Sinn Féin Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin North-West constituency
On Wednesday next 7th Novenmber at 7pm, Sinn Féin will be launching our Jobs Creation Strategy in the AXIS Centre Ballymun.
With unemployment rates at 48% in some parts oF Ballymun, there is a real need to take a different approach and start creating jobs for our citizens.
Please come, Join us and listen to what we have to say.
Sinn Fein spokesperson Dessie Ellis TD has called on the government to fast track the reform of building regulations and put in place a clear scheme to pay for repairs which will be needed to Pyrite affected homes into the future. He was speaking as part of a Dáil debate on the Report of the Pyrite Panel.
“There remains no mandatory testing of quarries for heave potential. We needed no report to tell us that quarries should be testing for a substance which could cause a house’s foundations to expand and the damage that would to do to the entire structure.
“We have houses tearing apart from the inside because of these very simple, but unforgiveable, failures to regulate. At no point on the chain of supply were any sufficient checks made to see if the material being used for the foundations of these houses was suitable.
“At no point did any regulation require those in the quarry, the concrete suppliers or the construction company doing the work, to ascertain the quality of their materials and that substances like pyrite were not present.
“It cannot be stated any more clearly: the state failed these families utterly and so far it has continued to fail them. We need legislative reform of inspections and building standards which will make these kinds of scandals much more rare and easily resolved.
“I support the demands of the families for immediate work to be carried out and paid for by the state. When the state puts in place its scheme to recoup this money should not be the concern for the people living in houses which need serious repairs, having bought the home in good faith”
Minister launches new buses while cutting service – Ellis
October 12, 2012
Sinn Féin Transport spokesperson Dessie Ellis has today described as shameful the behaviour of Minister Leo Varadkar who yesterday basked in the glory of launching a new fleet of Dublin Buses a day after withholding €36 million in promised funding to CIÉ.
Deputy Ellis continued;
“The irony of this is not lost on people. Minister Varadkar may enjoy the limelight of launching new buses but he is systematically dismantling public transport in this state, through cuts, reforms and fare hikes.
“Dublin Bus is part of CIÉ which has had its yearly state subvention cut from €312 million in 2009 to €242 million today and Varadkar is intent on making a further €40 million cut to this by 2014.
“He is gutting the companies under CIÉ with these cuts and forcing them to provide less of a service for higher prices. Minister Varadkar has stated publicly that fare hikes damage public transport and discourage use of it but has forced the companies to do just that.
“No one can take seriously a government which speaks about smarter travel as they make public transport less accessible and less attractive while running down services and cutting routes.”
Sinn Fein TD for Dublin North West Dessie Ellis has called on the government to listen to his party’s proposals for job creation today. He made his comments following the launch of the ‘Jobs Plan – Enterprise Policy for the 21st century’, saying job creation was an essential ingredient in building economic prosperity.
The document is a detailed 60 page job stimulus package which sets out a comprehensive plan for making youth employment a national priority; assisting businesses and manufacturing; developing the agri-food sector; reforming the existing enterprise agencies; promoting co-operatives and much more.
Deputy Ellis continued;
“Jobs are at the route of this crisis. With close to half a million people on the Live Register and no signs of this changing we need a new approach by the state and real stimulus in our homes, communities, public services and businesses
Ballymun and Finglas are once again employment blackspots with highs of 44% and 35.7% . Live Register numbers have gone up or remained high over the last year. We need to break this cycle and use job creation to do it.
Like our alternative budget proposals, which we will bring forward next month, this plan has been fully costed and provides a socially responsible way to reduce the deficit and create and retain jobs.
In this Jobs Plan, Sinn Féin presents a real, detailed jobs stimulus strategy that will invest €13 billion into job creation and retention, and create an average of 156,000 short and long term jobs.
It has been a mantra of Sinn Féin that you cannot cut your way out of recession.
The money is there; in the National Pension Reserve Fund, the European Investment Bank, the private pension sector, and in the money the government plans to cut from its capital budget spend.
This is not rocket science.
The scandal is that this government will continue to fritter away the money in the NPRF; put money into toxic banks, and pay off unguaranteed bondholders, while older citizens lose home care supports, and there is one reduction after another in wages; support for lone parents; carers; citizens with disabilities; the blind and the unemployed.
Fine Gael and Labour have no strategic vision of how to invest the money in the National
Pension Reserve Fund in a way that can help the economy in the long term.
Sinn Féin has a strategy.
It is a thoughtful, rational, well developed and costed plan that will use the available resources in an intelligent – smart way.
There will be those who disagree with our proposals. That’s fine. Let them do so constructively and provide their alternative.”
October 9, 2012
Sinn Féin Housing spokesperson Dessie Ellis, and spokesperson for Arts, Heritage, Tourism and Sports, Sandra McLellan, congratulate and send wishes of further success to the Irish team competing in the 2012 Homeless World Cup in Mexico. The Deputies made their comments after the team’s qualification to the third round of the games.
Deputy Ellis and McLellan continued:
“The Homeless World Cup is an inspirational initiative where people from around the world who have been made homeless come together and compete.
It is a great display of the talent and dedication of these people and it highlights the huge loss to society when people are pushed to the margins.
The Irish team are doing us proud in Mexico. We wish them every success and congratulate them, their trainers and supporters on their efforts so far in this competition.”
Ends
Note: Games can be watched live at http://www.homelessworldcup.org/
October 2, 2012
Sinn Féin Housing spokesperson Dessie Ellis TD has called on the government to provide funding for repairs to houses in need of immediate works due to pyrite contamination. He made his call during a debate in the Dáil tonight following the deadline for stakeholders to submit possible resolutions to the on-going scandal.
Deputy Ellis said;
“Apart from the residents there is not really any innocent party in this scandal. The state allowed regulations which failed to stop this contamination and failed to legislate to protect citizens from this.
“The quarry failed to identify pyrite contamination as did the construction companies and finally Homebond who washed their hands of the whole situation and behaved incredibly badly.
“There are 850 homes in need immediate work to stop further damage being done. These are the roofs over these families’ heads and action must be taken sooner rather than later.
“At present no resolution is apparent. The state must continue to work for a resolution and to put in place the industry levy to pay for works and monitoring of other contaminated homes which are not in need of work at present.
“But, as I have said, immediate work is necessary and the state must put up the money for this on the basis that those identified as being liable will in the longer term pay back this debt.”
ENDS
Please see below response to the Objection I put in, in relation to the Amusement Arcade .
The proposed amusement arcade, which would represent a land use of a similar nature to a Betting Office, would result in and over concentration of a gambling time use in this Key District Centre which already has a minimum of five betting offices. It would be contrary to the provisions of the development plan stated ins section 17.28 which states that is tis an objective to prevent a concentration of betting offices and similar retail service outlets such as amusement arcades. The development located in a back room of the premises, would fail to contribute to the creation of a vibrant retail and commercial core in this gateway village. The development would therefore, seriously injure the amenities and depreciate the value of property in the vicinity, it would be contrary to the proper planning and sustainable development of the area.
An appeal may be made against this decision within 4 weeks, beginning 27th September, 2012. to an Bord Pleanala, Dessie got this on Friday but I got a copy by post today too and the above is verbatim.
‘State must apologise’; LAUNDRIES
100 words
27 September 2012
The Daily Mirror
1; Eire
6
English
(c) 2012 Mirror Group Ltd
SINN Fein TD Dessie Ellis last night urged the Government to apologise for its role in the Magdalene Laundries.
He made his comments during a Private Members debate on a motion seeking justice for the survivors.
Deputy Ellis said: “It would be convenient for us to shift the blame to the Church and the Order who carried out these acts but the State who funded them is guilty also.
“Silence, inaction, apathy and collaboration are not deeds of the innocent.
“This State allowed the Catholic Church free rein for many years.
“The State must apologise.”
Sinn Féin Housing spokesperson Dessie Ellis TD has called on Minister Hogan to explain himself. He made his call following the revelations that the scandal prone Minister may have lobbied Kilkenny Co. Council to obstruct the housing of a traveller family.
The particular family were living in crowded unsuitable conditions.
A letter was sent in Minister Hogan’s name from his constituency office on his headed paper naming the family and telling residents that the Minister and a local Fine Gael councillor had worked to block the family from housing in Bonnettstown, Co. Kilkenny.
“This Minister still refuses to meet the Priory Hall residents, who have been out of their homes for almost a year. A Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government should be meeting the housing needs of people rather than obstructing them.
“Minister Hogan has some very serious questions to answer about the letter sent to residents of Bonnettstown, whether he lobbied Kilkenny County Council and if so why?”
ends
September 25, 2012
Sinn Féin spokesperson on Transport Dessie Ellis TD has blasted the announcement of further fare increases in Dublin Bus, Bus Eireann and Iarnróid Éireann as another in a series of critical blows to public transport.
He made his comments following the announcement that fares will go up between 2.5 and 10 per cent despite the Minister for Transport admitting earlier this year that fare increases were hurting services like Dublin Bus as people sought other options.
Deputy Ellis continued;
“Public transport has been under funded in this state for a very long time and certainly never treated as the incredibly important public service that it is.
“Busses and trains carry far more people, more efficiently and faster than private transport when given the right planning and funding. A good system of busses can create a hub of business in urban centres and improve our competitiveness. Instead the government is implementing a policy it freely admits is bad for public transport. What is bad for public transport is bad for our economy.
“Fare increases will further turn people off public transport which is seen as expensive and lacking the benefits seen in other European cities. Too many working people in urban centres or commuter towns are opting for private transport because the services of Bus Éireann, Iarnróid Éireann and Dublin Bus are being run down and made unattractive by government policy.
“We need to make public transport more affordable at the point of delivery. One measure is to further incentivise the use of prepaid bus tickets and expand the flexibility of these tickets. We also need to look at other fare models from similarly sized cities where public transport is nearly always the first option in built up areas.
“Cutting funding and forcing the dwindling passengers to foot more of the bill might look good on the department’s budget plan but it will lead to serious problems in the future and damage our ability to build lasting economic prosperity.”
ENDS