indirect costs of implementing a Bill from the reasons that the Government can impose a ‘Money Message’. ... read full story / add a comment

LEADING ENVIRONMENT GROUPS OPPOSE €7m DURSEY ISLAND MASS TOURISM PROJECT
Wild Atlantic Way ‘undermining quality and experience of Ireland’s wild coastal landscape’

An €7m Failte Ireland flagship project has attracted the opposition of three of Ireland’s leading environmental organisations.

An Taisce, Birdwatch Ireland, and Friends of the Irish Environment have all submitted extensive objections to the application by Cork County in partnership with Fáilte Ireland to An Bord Pleanala for a €7m development on Dursey Island off the west Cork coast.

The current 6-person cable car is to be replaced by a state-of-the-art two-way cable car system capable of carrying up to 300 people each way every hour. The project includes an extensive Visitor Centre with restaurant and gift shop on the mainland. ... read full story / add a comment

Sinn Féin Housing spokesperson Eoin Ó Broin has commented on the publication of the Department of Housing’s official homeless figures for September, which show for the 8th month in a row the number of people in homeless accommodation is over 10,000. ... read full story / add a comment

State faces further legal challenge to Shannon LNG terminal
Fracked gas as ‘Projects of Common Interest’ challenged

The State has been warned that it cannot approve the proposed Shannon LNG terminal as a ‘Project of Common Interest’ [PCI] without undergoing a Strategic Environmental Assessment [SEA] and a period of public consultation.

PCIs are key cross border infrastructure projects that link the energy systems of EU countries. They are intended to help the EU achieve its energy policy and the long-term decarbonisation of the economy in accordance with the Paris Agreement. ... read full story / add a comment

After a year-long debate within the Socialist Party, we have decided to leave and to establish a new democratic socialist political group, RISE. The four letters of RISE give a picture of the politics we stand for: Radical, Internationalist, Socialist and Environmentalist. ... read full story / add a comment

This blog entry from 16th Sept on the ShannonWatch.org website is reproduced here because while it might seem old news one week late, it will in fact be news to a lot of people since the mainstream just don't cover this, certainly not from the side of peace perspective.

The following was written by Veteran for Peace activist Tarak Kauff who is currently being refused permission to leave Ireland. He is accused of minor offenses linked to the attempt he and Ken MAyers made to inspect a US contracted military plane at Shannon Airport. ... read full story / add a comment

As we draw towards the end of the hottest summer on record, the effects of climate change are becoming rapidly more evident. From the uncontrollable fires in the Arctic circle to the devastating floods in Kathmandu, from the rapid melting of the Greenland ice sheet to the scorching heat waves being experienced around the world, it is clear that a climate emergency is no longer a future catastrophe to guard against but a reality that must be faced up to right now. ... read full story / add a comment

The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) has released a report outlining “serious and urgent concerns” regarding the state’s attitude towards the democratic right to protest. After consultations with protest groups from across the country, the ICCL reports “severe misuse” of the Public Order Act by Gardai, in the form of arrests without charge, harassment of protesters and imposing limits on where people can protest, seemingly in order to punish and discourage such action. ... read full story / add a comment

JUDGEMENTS FROM HIGH COURT AND SUPREME COURT ON INDUSTRIAL PEAT EXTRACTION DUE THIS WEEK.

Cases that originated in a 2013 ruling by An Bord Pleanala that industrial peat extraction requires planning permission have led to two judgements due this week in Ireland’s highest courts that may result in temporary closure of the industry.

The environmental charity Friends of the Irish Environment [FIE] originally referred three test cases of industrial peat extraction to An Bord Pleanala [ABP], the planning appeals board, in 2010, involving well-known companies like Westland, Bullrush, and Harte Peat. The peat is used for fuel, horticulture, mushroom growing, animal bedding, and as an industrial sorbent. None of the sites of up to 180 hectares in extent had planning permission from the local authority or a licence from the EPA. ... read full story / add a comment

From 1 July, Irish Water is seeking to implement excessive-use water charges of up to €500 per year. This will come as no great surprise to those of us who highlighted the programme for government agreed between Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael back in 2016. The Socialist Party opposed and warned about this element of the legislation at the time, as we knew that is could be used as a back door to the re-introduction of full water charges in the future. The legislation allows the government to lower the amount of water that is considered normal usage over time. Just like with tuition fees and bin charges, the amounts will be increased incrementally until the idea of direct payment for water becomes normalised, or at least this is their hope. ... read full story / add a comment

Vetaran fo Peace Tarak Kauff wrote the following introduction to a piece by Ken Mayers on the refusal of the High Court to allow them to return to the US while awaiting trial. Ken and Tarak are being charged as a result of their attempt to inspect a US contracted military place at Shannon Airport in March. ... read full story / add a comment

Concerns that Ireland could meet its renewable energy targets by propping up Estonia’s oil shale industry with biomass co-firing

Friends of the Irish Environment have urged Minister for Climate Action Richard Bruton to ensure that Ireland does not purchase credits from Estonian co-firing of wood in oil shale power stations in order to meet our renewable energy target. [1] ... read full story / add a comment

Indaver has advised CHASE by letter of plans to apply to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for an industrial emissions licence for their Ringaskiddy incinerator in the coming weeks, even though a decision has not yet been delivered following the CHASE High Court challenge to planning which closed on Monday 27 May 2019. (letter below) ... read full story / add a comment

Irish Parliament (Dáil) votes 36-60 to reject a Sinn Féin bill which aimed to insert a constitutional right to housing. This time last year we learnt that one in every five TDs (public representatives in the Irish Dáil [parliament]) – are actually landlords (“30 of Ireland’s 158 TDs are landlords. That includes at least four out of 15 of the current Cabinet.” Global Rights, May, 2018) “The question, of course that follows, in a country that seems to have an enormous problem with either controlling the housing (or any other) market (or property developers themselves, or the banks or other “powerful” groups within society): is there a conflict of interest? ... read full story / add a comment

These local elections on Fri 24th May are more important than ever. The reason is that up and down the country Fine Gael with help from Fianna Fail have allowed corporate vulture funds through various government breaks to them to buy up valuable tracts of land and to buy up thousands and thousands of apartments and homes. And the result is they are screwing people for rent. ... read full story / add a comment

The European elections are this Friday on May 24th and there are good reasons to consider your vote very carefully because it does make a difference because practically every bit of law passed in the EU has to be adopted by Ireland at some point. It is a great way for politicans here to say the "EU forced us to..."
They said that one about the attempt to privatise water during that campaign.

It can be safely assumed that most people are for internet freedom, protection of the environment and in particular to live in places with unpolluted water, clean air and safe from exposure to toxic chemicals. These are all no brainers. In the area of military we have seen how years of bringing democracy to the Middle East by bombing them has resulted in devastation and huge waves of human refugees and immigration and time and time again the nefarious activities of the intellegence agencies of the big powers like USA, UK, France and NATO show them to be heavily linked to the various terrorist groups, via training, funding and weapons supply through third party countries like Saudi Arabia and Qatar in order to disrupt and overthrown regimes they don't like. So do people really want Ireland to drop it's neutrality and get aboard these very costly military adventures and volunteer it's soldiers for basically ordained mass murder? At a guess, the answer is probably no. ... read full story / add a comment

It’s that time of year again, when politicians come knocking on doors looking for your vote. This May there will be European and Local elections in Ireland north and south. While domestic issues are, as always, likely to dominate the discussions, we believe it is vitally important that the issue of Palestine is kept firmly in the minds and mouths of all our politicians. The very essence of the Palestine solidarity movement is to ‘think globally, act locally’ – and we have seen impressive local support for Palestinian freedom by many local councils over the past decade. We need to make sure that Palestine is and remains an election issue! ... read full story / add a comment

What do Fine Gael politicians do when they retire? Join the corporate elite naturally.

The Dublin, MEP, Brian Hayes has become a well-paid lobbyist for bankers. Now their former leader, Enda Kenny is joining the global advisory council for a vulture fund. ... read full story / add a comment

Workers’ Party councillor and Euro candidate Éilis Ryan has said the government’s new rent regulations leave plenty loopholes for landlords to exploit.

Commenting following Minister Eoghan Murphy’s announcement of the new regulations this evening, Cllr. Ryan said:

“Landlords will breathe a sigh of relief that Minister Murphy continues to allow plenty loopholes for a landlord who wishes to get rid of a tenant. They can still use the excuse of giving a property to a relative, of selling up, or of refurbishing, and be confident that, by the time they could be found out, the tenant will have had to move on to new accommodation ... read full story / add a comment

Workers’ Party Dublin City Councillor Éilis Ryan has condemned what she says is the hypocrisy of Dublin City officials opening housing exhibition on Vienna’s housing model, today (Tuesday, 2ndApril) while refusing to contemplate similar public housing schemes in Dublin. ... read full story / add a comment