Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Independent)
Debt is a millstone around the necks of the Irish people and of all low and middle-income families across Europe. I support the call for a new European debt conference. There is precedent for that. In 1952-53, Germany had 50% of its debt written off with a moratorium on repayment and a lengthy repayment period of 50 years or more.
The Minister for Finance, Deputy Noonan has told us that the Irish debt is affordable and repayable. Of course it is, but it is only affordable and repayable if we are prepared to starve our children and have them live on the streets in cardboard boxes in Dublin and other towns and cities across the country. Of course, that is an absolutely outrageous suggestion.
The Minister of State, Deputy Harris, has told us we talk about abstract statistics. I can tell the Minister of State that the 350,000 people who are unemployed are not abstract statistics. They want a debt writedown. The 90,000 people on local authority housing lists want one, as do the 40,000 families who are facing repossession of their family homes.
The 30% of the population experiencing deprivation and the children living in poverty want a debt write-down. Certainly, they do not believe the debt we are repaying is either affordable or repayable.
Unfortunately, that is only half of the story. This assessment is made on the basis of the country paying interest on the debt of €7.5 billion per year. What will happen after the next general election is something the Government is not telling the people about. That is when the fiscal treaty will kick in and we will have to pay to meet the structural deficit.
How much more will that take out of the economy? I figure it will be anything up to €11 billion for several years. What will happen when the second part of the fiscal treaty kicks in? We will be obliged to get the debt down to 60% of GDP from its current level, anything from 102% to 120%, depending on to whom one is talking. That will give us austerity for a further 20 years or more. Austerity is not something abstract; it means human misery and chaos for low and middle-income families throughout the country and the eurozone.
It is unbelievable the Government will not take the opportunity to look for a debt conference and a write-down of debt that could ensure jobs would be created, houses built and trolleys taken from the corridors of accident and emergency departments, It could also ensure thousands of families would not lose their homes and children would not live in poverty. It is unbelievable the Government does not support the concept of seeking a debt write-down for the people in question who are already paying through the nose for a recession they did not create. Even before Syriza came to power in Greece, because that country had stood up to the European Union it had received a better debt deal than Ireland. Ireland should get together with Greece and the other programme countries and demand a new European debt conference for the benefit and betterment of the people.
Proposed closure of the Court House at Carrick on Suir, of the District Court Sittings in Tipperary Town, the Court office at Nenagh Courthouse and the actual closure of the Probate Office in the County is absolutely unacceptable and must be stopped.
These proposed closures are part of a more widespread, focused and deliberate assault on Rural Ireland involving the stripping away of services.
This policy was commenced by the last Fianna Fail/ Green Party Government and has been continued even more aggressively by the current Fine Gael/Labour Coalition.
The destruction of rural Ireland involves the
• Closure of rural Garda Stations
• Closure of rural Post Offices ( now continuing by way of deliberate reduction in Social Welfare business and proposed salary cuts for Post Masters)
• Reduction in teacher numbers and increased class sizes in small rural schools
• Withdrawal of bus services north and south of the county including Carrick on Suir, Cahir and North Tipperary areas.
• Lack of effective Broadband Services
• Failure to provide GP Services
• Withdrawal of Medical Card offices which has created confusion, fear and trauma
• Regionalisation of Hospital Services
• Deliberate focus of job creation on the east coast area around Dublin and the cities of Cork, Limerick and Galway to the detriment of rural counties like Tipperary.
I want to commend Muintir na Tire for the launching with other community groups of the “ Save Rural Ireland” campaign which focuses on the Post Office, GP, Broadband and flood risk and flood insurance areas among others. I will be strongly supporting this initiative.
The cuts to rural services are another form of austerity specifically targeted against rural Ireland based on centralisation and the baseless belief that bigger is best.
That of course is demonstrably untrue and is also diametrically opposed to the well-established and universally acknowledged principle of subsidiarity. In other words services are best and most effectively delivered as close as possible to the communities they serve.
I will be raising this way by way of Topical Issue and Parliamentary Question and I am calling on the Tipperary Government Oireachtas members, Minister Alan Kelly, Minister of State Tom Hayes and Senator Denis Landy to immediate halt any closure of Court Services in Tipperary and reverse the serious and deliberate assault on rural Ireland and its essential services.
Seamus Healy T.D.
Tel 087 2802199
3/2/2015
Statement in the Dáil during the private members motion on Housing Affordability on 27 January 2015.
Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Independent)
There is a very significant housing crisis in this country and the figures are truly horrendous. A total of 90,000 families languish on local authority housing waiting lists throughout the country. A total of 73,000 families are on rent supplement, in many cases, condemned to live in poor, substandard, damp and insecure accommodation.
For example, in Tipperary, 3,100 people are on the local authority housing waiting list and not a single local authority house will be built in 2015. No council, including Tipperary, has been given a capital allocation for housing this year as yet. This means that the council will be lucky to build any houses in 2016 – or at the very most, it will be at the end of 2016 before they are built.
This huge housing crisis is a result of the policies pursued by the previous Fianna Fáil-Green Party Government and by this Government slashing the local authority house building programme and privatising housing. The 2020 social housing strategy is a continuation of that privatisation. At the end of that period, we will find that three quarters of the social housing will be provided by private rented accommodation, with only 5,800 new local authority builds per year. Some 40 years ago, in 1975, we were building 8,794 local authority houses. We need to repeat those figures; we need to build at least 10,000 local authority houses for people on the housing waiting list. There is no doubt that the privatisation of public housing has been an absolute disaster. No less a person than Uachtarán na hÉireann has drawn our attention to the issue. He has stated that we have to accept once and for all that people who need housing and cannot provide that from their own means should not be abandoned to the market place and the principle should be accepted that their housing should be as good as any other housing. He stated that one of the most basic deprivations a human being can suffer or fear, is that of being homeless. He further stated that it is about democracy, that one cannot leave the provision of housing to a residual feature of the market place. We have done that and homelessness is the consequence. He also stated that we have to accept that we need a great, huge increase in public rental accommodation.
The Irish Council for Social Housing said something similar when it stated that the over-reliance on the private market to meet social housing demand is unsustainable and ultimately unpredictable. Barnardos states that it is seriously concerned about the scale of the housing crisis now facing many low-income families, particularly those reliant on social welfare.
Many children experience their childhood in overcrowded, unsuitable and insecure accommodation, which affects their social, emotional and educational development. We need an emergency public house building programme, with an absolute minimum of 10,000 local authority builds every year. This programme would be self-financing and would make common sense. It would put construction workers back to work and ensure additional PAYE income for the State. It would also ensure a saving to the State in social welfare payments and it would provide additional rental income for the State. It would also support the local economy, as it would put money in people’s pockets which would ensure a huge boost for local shops and businesses in danger of closing.
What we have heard from the Minister and the Government this evening is not the real world. A total of 90,000 families are on local authority house waiting lists, which is a huge figure. These thousands of families are condemned to live in insecure, poor and substandard accommodation. This must stop.
Greek Election Result is significant not only for Greece and the Greek people but for all of Europe.
Statement in the Dáil during European Council statements on 27 January 2015.
Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Independent)
The election at the weekend of the anti-austerity Syriza party in Greece is a significant development not only for Greece and the Greek people, but also for all of Europe, and particularly for the programme countries including Ireland, Spain and Portugal. I heartily welcome the victory. The Greek people have supported all those in Europe suffering from unjust austerity imposed by the troika.
They have opened the door for the long-suffering Irish people. We must grasp this opportunity with both hands immediately. If Ireland does not join Syriza in supporting and preparing for a European debt conference to write down debt of all programme countries, it will face another 20 years of austerity. The 1952-53 European debt conference, which halved the German debt, gave a moratorium on repayments and extended the repayment period when it started to 50 years, offers a precedent. Another initiative of that nature is absolutely necessary for Ireland, Greece and the other programme countries.
It is regrettable that the Taoiseach, the Minister for Finance and the Minister for Foreign Affairs have said in recent days that Ireland does not want a debt write-down. I assure them that the 1.4 million Irish people who are affected by deprivation and the 376,000 families that are living in consistent poverty in this State – both figures are taken from last week’s CSO statistics – want a debt write-down. The same thing can be said of the 211,000 children who live in consistent poverty in this country, the 90,000 families on housing waiting lists, the 350,000 people who are unemployed, the 83,000 people who are on schemes and the almost 100,000 people who have emigrated.
If we do not get the debt write-down we seriously need, we will continue in austerity for the next 20 years. That is due to the fiscal treaty, about which we are hearing nothing now. When the fiscal treaty clicks in after the next election, it will impose ongoing austerity for 20 years. The structural deficit will cost us €4.5 billion. After that, the reduction to 60% of GDP will cost approximately €3 billion a year for 20 years. This country needs and wants a write-down. The Government, the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste should support Syriza and the other programme countries in calling for a European debt conference.
Department of Health
Nursing Home Inspections
Séamus Healy (Tipperary South, Independent)407. To ask the Minister for Health the way it is planned to meet the Health Information and Quality Authority requirements in respect of a nursing home (details supplied) in County Tipperary; if a fully costed and funded plan has been submitted to HIQA; if not when it will forward a plan; and if he will make a statement on the matter.[3873/15]
Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)There are currently 119 public residential units providing a mixture of long-stay and short-stay residential care. All of these, including St Conlon’s Nursing Unit, Nenagh and Dean Maxwell Community Nursing Unit, Roscrea are registered with HIQA. Notwithstanding the problems that some facilities face with structures and facilities, the vast majority of their residents receive excellent levels of care. Without these public facilities many older people would simply have nowhere to go, other than our acute hospitals which are already under pressure. It is therefore very important that the services provided by public facilities be maintained.
Demand for capital investment for the Community Nursing Unit programme far exceeds the funding available, and investment must therefore be allocated as effectively as possible based on the HSE’s assessment of priorities.
HIQA has indicated that a number of units do not fully meet the standards one would expect to find in a modern nursing home. This is not surprising given the age and structure of many of our public nursing homes. However, there is adequate flexibility available within the terms of existing legislative provisions, and through ongoing discussions between the HSE and HIQA, for solutions to be found. In this context the HSE has been working with HIQA over the past number of months to meet the re-registration requirements of these units, and my Department is closely monitoring the situation.
I call on all Dáil deputies to support this call in the interest of the Irish People.
I heartily welcome the Victory of the Anti-Austerity Syriza Party in the Greek general Election.
The Greek people have supported all those in Europe suffering from the unjust austerity imposed by the Troika. They have opened a door for the long suffering Irish People. We must grasp this opportunity with both hands immediately.
With Syriza, we must support and prepare for a European Debt Conference to write down the debt of all programme countries.
Seamus Healy TD 087-2802199
Statement by Seamus Healy TD
Despite the excellent dedicated work of staff at St Conlon’s Community Nursing Unit, Nenagh and at Dean Maxwell Community Nursing Unit,Roscrea, these nursing units are among 21 public nursing homes threatened with sanctions up to and including closure.
This is basically due to the failure of government to invest in upgrading the homes and a consequent finding of “major non-compliance” by inspecting body HIQA.
Deputy Seamus Healy raised this issue at last Thursday’s meeting (15/1/2015) of the Oireachtas Health Committee.
Deputy Healy demanded clarification of the position from Minister Varadkar and Tony O’Brien Director of the Health Service Executive.
Mr O’Brien confirmed the seriousness of this issue when he said “The challenge for re-registration of public long-stay beds with HIQA is a significant issue to be dealt with over the coming months as there is insufficient capital funding available to meet all requirements and there are over 30 large units who provide in excess of 2,500 beds and where there is, currently, insufficient funding in the capital plan to bring this infrastructure to the required standard. “
Further detailed information was contained in the Sunday Business Post.
Neither nursing home was identified in the HSE Service Plan for 2015 as projects that will secure capital investment in the coming year. HIQA said in its report “if a centre is not in compliance by July 1, 2015 and if no realistic, time-bound costed/funded plan has been agreed with the Authority, then appropriate conditions will be attached to any renewal of registration”
In addition to closure, HIQA can impose conditions for continued operation which can include forcing nursing homes to reduce the number of residents or high-dependency patients they have.
A HSE document leaked last year said that 300 millionEuro was required to upgrade public nursing units. But only 7.3 million is being allocated for the entire country this year in the HSE service plan. Neither of the two nursing homes was identified in the service plan for capital investment this year.
The neglect of these homes by government is unforgivable. Capital investment must be provided immediately to these homes before July 1, 2015.
There is a particular obligation on Government politicians in Tipperary, including Ministers Kelly and Hayes, to insist that the HSE Service Plan be amended to include the required capital investment.
Additional direct government funding must be allocated to secure the future of these units.
Seamus Healy TD
087-2802199
