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Mr Reid has joined the exodus of senior health officials who have also recently announced their resignations The abrupt resignation of HSE chief executive Paul Reid raises serious questions for Health Minister Stephen Donnelly, according to Social Democrats Health Spokesperson Róisín Shortall. “In the first instance, I would like to wish Mr Reid well in […]

Students are paying the price of the State Examination Commission’s failure to plan It is completely unacceptable that Leaving Cert results will not be issued until September 2, according to Social Democrats Education Spokesperson Gary Gannon. “Delaying the Leaving Cert results until September 2 will cause huge levels of additional stress and worry. It will […]

Continued indecision, combined with soaring costs, is threatening the viability of hundreds of ECCE providers The government must provide clarity to the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) sector about the level of core funding they will receive in the autumn, according to Social Democrats Children Spokesperson Jennifer Whitmore. “Many ECCE-only providers are finishing up […]

What does it say about this government when the Tories have a more generous approach to the living wage than it does? The government has abandoned its commitment to introduce a living wage that people can actually live on, according to Social Democrats co-leader and Finance Spokesperson Róisín Shortall. “When this government came to power, […]

Catherine Murphy  Friends, I want to welcome everyone here today. The last time we met like this it was 2019. We didn’t think it would take quite this long to get back into a room together again. I also want to warmly welcome all those watching at home. We believe the potential, and desire, for […]

Why is there such an unseemly rush to push this deal through cabinet?  The cabinet must not sign off on the national maternity hospital deal tomorrow when a number of significant questions remain unanswered, according to Social Democrats Health Spokesperson Róisín Shortall. “The legal documents underpinning the State’s biggest ever investment in women’s healthcare were […]

There have now been a number of high profile resignations during Health Minster Stephen Donnelly’s tenure in office It is a huge loss to the public service that the two people who chiefly led the public health response to the pandemic have now resigned, according to Social Democrats Health Spokesperson Róisín Shortall. “Outgoing deputy chief […]

We are still awaiting the government’s updated policy statement on data centres – which has not been revised since 2018 The surge in energy consumption by data centres underscores the government’s ‘see-no-evil, hear-no-evil’ approach to the climate emergency, according to Social Democrats Energy Spokesperson Jennifer Whitmore. “The country has been convulsed in recent weeks by […]

We have seen, with the reported imminent overturning of Roe v Wade in the United States, that rights, once secured, must continue to be fought and advocated for The government cannot sign off on the proposed new national maternity hospital deal while its terms are still shrouded in mystery, according to Social Democrats Health Spokesperson […]

The women of Ireland deserve better than the Minister doing a grubby backroom deal in secret Health Minister Stephen Donnelly must come before the Oireachtas Health Committee to answer questions about the proposed relocation of the national maternity hospital to St Vincent’s campus – before he signs off on the deal, according to Social Democrats […]

There is a real and genuine public concern that the government will be on the wrong side of history when it comes to the national maternity hospital  Health Minister Stephen Donnelly must publish the legal framework for the new national maternity hospital and bring it before the Dáil before it is signed off by cabinet, […]

It is not acceptable that children can be taught relationships should be placed in a hierarchy, depending on sexual orientation The refusal of a school in Wicklow to include LGBTQI+ relationships in its Relationships and Sexuality Education is an indictment of the government’s failure to reform the curriculum, according to Social Democrats Education Spokesperson Gary […]

Nobody, in Ireland today, should be targeted because of their sexual orientation Garda confirmation that it is investigating a hate motive in relation to two brutal murders in Sligo marks a dark week for the LGBTQI+ community in Ireland, according to Social Democrats Social Justice spokesperson Holly Cairns. “The horrific murders of Aidan Moffitt and […]

The cost of living crisis is not impacting everyone equally The government has again failed to sufficiently target its cost-of-living measures to low and middle-income households, according to Social Democrats Climate Spokesperson Jennifer Whitmore. “In recent weeks, the Central Bank, the St Vincent de Paul, the ESRI and even the Oireachtas Committee on Budgetary Oversight […]