News

AN AUSTRALIAN POLITICIAN made global news recently for breastfeeding her child while speaking in parliament. It’s worth taking a minute to look behind the vaguely titillating headlines. Australian Greens politician Larissa Waters was categorically not the first female politician to feed a child in her place of work. What’s unusual about the situation was not […]

The Social Democrats have said the government’s appalling record on tackling corruption has led to it being rebuked today by the Council of Europe’s anti-corruption body, GRECO. The party co-leader Róisín Shortall TD was commenting on a GRECO report which found that Ireland’s level of compliance with its recommendations were “globally unsatisfactory”. The anti-corruption body […]

Social Democrats TD Catherine Murphy has said that the numbers of people awaiting a decision on Social Welfare payments is out of control with some payments having an average of 18 weeks for a payment to be awarded. Deputy Murphy said people who had applied for payments such as parents with special needs children; disabled […]

The government’s school admissions bill completely fails to deal with the problem of children being denied access to their local primary school due to their religion, according to the Social Democrats. The party has tabled amendments to remove the schools ‘baptism barrier’ – a discriminatory practice which the government’s Education (Admission to Schools) Bill 2016 […]

The Minister for Housing is sitting on a major fire safety review completed over a year ago while today announcing a separate review in the wake of the Grenfell Tower blaze, the Social Democrats said today. Dublin Bay North Councillor Cian O’Callaghan said: “Mr Murphy is saying that the Grenfell Tower fire is going to […]

The government’s chronic underspending in areas that are fundamental to Ireland’s long-term economic growth shows that it is allergic to the concept of investing now to save later, the Social Democrats co-leader Róisín Shortall TD said today. Deputy Shortall made her comments as new figures from the NERI think tank show that Ireland is underspending […]

Social Democrats councillor Gary Gannon will host two public information sessions this week about how to best spend funds allocated by Dublin City Council to make the city safer for women and girls. The events will take place in the Third Space café in Smithfield at 6.30p.m. on Wednesday 28th June and in the Sean […]

The Judicial Appointments Commission Bill is a step towards more transparency and accountability in the appointment of judges – but more needs to be done to ensure diversity in the wider legal profession, the Social Democrats said today. The party’s co-leaders, Róisín Shortall TD and Catherine Murphy TD, said diversity in the judiciary will only […]

A new State agency needs to be set up to oversee the faster delivery of thousands of new homes, the Social Democrats said today. The call comes as information obtained by the party’s co-leader Catherine Murphy TD shows that only four staff are working in the Housing Delivery Office set up last August in the […]

The new Taoiseach and government must spearhead changes to deliver real equality for LGBTI people, the Social Democrats said today. Speaking ahead of the annual Pride Parade, the party’s co-leaders Catherine Murphy TD and Róisín Shortall TD said the struggle for equality is not complete and it is vitally important to build on recent progress. […]