Tag: right2housing

Great photos of Sunday’s Street Feast at IMMA with End Direct Provision Dublin, where we enjoyed food prepared by residents from Direct Provision centres. People living in Direct Provision do not have their own kitchen or table to participate in Street Feast, like other Irish communities. This event aimed to change this for the day and to allow the discussion about ending Direct Provision to continue. Great food cooked by people not allowed to cook for their kids! Photos by Ruth Medjber (Ruthless Imagery Photography) ‪#‎ENDDP‬

Street Feast Photography by Ruth Medjber www.ruthlessimagery.com
Street Feast Photography by Ruth Medjber www.ruthlessimagery.com
Street Feast Photography by Ruth Medjber www.ruthlessimagery.com
Street Feast Photography by Ruth Medjber www.ruthlessimagery.com
Street Feast Photography by Ruth Medjber www.ruthlessimagery.com
Street Feast Photography by Ruth Medjber www.ruthlessimagery.com

PBP AN ALTERNATIVE VISION FOR IRELAND

 

People Before Profit
Share the Wealth: An Alternative Vision for Ireland

Introduction
Our Priorities: A Summary

Arts   –  Childcare   –  Disability  –  Drugs  –  Economic Policy Summary  –  Education  –  Employment and Labour Rights  –  Environment  –  Foreign Policy    Health  –  Housing  –  Irish Language  –  Land Use and Food  –  Law  –  LBGT Rights  –  Natural Resources  –  Political Reform
Racism  –  Water  –  Woman’s Right to Choose  –  Youth Equality

Introduction
By Richard Boyd Barrett

Despite government parties’ claims of economic recovery, Ireland remains a deeply unequal society. Government growth projections and claims of economic stability lack all credibility in the face of the evidence that another global economic down-turn is looming.

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Right2housing protest in September with Cllrs Brid Smith and Tina MacVeigh highlighting scandal of empty houses while families are homeless
Right2housing protest in September with People Before Profit Cllrs, Brid Smith and Tina MacVeigh, highlighting scandal of empty houses while families are homeless

The Junior Minister with responsibility for housing, Paudie Coffey has finally admitted that there is an ‘emergency situation’ after a shocking RTE documentary appeared on housing.

Brid Smith, from People Before Profit said,

‘This government is speaking a different language in the weeks before the election than in the weeks beforehand.

‘One of the junior Ministers has admitted there is a housing emergency but his government has persistently refused to declare an official emergency.

‘Such a declaration would have allowed the government to speed up the social house building programme and impose a special levy on vacant properties that are left idle for speculative purposes.

‘The reality is that this government has turned its back on social housing and has invested less in this sector than any government for the past twenty five years.

‘Their primary aim is to re-stimulate the property bubble and that is why they prefer to subsidise private landlords than build social housing.

‘Just 55 social housing units, on average, have been built in Dublin in each of the last six years.

‘Efforts to curb rising rents have also been puny. The two year restriction on rent rises only means that tenants get a double rent whammy whereas real rent control would mean rents are tied to the rate of inflation.

‘We need a real change so that housing is not seen as a commodity but as a social right.’

For more information- Cllr Bríd Smith ( 087 909 0166)
Twitter- @bridsmith

housing

The Labour Party worked happily with Fine Gael for four years but has suddenly discovered that they are a party for the rich. Joan Burton has started to warn about a ‘lack of balance’ if Fine Gael started to rule alone.

In a statement Cllr Brid Smith said,‘Labour is acting like a second-hand dealer of dodgy cars. In 2011, they won votes on a promise that they would restrain Fine Gael. And they are trying the same trick again.‘But once the votes were counted after 2011 Labour dropped all talk of restraining FG and acted as their collaborator. Labour warned that Fine Gael would introduce water charges – but then voted for them.

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Press Release

23/10/2015

A combination of rent controls and a massive social housing programme is needed to solve housing crisis

People Before Profit has refuted the claims which have surfaced today in the press, that rent controls will not work.

Cllr Bríd Smith said: “What we have seen today and over the last while is a tidal wave of neo-liberal dogma. For anyone to suggest that rent controls are not an absolute necessity is absurd. One example that we can see is from Berlin. On June 1st of this year the Germany government brought in a new set of rules that limit rent increases within a given area, the average cost of new rents in that area dropped by 3.1% within a month. In other German cities that do not have these rent controls rents have remained static.

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People Before Profit supported the Right2Housing banner drops on empty properties all over the country highlighting the fact that the housing shortage is manufactured by builders and developers and their political friends in the main establishment parties.

Across Ireland – Right2Housing protestors highlighted how useless are the government’s policies regarding housing. Protestors dropped banners on propoerties that could and should be taken over and used to house the every-growing numbers of homeless people in our city and towns. Cllr Brid Smith and Tina MacVeigh coordinated banner drops accross Dublin South Constituency and encourage people to join PBP so that a meaningful housing policy might be pursued.

Right2housing housing protest Right2Housing Banner Drop John Dillon St

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Cllr Brid Smith Calls on Minister Alan Kelly to immediately increase Traveller Accommodation Budget

In line with requirements of the DoECLG, DCC’s Traveller Accommodation Unit (TAU) in collaboration with the local Traveller organisations undertook a consultation process with Traveller families across the city to identify current and projected accommodation needs for inclusion in the TAP 2014-2018.

However, the budget allocation for the 2015 DCC TAP targets has recently been announced as a meagre €366,299. This is a devastating blow to the delivery of the TAP, the budget is such that it cannot deliver even a fraction of the targets nor will it make any positive impact on the accommodation needs of Travellers and Traveller families will be once again failed by the state as many families have already been waiting over a decade for accommodation.

 

The human cost of this on Traveller families is devastating. It is widely documented that accommodation is the most significant determinant on health and the gap between the health status of Travellers and that of the settled population is startling.

Life expectancy at birth for male Travellers is 15.1 years less than the general population,

Life expectancy at birth for female Travellers is now 70.1 which is 11.5 years less than women in the general population

Traveller infant mortality is estimated at 14.1 per 1,000 live births (compared with the general population rate of 3.9).

Travellers have a greater burden of chronic diseases than the general population

Suicide rates are nearly 7 times higher in Traveller men compared with the general male population.

Suicide accounts for 11% of all Traveller deaths.

Despite this stark reality the FG/Labour government has wielded a systematic and dramatic disinvestment in the Traveller community including Traveller Accommodation. .

Cllr Brid Smith and People Before Profit call on the Minister to meet with DCC and Traveller organisations as a matter of urgency and to provide the budget required to address the accommodation needs and we support the protest called by the local Traveller organisations 2pm at City Hall on 8th July.

 

For further information contact Cllr Brid Smith 087 9090166