Candidate Launches Housing Billboard

Sinn Féin local election hopeful in East Meath Sinéad Burke has marked the last week of her election campaign with the launch of a number of billboards which she says highlight some of the major issues that need immediate attention in the area.

She said, “Over the last number of months I have been talking to thousands of residents in the East Meath area and listening to their concerns. Issues ranging from provision of childcare and youth facilities, critical infrastructure and services, to unemployment and job creation have been first on peoples’ minds.

“The first of our billboards highlights the housing crisis that now exists in East Meath. Over 450 people in the area are now on the housing list. These are real people - couples, families, parents -
waiting for appropriate accommodation, This situation exists despite the fact that Meath County Council is owed over €30 million in levies from developers, and while housing unit after housing unit in the area remain unoccupied. Again, as is so often the case, this is a situation where a common sense plan, mixed with a bit of foresight would help resolve the problem and increase the quality of life of so many people.

"Over the next number of days we will also be launching a billboard to highlight Meath's status as the receiver of the least amount of job creation investment in Leinster, as well as a billboard highlighting the use of pre-fab accommodation for schools.”

Burke meets Donacarney Celtic Officials

Sinn Féin local election candidate in East Meath Sinéad Burke has met with Donacarney Celtic F.C. officials to discuss their ongoing difficulties to get adequate funding for appropriate facilities at their site at Blackhills.

The club, which was founded in 2002 by a group of local parents to address the lack of sporting outlets for children in the Donacarney and Mornington areas of East Meath, now has more than twenty teams, and looks after children from 5 years old upwards.

Ms. Burke said, "Unfortunately the club find themselves in a legal loophole, due to Meath County Council's refusal to grant them a lease on their current facility at Blackhills. This means that they are not in a position to apply for funding to improve the facility. Plans are in place to provide appropriate changing and restroom facilities for the young children who make use of the park for matches and training, but funding of up to €30,000 is needed.

"I have met with officials from the club and it is obvious that the club is very well run and committed to the area. I am calling on Meath County Council to review it's position in light of the role this club plays to the social and sporting life of so many locals."

Ministers Should Try Living on €204 per Week

Sinn Féin local election candidate for East Meath Sinéad Burke has called for dole queues to be cut not dole payments. She described as ‘Thatcherite’ the comments of Finance Minister Brian Lenihan who has claimed that social welfare rates are “far more generous than those in other countries and are a disincentive to work”. Burke challenged local Ministers Noel Dempsey and Dermot Ahern to survive for even a week on that sum.

Ms. Burke said, “Brian Lenihan’s Thatcherite comments should be rejected out of hand. His suggestion that social welfare rates in this State are too generous is an insult to the thousands of people in East Meath dependant on social welfare and who are struggling from week-to-week. These are the same workers that built the economy and paid their taxes, taxes that Fianna Fáil went on to squander.

“I challenge our two local cabinet Ministers, Noel Dempsey and Dermot Ahern, to try living on the €204 weekly Jobseekers Allowance, or indeed €100 per week that is paid to people under the age of 20. The audacity of a Fianna Fáil minister who receives more than €200,000 per
annum in salary and expenses lecturing those who they have been put on the dole queue is disgusting. Thousands of people are signing on thanks to the disastrous policies of this Government. However, instead of coming up with a job creation and retention strategy like Sinn Féin have proposed, Fianna Fáil are preparing to cut social welfare on the spurious basis that unemployed people don’t want to work because the dole is so generous.

“Having spoken to hundreds of people who are forced to queue for hours, outside in the rain or other undignifying conditions, I have yet to meet any who are happy with their situation and who would rather sign on than work. Fianna Fáil still do not seem to know that people want jobs. People want to work. They want to pay their own way and provide for their families. Fianna Fáil has failed to deliver these jobs. They have failed to fast track infrastructure projects such as
school building programmes and home insulation schemes. Dole queues should be cut – not dole money.”

Candidate Calls for Publication of Election Costs

Sinn Féin's local election candidate in East Meath, Sinead Burke, has announced that she will be making her election expenses public in the week after polling day on June 5th, and has called on all other candidates in Meath and Louth to do likewise.

She said, "I think it is vitally important that we introduce a new degree of transparency, honesty, integrity and accountability in politics, not just nationally, but locally. That is why, whatever the outcome of the election, I have committed to publishing my election expenses on my blog sineadburkesblog.blogspot.com and on the Meath Sinn Féin website www.meathsinnfein.ie. I am calling on all other candidates to do likewise.

"The spending limits introduced recently by Minister Gormley have gone some way to levelling the playing pitch as regards election spend, but they still leave a huge opportunity for massive spends by local candidates. The notion of any candidate spending anywhere close to the €13,000 limit in the current climate is grotesque. We need to get to a situation, in Ireland, where we rate our candidates on merit and merit alone, not on who has the greatest circus."

Adams Makes Presentation to East Meath School

On a recent trip to east Meath, Sinn Féin President, Gerry Adams, presented Coláiste na hInse principal, Ms. Anne-Marie McCarrick, with a number of commemorative packs to mark the 90th anniversary of the First Dáil Eireann.

Speaking at the schools sportsday at St. Colmcille's GAA grounds in Piltown Sinn Féin’s local election candidate in the area Sinéad Burke said, “This year marks the 90th anniversary of the First Dáil, when Irish people, through their democratically-elected representatives, ratified the Republic declared in arms in Easter 1916, stood defiantly against an empire and, declared independence. It was a defining point in Irish history.

“Those who were in the Mansion House on January 21st 1919 were fulfilling the Sinn Féin manifesto pledge of 1918 that it would establish a national parliament able to "speak and act in the name of the Irish people, and to develop Ireland's social, political and industrial life, for the welfare of the whole people of Ireland.

“Sinn Féin’s An Chéad Dáil Éireann Commemorative Pack, is being distributed to schools right throughout the island. They are intended for use as tools for discussion of the event, it’s context, and its relevance today. The pack includes a 20 page illustrated brochure which details the historic events leading up to the first Dáil and reproductions of documents adopted by TDs on January 21st 1919.”

Time for change in local government

Speaking at the launch of their local government manifesto with East Meath local election candidate Sinéad Burke, Sinn Féin President Gerry Adams said the party’s record on local issues spoke for itself and that the priority in this election would be protecting the public from savage cutbacks to services and helping local business retain and create new jobs.

Ms. Burke said “Sinn Féin’s reputation as excellent local representatives for the public has been well earned. Our record stands for itself. In every council we have been elected to we have been a catalyst for change and reform.

“For example, Sinn Féin submissions to local Policing Plans has secured more community Gardaí. Our councillors in Kerry have ensured that zoning changes are now community-led not developer-led. In Monaghan we have ensured the lowest commercial rate increases in the State, including zero percent in 2009. In Meath we have led the campaign to ensure investment in the county, to create jobs and provide infrastructure. We have worked with the community to oppose Management Fees, oppose incineration and promote initiatives such as Dial To Stop Drug Dealing and the tourism sector.

“Local government funding continues to be slashed by Fianna Fail, leaving the county manager to impose cuts in services and penalise communities and businesses. This policy will actually result in more job losses. This policy harms both the local economy and society. The priority in the years ahead for Sinn Féin councillors in Meath will be retaining and creating jobs and protecting communities from service cuts. We will use the each council to help businesses thrive.

“People are rightly angry at the manner in which this government has ruined the economy and now seeks to make working families pay for a crisis not of their making. But voters need to turn their anger into action and vote for Sinn Féin in Meath.”

The manifesto sets out a range of measures that will return power to local communities. These include:

• Protecting the public and business from double taxation in the form of new service charges or user fees for essential public services.


• A review of councillors and committee chairs' expenses - accountable and efficient spending of local authority finances.


• Increasing front-line and community policing to ensure Gardai are on patrol in the locations and at the times when they are most needed.


• Preventing incinerators being imposed on communities.


• Doubling social housing targets and ensuring unit for unit replacement of social housing units. Local One Stop Shops to provide support for Small to Medium enterprises.


• Making sure development is public-led and not developer-led.


• Fair rates that don’t penalize enterprise and allow businesses to keep and grow new jobs. Scrapping of the fundamentally flawed community childcare subvention scheme and keeping open local community crèches.


• Return of power to local councils and communities.


• Using positions on VECs to advocate a coordinated approach between VECs, FÁS and third level institutions to ensure sufficient provision of local training for sectors that will provide jobs in the coming decades.

Meath Job Creation Strategy Needed

Sinn Féin’s local election candidate in east Meath, Sinéad Burke, has called on Enterprise Ireland and the IDA to develop a strategy to radically redress the emergency unemployment crisis effecting Meath.
According to Ms. Burke, “Meath’s unemployment is increasing at a faster rate than in any other county in the country. 50% of Meath people who have jobs have to leave the county everyday to go to work. 40% of Meath people who shop leave the county every day to do so. These are the highest such figures in the state and they are hammering the rates base of our local authorities.
“Because of this, Meath’s councils have the lowest per capita income and expenditure in the state. This negatively affects front line services of the council with regards roads, housing and amenity development.”
The first-time candidate went on to quote research that Sinn Féin had carried out in relation to jobs investment in Leinster. According to Ms. Burke, Meath gets less job creation investment than any other county in Leinster. “Kildare gets 12 times more job creation investment than Meath, Wicklow gets 4 times more and Louth gets 7 times more. This discrepancy needs to be addressed.”

Work in Duleek Should Be Fast-Tracked

Sinn Féin's local election candidate in East Meath, Sinéad Burke, has called on Meath County Council to fast-track the sewage works in the Duleek area to relieve residents of one local housing estate. She said, "I have been contacted by a number residents of the Commons estate in the village who say they had been promised that appropriate sewage infrastructure works in the area would be completed in 2007. Instead the only facility they have is a communal tank located at the back of the estate. The residents closest to the tank have complained that in warmer weather they cannot go out to the back garden because of the stench. "I understand that there are ongoing works in the area but I have called on Meath County Council to review it's schedule of works to fast-track this essential project."

Burke slams Bus Éireann plans to scrap routes

Sinn Féin local election candidate in East Meath Sinéad Burke has described the latest plans by Bus Éireann to scrap some local bus routes as totally reprehensible. She has also hit out at Fine Gael’s proposals to allow private operators to run the routes which are being axed.

“Not content with the withdrawing 150 buses from its 1,300 strong fleet, cutting 322 of its 2,700 staff and axing 120 buses from the Dublin Bus fleet, the CIE in it’s infinite wisdom, carefully watched over by Fianna Fáil and the ‘Green’ Party will now reside over a further axing of 52 more rural commuter routes statewide.

“Services to Dublin, including the 102 Ardcath route, the east Meath coast route through Laytown, and some Drogheda routes will be reduced or withdrawn.“The fact that these routes are being savagely cut in order to ‘balance the books’ is an insult to those who depend on public transport to get them from A to B. While Bus Éireann has a duty to balance its books its first duty is to provide a service to the citizens of this state regardless of the profitability of the service itself.

“The utter hypocrisy of the so-called Green Party on this issue is appalling. Their feigned sense of concern and election promises of ‘making public transport a priority’ are a joke and it is clear that Minister Gormley and co. have absolutely no intention of prioritising public transport.“Fine Gael’s privatisation agenda has again risen its ugly head with calls for the axed routes to be taken on by private operators.

“This government and its ideological cohorts in Fine Gael are utterly intent on hammering the final nail in the coffin of public transport. It is up to all those who know the true value of public services and their contribution to our economy and society as a whole to stand up and defend them in the upcoming elections by snubbing Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party at the polls.”

Meath Sinn Féin Election Launch

Meath Sinn Féin officially launched its local election campaign yesterday at the party offices in Navan. Sinn Féin will be fielding nine candidates across the county and aim to add to their current representation.

Speaking at the launch Slane Area Candidate Sinéad Burke said, “This is a great team of candidates, with a mixture of youth and experience, but most importantly progressive policies that can get Meath back to work and ensure that the county gets its fair share of investment in terms of schools, health services and infrastructure.
"We are confident of increasing our number of five Councillors, but to do that people need to channel their anger at the Government into going to the ballot box and voting Sinn Féin number 1. Sinn Féin are the only real alternative to the failed policies of Fianna Fáil in Meath. Fine Gael are not an alternative, they are simply more of the same whose stated policy is to cut 15,000 public sector jobs. They refuse to identify who – but these are teachers, nurses and Gardai. Sinn Féin in Government in the North has cut health waiting lists, built new schools and invested in job retention. The same global pressures affect the North, but the reality is we are managing it better.
“Extensive work has been done by our candidates over the last couple of years, details of which can be found on our website – http://www.meathsinnfein.ie/. This includes a detailed plan on job creation for the county, a substantial submission on community safety and additional Gardai, and details of our save our hospital campaign. The reception on the doorstep has been great, reflecting our work over the last five years. I call on the public to use their anger and get out and vote on 5th June.”

Massive anti-Government vote called for!

Sinn Féin's local election candidate in East Meath, Sinéad Burke, has called for a massive anti government vote on June 5th. Speaking to party election workers from Laytown and Bettystown Ms. Burke said there was a need to connect with those in people who are cynical and apathetic about politics.

She said “People are rightly angry with this failed Fianna Fáil government. But they should not lose faith in politics – there is an alternative. The electorate should not buy-in to the argument by some Fianna Fáil councillors who have dropped the party logo like a hot potato. They must pay for what their ministers are doing. The public are angry that this Government has destroyed jobs, homes, pension and hope. In the North Sinn Féin has shown political leadership in Government. We have ended hospital waiting lists, built new schools, invested in local jobs and small/medium industry. Yes there is an international downturn, but most people are responding better than our Government, who continue to appease their developer and banker friends.

“This election must be a referendum on FF/Green performance. For people tempted to remain at home, I say you are playing into the hands of Fianna Fáil. By not voting against this Government, you are effectively voting for them. By voting for FF candidates because they're ‘decent sorts who do good work locally’ you are endorsing cuts on pensioners, attacks on our nurses, school children in overcrowdeddilapidated buildings and targeting the most vulnerable in our society. I urge all voters to send a strong message to this government and their local councillors that the game is up, that its time for them to go, that their destruction and corruption of the economy is not what the people of East Meath want.”

School Prefab Rental Fees Revealed

Sinn Féin local election candidate in East Meath Sinéad Burke has revealed that one school in East Meath has spent over €295,000 on rental fees for prefab accommodation over the past ten years, while it waits for capital funding.

Ms. Burke said, “In response to a parliamentary question by my colleague Caoimhín O'Caoláin, the Minister for Education indicated that Realt na Mara National School in Donacarney has spent €297,524 over the past ten years on prefab rent fees, and it's current annual bill is in excess of €40,000.

"This figure for East Meath is just the tip of the iceberg as, amazingly, the Minister was unable to provide figures for the total cost of prefab rental on a county by county basis. The figures received by Sinn Féin relate only to those schools renting four or more prefabs. Of the 74 schools in this category, over €6.5million is being spent annually across 18 counties, with over €578,000 being spent annually by seven schools in Co. Meath.

“This is an obscene amount of money for the Government to be wasting on substandard accommodation for our children. This money and other moneys should be invested in permanent quality school buildings. How else are we to build the so called knowledge economy that the Government so often talks about? “These figures are an indictment on the record of successive Fianna Fáil-led Governments who have failed to invest properly in our children’s education even in the years of the economic boom.

“At this time of record unemployment levels Sinn Féin has called on the Government to invest in labour intensive public infrastructure projects to boost employment in the construction sector and to put in place the infrastructure required to sustain our economy in the medium to long term. This should include the fast-tracking of the school building programme to bring about an end to the use of prefab accommodation for our children.

“Our proposals would see all 74 schools that are currently a stage 3 tender stage proceed to construction immediately with a target of 50% of the 86 schools at design stage proceeding to construction by the end of 2009. We would also ensure that a minimum of 150 school building projects enter the architectural and planning stages each year to ensure we meet the projected demand for school places over the coming years.”

Residents Held “Hostage to Fortune”

The lack of regulation of management companies in Ireland has meant thousands of residents in east Meath are “hostages to fortune”, according to Sinn Féin local election candidate Sinéad Burke.She said, “Further to the stresses of meeting mortgage or rent payments in the current economic climate, many residents in east Meath are then landed with having to pay astronomical fees to private management companies who can charge whatever fees they deem appropriate and remain completely unaccountable. “Over the last couple of weeks I have been contacted by many local residents in east Meath who feel extremely frustrated at the lack of regulation in this sector. In one apartment complex in Bettystown management company fees went from €1,200 per year to €1,600 per year, without explanation or advanced notification. This is completely unacceptable.“For-profit companies should not be allowed extort thousands from people in housing estates and apartment blocks towards the upkeep of the area and provision of essential services when that is the responsibility of local authorities. All public areas should be the responsibility of local authorities and never outsourced to private management.“Although a form of management company will be unavoidable for apartment blocks they should only be subject to not-for-profit management companies and only cover structural insurance, internal communal areas and walled gardens. The government must implement legislation to ensure that fees are not foisted upon the tenant at the merest whim of the company.“It is imperative that the legislation is introduced to regulate these companies. Being subject to company law is clearly not enough. They are unregulated entities that tenants are forced to buy into and then have no legal get-out.”

Taxi Race to the Bottom

Speaking before Saturday’s 'Taxi Drivers For Change' protest in Dublin, east Meath local election candidate Sinéad Burke has labellled the government's management of the taxi industry in Ireland as a 'Race to the Bottom'.
“I have spoken to taxi drivers in east Meath who are working up to 80 and 90 hours a week, for what amounts to less than the minimum wage. One driver says he can expect to get €30 for one twelve hour shift. This is unsustainable. The current system is a nonsense. It is unfair on those taxi drivers putting in long hours each week to allow part-time drivers cherry pick fairs.
"There are 27,000 taxi licenses currently granted in Ireland. There is a large minority of these being hired out to second parties for about €200 a week. On top of that there are illegal operators working in every part of the country. Despite this, there are only nine taxi enforcement officers in the country.
"A moratorium on the granting of licenses needs to be introduced immediately to sort this out. Far too many drivers are working far too many hours, and they and their families are suffering real hardship as a result."

Accident Waiting to Happen - Burke

Sinn Féin's local election candidate in east Meath, Sinéad Burke, has called on Meath Co. Co. to provide extra traffic lights for the ongoing works at Duleek, following many near misses on the road behind the old church.
She said, "The laneway behind the old church is being used as a bypass as works continue at the junction of Abbey Road and Main Street. This laneway is very narrow and fit for only one lane of traffic at a time, yet no traffic management system has been put in place. There have been many near misses in the last few days. I have called on Meath Co. Co. to put traffic lights at both ends of the lane to improve safety. In the meantime I would call on drivers and pedestrians to take extra care on the lane."

Gormanston Water Outage

Meath Co. Co. failed to adequately notify residents of Gormanston of a water outage over the May Bank Holiday, according to Sinn Féin local election Sinéad Burke.
She said, "I was contacted by a number of people from Gormanston over the Bank Holiday weekend who were left without water from Saturday until Tuesday. They had received no notification from Meath Co. Co. and had had no opportunity to make contingency plans.
"Local residents understand that maintenance and other work needs to be carried out from time to time but it is essential that adequate notification is given. This didn't happen in this case. Meath Co. Co. had also failed to contact local radio station LMFM. Due consideration must be given the people affected by the works."

Meath East Sinn Féin launch priorities for new National Drug Strategy

With a backdrop of major cuts to Regional Drugs Task Forces, Sinn Féin's Local Election Candidate in East Meath Sinéad Burke launched the party’s new drug policy document – ‘Injecting Urgency – Priorities for the National Drug Strategy 2009 – 2016'.
Speaking at the launch Ms. Burke said," We cannot afford to repeat the mistakes of the past and it is economically prudent to invest in the fight against drugs."
Among the proposals made in the document is a reversal of the proposed cuts to Regional Drugs Task Forces, securing the future of the 'Dial to Stop Drug Dealing' project, expansion of Garda Youth Diversion projects, and the reinstatement of the sports capital grant.
She said “Experience shows that economic recessions exacerbate drug and alcohol misuse. It is economically prudent to invest in the fight against drugs. Failure to do so would give rise to mammoth costs to the exchequer. The drugs crisis incurs huge costs including Gardai, prison places and A&E. Notto mention the human costs to individuals with an increase in assaults, burglaries and muggings.
The cuts in funding to both local and regional drug task forces are an abandonment of the States duty to its citizens. These task forces are the front line in the battle against drug dealers. In the face of increased violence and intimidation from drug dealers, this decision is a disgrace. We have seen recently in Dublin and Limerick the length these drug dealers will go to to protect their evil trade. The State has a duty to meet this threat head on, with all available resources.
“The communities and families at risk from drugs are easily identifiable and this is where resources must be targeted. Our document makes demands of Government and State agencies to support these communities but also includes suggestions for initiatives which the communities themselves can take. The decision, in Budget ’09, to abolish the sports capital grant must also be reversed with a focus on areas most effected by drugs. This grant has been a key feature of the National Drugs Strategy heretofore and must be maintained and upgraded in the new strategy.
“The Dial to Stop Drug Dealing free phone line has been a major success in the communities where it has been launched and at a minimum cost. However, this phone line will cease to exist when current funding runs out later this year. It is essential that this key tool in the fight against drugs is put on a secure financial footing in the new National Drugs Strategy.”

May Day Launch of Sinn Féin Proposals to get Ireland Back to Work

Sinn Féin candidate for the Ireland East EU Constituency, Cllr Tomás Sharkey, today joined local election candidate in East Meath, Sinéad Burke, to mark International Workers' Day by launching the party’s job retention and creation strategy. The document entitled ‘Getting Ireland Back to Work’ contains more than 80 proposals, which Sinn Féin believes are urgently required to retain existing jobs and create new ones, progress all-Ireland economic development, stimulate consumer spending, and maximise the benefits of education and training.

Speaking in Laytown Cllr Sharkey said:

“May 1st marks International Workers' Day, yet this year in Meath, there are almost 10,000 people on the live register. Unemployment is spiralling out of control, with the commuter area of East Meath being hit particularly hard. It is clear that the working people of Ireland East need the government to implement a time-framed job creation and retention strategy without further delay. This must focus on stopping job losses, creating new jobs, keeping people in education and stimulating consumer spending.

“The recent emergency budget will have done nothing to stimulate the economy nor protect and create jobs. Little is being done to up-skill and retrain those who have lost their jobs. The number one priority has to be retaining and creating jobs. We need government action to get Ireland back to work.

“One of the key mistakes that the government made over the last decade was to overinflate the boom by not regulating the banks and the building industry. The same government that over inflated the boom now wants to exacerbate the downturn by taking too much money out of the economy. The government got it wrong in the boom and is now getting it wrong in the downturn.

“Ireland needs a three-year plan to hold on to or create the 1,000 jobs a day that are being lost. Such a plan needs to have a specific focus on creating jobs in the midlands and other regions which even during the boom years continued to have levels of unemployment far in excess of the state average and did not see the same investment in infrastructure as other parts of the state.

“Such a plan needs to identify viable companies that need immediate help, it means identifying where jobs are going to be created over the next 3-5 years and bringing together FÁS, VECs, colleges and universities to up-skill the workforce. It means fostering a real innovation culture. And most critically quarterly regional targets need to be set and delivered. It much include steps to ensure that the border midlands and west region is competitive and must build on the strengths of the region. This document sets out a range of proposals that should form the core of such a plan.

“Sinn Féin is being constructive – we are putting forward clear proposals to address the current economic crisis and the escalating levels of unemployment. Our key message is – if action is taken the economy can be turned around.” ENDS

Key proposals

• Establish a €300 million jobs retention fund to subsidise workers in SMEs struggling to keep on their employees. The fund should be time limited; and should be implemented in conjunction with increased Revenue and Labour Inspectorate.
• Set up a body to actively pre-empt job losses by going to companies where jobs are in jeopardy to trouble shoot and offer advice, similar to the functions carried out by the Irish Credit Corporation in the 1980s.
• The National Development Plan’s immediate priority should be providing essential, labour intensive infrastructure. We are calling for the fast-tracking of the school building programme, expansion of the national insulation programme to cover 100,000 homes by 2010 and 150,000 in subsequent years and broadband rollout.
• Fast track business start ups – there are two issues – businesses need access to credit and expertise. The banks need to start doing their job and we are calling for a re-deployment of staff within current job creation agencies to set up one stop enterprise business points. These would bring together funding, expertise and advice for entrepreneurs who want to start new businesses.
• A new Sales Ireland strategy to help Irish firms access export markets and to help Irish firms looking to set up manufacturing businesses with the potential to compete with our largest imports. Currently 90% of exports from the south come from foreign owned multinationals. And foreign owned firms import over 86% of the maternials they use, bypassing Irish firms.
• Establishment within a calendar year of Eolas Glas Eireann, led by Sustainable Energy Ireland, with the core aim of developing Ireland as a world leader in green and alternative energy technologies.
• FÁS, the VECs and third level institutions have a combined budget of almost €4billion. They need to have a joined up approach to ensure that we are training people for sectors that will provide jobs in the coming decade.
• A rapid reaction price force to be established by the Minister for Enterprise to ensure price reductions are passed onto consumers, particularly in the areas of fuel and retail groceries.

Meath Voters Urged to Register

As local and European election campaigns get underway across the country, Sinn Féin’s candidate in East Meath, Sinéad Burke, has urged people to make sure they are registered to vote.

She said, “I have met many, many people on the doorsteps across East Meath who are eligible to vote but not registered. The deadline for inclusion in the Supplementary Register for the upcoming elections is May 15th.

“People should check the register to make sure they are on it. This can be done online at www.checktheregister.ie, or at any council office, post office, library or Garda station. If people find that they are not on the register, they have until Friday 15th May to fill out an RFA2 form and return it to the local authority. Again these forms are available online or from government buildings. A Garda stamp is needed to validate the completed form.

She concluded, “A recent report indicated that almost 30% of eighteen to twenty five year olds are not registered to vote. The whole system is a logistical and bureaucratic nightmare. Sinn Féin has long called for a situation where people would automatically be included in the Register once they have reached eighteen years of age. The government, for some unknown reason, has resisted this, resulting in huge sections of the population being disenfranchised.”