TRALEE: Launch of Kerry Campaign Against Cuts

by syd roger barrett Sat Jan 30, 2010 11:31

A new pressure group will hold a public meeting in Tralee to launch a broad campaign against the various cuts proposed by the Fianna Fail/Green government. The Kerry Campaign Against Cuts will meet at the Grand Hotel Tralee, on Thursday 11th February at 8PM.

Three organisations are taking part so far, and speakers include: Margaret O'Shea, from the Kerry Network of People with Disabilities, expressing some of the concerns of the Community Development Projects, Simon Quinn, from the newly formed Kerry Public Sector Workers Alliance, and Dublin Councillor Brid Smith, from People Before Profit, who has been very active in anti-cuts actions and demonstrations.

The Kerry Network of People With Disabilities has for more than a decade campaigned for the rights for people with disabilities. It organised a well-attended demonstration in Tralee in August 2009, where speaker Margaret O'Shea called the event "just the start" of the campaign by the Community Development sector. She also said, "We say No to cuts to social welfare, Rural Transport, Community and Voluntary sector supports, RAPID, Community Services Programme, closure of rural garda stations Education for young people with disabilities, minimum. These cuts will have a strong anti rural bias and we won’t take them"

The Kerry Public Sector Workers Alliance includes all the main public sector unions in Kerry and held its first meeting on December 10th the day after the Budget was announced. They have set up a website, and will be engaging in actions to build resistance to the pay cuts. They say its time for the public sector to fight the slashing of pay and pensions and counter the anti-public sector propaganda of the Government. The Alliance also argues that its time to show TDs how important the public service is in Kerry, and show how wage cuts will decimate the local economy.

Five People Before Profit councillors were elected at last years local election. Councillor Brid Smith, who has been a community activist for several years, has been at the forefront of opposing cuts to wages and services, taking part most notably in hospital and anti-bin tax campaigns.

All these cuts would be unnecessary if billions of euros were not being spent by the government on bailing out the banks and property developers, giving tax breaks to the rich and giving away our natural resources.