Bill will exonerate men convicted in past for homosexuality

Posted on January 31, 2017

Last week in the Seanad Senator Ged Nash launched our Bill to exonerate gay men convicted of homosexuality. In the The Irish Times he has a piece on why this Bill is an important gesture to older members of the LGBT community.

Eighteen months ago, on Saturday, May 23rd, 2015, our nation came together to declare that all people should be treated equally, no matter who they love.To the credit of the Irish people, they reacted to the proposal to allow for marriage equality with a generosity of spirit that was admired the world over.

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Tackling injustice at home and abroad

Posted on January 31, 2017

We are tackling injustice at home and abroad. Today we are highlighting Trump's #MuslimBan in the Dáil and tomorrow in the Seanad we are bringing forward a Bill to offer a long overdue apology to men who were convicted of homosexuality.

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Rise of Trump and inequality at home prove Labour is still needed

Posted on January 31, 2017

In today's Independent.ie, Brendan Howlin writes about how with the rise of Trump and inequality at home, Labour values are more important than ever. Get involved today www.labour.ie/get-involved #LabourRebuild

TEN days ago, like many people across Ireland, I watched with dismay as Donald Trump was inaugurated as US president and immediately began to roll back some of former president Barack Obama's many progressive achievements.

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As Social Democrats we must work together to make Europe work

Posted on December 14, 2016

Last night, in the Royal Irish Academy we held an event with the Party of European Socialists on the implications of Brexit on Ireland and Europe as a whole.

Hilary Benn MP spoke about the Brexit vote in the United Kingdom and how we can work together to ensure Brexit won't have negative impacts in Britain and the Republic of Ireland.

#Brexit will have considerable implications for the UK and for Ireland - @hilarybennmp pic.twitter.com/553zOlocoQ

— The Labour Party (@labour) December 13, 2016

SDLP Finance spokesperson, Claire Hanna spoke about the SDLP 'Remain' campaign and the profound effect Brexit may have on the Peace Process.

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Why we should invest in DART Underground

Posted on November 19, 2016

Earlier this week in the Seanad, Senator Kevin Humphreys grilled Minister Shane Ross on transport issues in the Dublin region and he focused on why we should build the DART underground and improve signalling. Raad more by Kevin below.

The DART system within the Dublin region is subvented to the tune of approximately 90 cent per journey. In terms of capacity, the DART currently transports 23,700 passengers per hour in or around the Dublin region. If the underground system was invested in, capacity would increase to 73,300 passengers per hour.

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We must not forget about those in the community and voluntary sector

Posted on November 16, 2016

Cllr Joe Leddin has written a blog post on why we must not forget about workers in the community and voluntary sector.

One sector that contributes enormously to the social and economic well- being of our society is the community and voluntary sector. In every city, town and village throughout Ireland over 100,000 thousand people work in community centres, voluntary or charitable organisations and social enterprises delivering real and meaningful change to people’s lives.

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Watch back Brendan Howlin press Taoiseach to disassociate himself from comments by Minister Ross on judicial appoinments

Posted on November 16, 2016

Over the last while, we have heard Minister Ross declare that reform of judicial appointments is his top priority, far above anything in his own Department, we presume, as he was too busy to debate public transport on RTE Prime Time last night.

Watch back @BrendanHowlin press @EndaKennyTD to disassociate himself from comments by @Shane_RossTD on judicial appoinments. #Dáil pic.twitter.com/fIrSkuedeO

— The Labour Party (@labour) November 16, 2016

During Leaders' Questions today, Brendan Howlin said "focussing on his top priority, he has launched the most aggressive attacks on the judiciary that I have ever heard from a Cabinet Minister."

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We need to teach young people to look after their mental health and well-being

Posted on November 16, 2016

"Young people should be encouraged to talk about their mental health and well-being so they know it is okay to talk about their well-being."

Last night in the Dáil Jan O'Sullivan spoke on mental health services in Ireland. Jan called for a more proactive approach to mental health in Ireland and for further investment in Jigsaw services around the country.

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We've launched Bills on Uncertain Hours and Rent Certainty

Posted on November 15, 2016

Today Jan O'sullivan and Ged Nash launched Bills to improve the lives and working conditions of people around the country.

The Social and Affordable Housing Bill 2016 includes measures to address key issues including affordability and supply, soaring rents and tenants’ rights, the hoarding of land by developers, as well as clamping down on unregulated vulture funds operating here. It would link ren t increa ses to the CPI rate of inflation.

Our Housing Bill zones in on soaring rents - linking any rent increases to consumer price index pic.twitter.com/lZyNEPFx5s

— The Labour Party (@labour) November 15, 2016

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New Labour Youth Executive elected

Posted on November 12, 2016

Congratulations to the new National Youth Executive elected at Labour Youth conference this weekend. The new Executive is as follows:

Chairperson : Kevin Donoghue (Dublin Bay South)
Secretary : Eimear Martin (Louth)
Policy Officer : Dylan O'Keeffe (Cork North Central)
Communications Officer : Robert O'Donnell (Tipperary)
International Officer : Declan Meenagh (Dublin Central)
Women's Officer : Chloe Manahan (Dublin Bay South)

We caught up with Kevin after his election. Watch below to hear what he had to say about some of his plans for the year ahead.

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