News

This government must now explain to the people why it has spent eight years fighting this case The government defended corporate interests instead of the public interest when it fought the €13 billion tax judgment, according to Social Democrats Finance Spokesperson Róisín Shortall. “I welcome today’s judgment of the European Court of Justice, which has […]

It is an indictment of this government that the number of children experiencing material deprivation has increased by nearly 15 percent at a time when budget coffers are overflowing, according to Social Democrats Finance Spokesperson Róisín Shortall. “This government pay lip service to addressing child poverty – but that is all. Former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar […]

Rory Hearne has been selected by the Social Democrats as the party’s general election candidate in Dublin North-West, a constituency where Róisín Shortall has held a Dáil seat since 1992. The well-known housing expert and campaigner, author and lecturer was officially confirmed as a candidate at a selection convention this evening (July 25) in the […]

The €6.9bn in additional expenditure outlined in today’s Summer Economic Statement must be underpinned by proper workforce planning for future needs, according to Social Democrats finance spokesperson Róisín Shortall. “Problems highlighted in the Summer Economic Statement are mostly the result of consistent failures by Government to invest in critical infrastructure and lack of planning for […]

The Minister for Health must come into the Dáil and answer questions as to why €19m in funding specifically allocated to reduce waiting times for children’s spinal surgery was spent elsewhere, according to Social Democrats health spokesperson Róisín Shortall. “This latest controversy is a further betrayal of children awaiting scoliosis surgery. “In 2017, then Minister […]

Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns has paid tribute to former Social Democrats co-leaders Catherine Murphy and Róisín Shortall after they announced they will not contest the forthcoming general election. The former co-leaders made the announcement this morning saying it was time for a new generation to take over. Catherine Murphy said: “I love my job […]

Today I am announcing my decision to step down as a TD at the next election. I believe that now is a good time and the right time for me to do so. I have been a TD for Dublin North-West for almost 32 years and am very proud to have had the opportunity to […]

Chronic underfunding of the National Cancer Strategy is compromising patient care, according to Social Democrats health spokesperson Róisín Shortall. “It is clear that implementation of the National Cancer Strategy is no longer a priority for this Government. “When the Irish Cancer Society appeared before the Health Committee in April, their message was received loud and […]

The medical card scheme for dental treatments in Ireland is close to collapse, according to Social Democrats health spokesperson Róisín Shortall. “Figures reported today reveal there are 252 fewer dentists signed up to the Dental Treatment Service Scheme (DTSS) compared to last year. There are also major disparities in the number of participating dentists depending […]

Social Democrats health spokesperson Róisín Shortall has again questioned why a model three hospital for the mid-west region is only being considered now. “At today’s Oireachtas Public Petitions Committee, I asked the Minister for Health why it has taken him four years to consider a model three hospital for the UL Hospital Group. “Every other […]