John Lyons TD working with Cllr. Áine Clancy
GLASNEVIN FINGLAS EAST NEWS UPDATE Spring 2014
WORK BEGINS ON BALLYGALL OLDER PERSON’S HOMES John Lyons TD and local Cllr Áine Clancy welcomed the start of works on the Older Person’s Accommodation on Ballygall Road East. Labour Minister for Housing Jan O’Sullivan attended the launch, along with Cllr Áine Clancy representing the Lord Mayor. 38 singlebed apartments and one double-bed residence are to be provided on Ballygall Road East, replacing bedsits which were built by Dublin City Council in 1969. These refurbished homes in Ballygall and a new community centre come as Housing Minister Jan O’Sullivan announced separate funding of €68m to build 442 new local authority homes across the country in the next two years. This latest investment means 5,000 new social homes are being delivered each year through a variety of avenues including regeneration, direct construction, leasing and the securing of NAMA units.
Cllr Áine Clancy with Minister Jan O’Sullivan at opening of refurbished Older Person’s Accommodation on Ballygall Road East recently.
It is welcome that the refurbished homes for 79 older people in Ballygall are being built with a new approach to social housing for older people. Dublin City Council have transferred the units to the Fold Ireland housing association who are funding the development through private finance. I will continue to work with my Labour colleagues Cllrs Áine Clancy and Andrew Montague in pushing for more investment in social housing and the use of new ideas like those in Ballygall recently.
HOME RENOVATION INCENTIVE PROVING A SUCCESS In Budget 2014 last October, the Government introduced tax relief of 13.5% for homeowners who invest in their homes in 2014 and 2015. The aim of the scheme is to encourage homeowners to have small works carried out in their homes while generating employment for tax compliant builders, carpenters, plumbers and other workers. Already, the Home Renovation Incentive has provided a jumpstart to activity in the building sector. This was confirmed in a January report by Ulster Bank who say the scheme has led to a rise in the number of home renovation projects. The tax relief is given as a tax credit over two years on spending of €5,000 up to a max of €30,000 and must be carried out on your primary residence. Covered works include extensions, renovations, window fitting, plumbing, tiling and plastering. Please contact John Lyons TD or Cllr Áine Clancy with any questions about the scheme or visit the Revenue homepage on www.revenue.ie.
John Lyons, your local TD. Contact me on 618 3280 or john.lyons@oireachtas.ie
MASSIVE BOOST OF 61,000 JOBS IN 2013 ■ 61,000 jobs were created in 2013
Jobs Increases in 2013 60,000
■ Unemployment down from 15.1% in 2012 to 11.9% in February 2014
48,000
■ 12th month in a row unemployment has fallen ■ Below 12% for first time in nearly five years ■ Still far too high but progress is welcome
New Jobs Created
■ 1,200 jobs created on average per week
■ Government planning over €500m pro-jobs measures in 2014 through Action Plan for Jobs
36,000 24,000
12,000
■ 20,200 education, training, work and apprentice places ring-fenced for young people
0 2011
2012
2013
NO PLANS TO CLOSE LOCAL POST OFFICES John Lyons TD and local Cllr Áine Clancy have come out in support of local post offices and stated there are no Government plans to close any post offices in the area. Cllr Áine Clancy stated that a “recent campaign led many local people to believe there was a plan to shut down local post offices. This is simply not the case.” “The reality is only 17 closures have occurred since 2010, compared with 197 post offices that were closed between 2006 and 2010 under Fianna Fáil. We need living communities with post offices at their heart.” It is to be welcomed that An Post won the tender for the €50m Government social welfare contract last year. This is on top of the Government contracts for passport express services, the TV licence and fine payments.
GOVERNMENT SUPPORT FOR SMALL BUSINESSES Starting a Business & Accessing Credit:
MICROFINANCE IRELAND Not-for-profit lender set up by the Government to lend to businesses that have been turned down a loan or the full amount of a loan by banks or other lenders. ■ Loans from €2,000 to €25,000 ■ Sole Traders, Partnerships & Ltd companies can apply ■ Businesses with fewer than 10 staff eligible ■ Suitable for start-up companies or SMEs looking to expand Visit www.microfinanceireland.ie or contact John Lyons TD for more information.
Recruiting:
JOBSPLUS ACTION PLAN FOR JOBS 2014 ■ 385 actions across all Government departments ■ 26 actions alone to promote entrepreneurship ■ Targeting 10,000 new jobs through additional resources for IDA Ireland ■ Sets up a new Youth Entrepreneurship Fund
Scheme to encourage businesses to recruit long-term unemployed people. ■ Payment of €10,000 to business to take on recruits unemployed for more than 24 months ■ Payment of €7,500 to business to take on recruits unemployed for more than 12 months
■ Rolls out the Youth Guarantee around the Country
■ Payable on a monthly basis to the business over a two-year basis
■ New Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) as ‘first stop shop’ to support SMEs
Visit www.jobsplus.ie or contact John Lyons TD for more information
LOCAL MEETING HELD ON ONLINE BULLYING Many parents are concerned about the effects of bullying and harassment of their children online and on the availability of harmful content. To address some of these issues, I hosted a local meeting on Monday 10th March on online bullying in St Kevin’s Secondary School for local parents, teachers and those working in youth services. A panel discussion was followed by a questions and answers section, where parents, educators and youth workers raised questions about best practice for dealing with online bullying and what can be done on a wider level to combat the problem. John Lyons TD with the expert panel at local meeting on cyberbullying recently in St Kevin’s Secondary School Following this meeting, I have made a submission to the Internet Content Governance Advisory Group set up by Minister for Communications Pat Rabbitte. The key points I suggested were: ■ Creating an intermediary group which can bring complaints to social media companies directly ■ Improving education and information for parents and children from a younger age The second suggestion is based on the ‘Don’t Be Mean Behind Your Screen’ campaign being run by Paula O’Connor, a teacher from St Kevin’s who runs successful workshops for parents and 5th and 6th class students. Paula kindly took part in the panel on the night. Cllr Áine Clancy encouraged local parents to consult resources such as www.eukidsonline.net and www.reachout.com if they need advice about dealing with cyberbullying.
LABOUR LEADING IMPORTANT REFORM OF JUNIOR CERT JUNIOR CYCLE STUDENT AWARD FIRST INTAKE THIS SEPTEMBER
John Lyons TD & Cllr Áine Clancy with Minister Ruairi Quinn at 10 year celebration of school libraries scheme
The new Junior Cycle Student Award (JCSA) will replace the Junior Certificate on a phased basis from September 2014. The JCSA aims to put students rather than exams at the centre of the first three years of second level education. The new JCSA is a radical overhaul of the existing Junior Cert, the first major changes in 25 years, and will see a move away from a narrowly focused terminal exam in June of 3rd year, to a more school-based continuous approach. The focus will be on encouraging students to learn through thinking rather than relying on ‘learning off by heart’. Schools will have more freedom under the new junior cycle system to design programmes that meet the learning needs of all students. For example, schools can deliver ‘short courses’ in the likes of Chinese language and culture, Programming and Coding and Artistic Performance as part of the JCSA. For more information about the reform of the Junior Cert, visit www.juniorcycle.ie.
BOUNDARY CHANGES FOR GLASNEVIN FINGLAS EAST
Santry Ballymun
As you may be aware, the boundaries for Glasnevin – Finglas East were changed last year for the upcoming local elections. Your area is now part of an extended ‘Ballymun’ Ward, with boundaries north of Ballymun down to Whitworth Road to include part of Drumcondra. The area highlighted on the map is now part of this larger ‘Ballymun’ ward. If you have any questions about the new boundaries, please contact us on the details below.
Ballygall/ Glasnevin Whitehall
John Lyons TD Glasnevin Drumcondra
Cllr Andrew Montague
Cllr Áine Clancy
YOUR LOCAL LABOUR TEAM John Lyons TD is working with Cllr Áine Clancy & Cllr Andrew Montague in Glasnevin – Finglas East. Please contact us on the details below if we can be of assistance on any local or national issues. John Lyons TD with Cllr Áine Clancy & Cllr Andrew Montague
Working Together - Your Labour Team in Glasnevin - Finglas East Dáil Éireann, Dublin 2 Tel: 01 618 3280 Email: john.lyons@oireachtas.ie Blog: johnlyonstd.blogspot.com Web: labour.ie/johnlyons
Working with
facebook.com/ JohnLyonsDublinNorthWest @JohnLyonsTD Cllr Andrew Montague
087 7635406 aine.clancy1@gmail.com
087 908 0409 01 874 6109 andrewmontague@eircom.net emer@emercostello.ie
Emer Costello MEP
0612
JOHN LYONS TD
Cllr Áine Clancy