March 09, 2010 RSS

Gilmore calls on Taoiseach to support Labour's plan to reduce commercial rent

Throughout the country retail businesses are being pushed to the wall having been locked into leases which were negotiated in better and more promising times.

The issue of upward rent reviews was raised during Leaders' Questions this morning in advance of the same issue being debated in Private Members' Time this evening in the Dáil.

The Labour Leader Eamon Gilmore TD urged the Taoiseach to support the Labour Party Private Members' Motion which will allow the downward revision of commercial rents.

Eamon said: "In every shopping street and centre in the country, retail businesses are pushed to the wall. They are trying to get costs down, custom through the door, to survive and to keep people in employment.

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March 08, 2010

Happy International Women's Day

Labour Deputy Leader Joan Burton TD along with Labour Women marked International Womens' Day by donating to a UNIFEM project which builds shelters for women fleeing violence in Haiti.

Katherine Dunne, Labour Women Chair said, "Women are second-class citizens in Haiti. The minimum legal age for marriage is 15 years for women. Rape was only made a criminal offence in Haiti in 2005. Like domestic violence, women associate rape with shame. There are little protections for girls and women.

"In Haiti, women come last. After the earthquake the situation is even worse with shelters gone, family protection gone and schools gone. With this donation Labour Women want to help and also highlight the dreadful situation with violence against women in Haiti.

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March 03, 2010

No urgency from Government on jobs - Gilmore

With an impending reshuffle Leaders' Questions this morning in the Dail saw Labour Leader Eamon Gilmore demand the Taoiseach establish as part of that Government reshuffle a Minister with a dedicated responsibility for employment.

"There is an urgency in the employment issue and getting people back to work. From the Taoiseach's earlier reply, neither he nor any member of Government appears to appreciate or understand this urgency. We can only judge the Government's performance by results."

Eamon told the Taoiseach that the Government's policy on jobs is not working, we have record levels of unemployment and little or no action on the part of the Government to deal with it.

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March 02, 2010

Government's policy on banks is not working, Gilmore

"The Government policy on the banks is not working," the Labour Leader Eamon Gilmore TD told the Dail during Leaders' Questions this morning.

He spoke of how Ireland is now in its third calendar year of recession and a year since the Government announced its policy to establish NAMA. We challenged the blanket guarantee at the time and advocated nationalisation instead. Now commentators are speaking of how nationalisation is inevitable.

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'Justin Keating - democrat, socialist and a man of deep conviction' - Gilmore

On New Year's Eve we lost a friend and former colleague, Justin Keating. In January we posted Michael D Higgins's tribute which he delivered at Justin's funeral and today the Dáil heard messages of sympathy to Justin's family who were present in the visitor's gallery.

Eamon said: "Justin Keating was a major public figure who over a long life stretching from 1930 to January this year served the State and society in a wide variety of roles with distinction and devotion."

You can see Eamon's full tribute in the accompanying video and read his statement in our media centre.

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February 27, 2010

Environment and Sustainability

Labour held a Forum on Friday in the Mansion House with Environmental Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) on the theme 'Planning for a Sustainable Future'. The NGO presentations were coordinated by the Environment Pillar and included presentations on planning, biodiversity, forestry and heritage.

Michael Ewing the Coordinator of the Environment Pillar gave a presentation about the work of the Environment Pillar. Tom Roche spoke about the work of Just Forests in promoting the need for a more sustainable policy for forestry in Ireland. The need to protect Wetlands and their importance in flood water attenuation was explained to the meeting by Anja Murray the Environmental Officer with An Taisce.

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February 26, 2010

Labour on line for awards

Remember this video from the European Elections last year - Don't Make the Wrong Choice - Vote Alan Kelly" by Garry McCarthy aka GMC and featuring music by Cork band State of Jay.

The video was nominated for the Best Viral Event at the Digital Media Awards which were held last night in the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Northwood. Unfortunately while Alan may have won the seat back in June, the Digital Media Award went to Chemistry for The Sarkozy Letters but Alan did take home bronze. Well done to everyone. (Alan blogs on our website here and you can follow him on Twitter here.)

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February 24, 2010

Gilmore challenges Cowen to go to the country

After a series of crises Eamon Gilmore TD, Leader of the Labour Party, challenged the Government to go to the country this morning during Leaders' Questions.

"We are in a very difficult, strange and worrying time for people," he said.

"It is not fair or responsible for the Taoiseach with a battered, broken, tired and now divided Government to continue to hang onto office in circumstances and times when the people need a competent functioning Government in which they can have confidence and one that has a mandate, something the Government no longer has."

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