Where are the promised Lisbon jobs Now?

IBEC posters promising jobs during second Lisbon Treaty Referendum Campaign

Do you remember seeing all these posters?  'Yes for Jobs', 'Yes for Jobs and Investment', 'Yes to Recovery' as well as a whole host of other literature bearing a similar message.  Remember all those politicians promising the moon and the stars (and particularly the jobs) in order to con people into voting for a treaty that they had already democratically rejected?

Well that was almost 12 months, so where exactly are all these jobs we were promised if the Lisbon Treaty was ratified?  Recently released figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) showed that,  contrary to those  promises of economic recovery and job creation,  unemployment levels in this state are at its highest in more than 16 years.  The numbers on the live register in July reached more than 466,000, an increase of 14,000 on June of this year and more than 34,000 higher than July of 2009.

The state wide figures are replicated here in the north west also.  There were 22,832 people on the Live Register in Donegal at the end of July, up 1,981 on the same period last year, a rise of 9.5%.  However, the jobless figure for Ballyshannon rose by a massive 15%, with Dungloe increasing by 13% and Letterkenny by 12%.  And in the latest blow to Donegal's unemployment problems, it was announced last week that the Keith Prowse call centre in Lisfannon, Buncrana, Co Donegal is set to close with the loss of up to 100 jobs.

In County Sligo, the unemployed numbers have risen by 166 from June and almost 500 from July 2009 to now stand at 5932.   In Leitrim those signing on has increased by 163 to total 3900, while County Roscommon's total is now 4,306 following yet another increase of 216 from last month and up 425 on July of last year.  County Mayo also seen an increase in those signing on with an extra 450 people joining the live register in July bringing the total to 13,965, and increase of more than 1200 on this time last year.

Despite the continued job losses and the fact that Fianna Fáil led administrations have succeeded in increasing unemployment levels from just 4.3% in July 2005 to the current level of 13.7% and rising in July 2010, Fianna Fáil Ministers have defended and attempted to justify the rising unemployment figures and their abject failure to save and create jobs.

According to Batt O'Keefe, Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Innovation, Fianna Fáil policies "are helping Ireland to emerge from recession and to avoid another period of protracted recession."

"We will persist with our policies" he said "to help unemployed workers to get back into the labour force and create conditions conducive to job creation".

Billboard in Donegal (December 2009)

Reacting to the latest unemployment figures and Fianna Fáil's response to them, éirígi activist Gerry Casey accused the government of "gross incompetence and mismanagement  of the economy".  He also claimed that the true figures for people losing their jobs is far higher than the figures suggest.

Casey said:  "At the time of the second Lisbon Treaty referendum campaign last year, Fianna Fáil backed up by the supposed opposition parties, Labour and Fine Gael as well as the representatives of big business such as IBEC and the American Chamber of Commerce in Ireland, promised us all that a vote for the Lisbon Treaty would secure jobs for Ireland.  As éirígí pointed out during the campaign, that was a blatant lie.  The continued loss of jobs around the state and the latest unemployment figures which now stands at a 16 year high of 466,000, exposes that lie clearly for all to see."

He added:  "However bad people may think those figures are, the reality is that the numbers losing their jobs is actually far higher.  What the figures don't show are those who are unemployed and have been forced to emigrate once more, egged on by a government happy to push them onto a boat or plane and get them off the live register.  Shamefully, forced emigration, a thing the Irish people thought was a thing of the past, has re-emerged with a vengeance as a direct result of this governments policies.  The statistics also hide those who are now on state schemes or remained in education due to a lack of employment."

"Fianna Fáil and the Greens have failed  miserably in tacking the jobs crisis and creating sustainable employment.  Their policy in terms of reducing the numbers of unemployed has been to cynically squeeze our young people who find themselves out of work to such a degree that they are forced to emigrate."

"On top of losing their jobs, young people had their dole reduced to €100 a week and €150 a week for under 21's and 22-24 year olds respectively, making it virtually impossible for them to survive on the dole in their own country.  Even at that, people signing on to receive this pittance are been forced to wait for as long as 16 weeks before being paid.  These measures were deliberately introduced by a callous government in order to make life unbearable for young unemployed people in the hope they would choose the option of emigration thus helping to hide the true extent of unemployment.”

FIanna Fáil, Fine Gael & Labour Unite in False Jobs Promises during Lisbon Treaty Referendum Campaign

"This administration, aided by the 'opposition' and big business, lied to the Irish people when they told us that ratifying the Lisbon Treaty would mean job creation and an end to the recession.  The 'opposition' who would offer themselves as an alternative deliberately lied to the Irish people also.  These parties, along with the neo-liberal capitalist system they strive to maintain, all share responsibility for the current economic crisis and the savage attacks being waged against working people and those less well off in society." 

Casey concluded:  "The solution to our social and economic problems is not replacing Tweedledum (Fianna Fáil/Greens) with Tweedledee (Fine Gael/Labour).  The solution lies in dismantling their rotten corrupt  capitalist system that continues to heap misery and hardship on working class communities and to replace it with an alternative Ireland based on public ownership and a decent standard of living and working conditions for all."

Roscommon Protest against Hospital Cutbacks

Tomorrow morning (Saturday August 14), a demonstration against proposed HSE (Health Service Executive) cutbacks at Roscommon County Hospital is to take place.  The protest march, organised by the Roscommon Health Action Committee (HAC) is to commence at the Hyde Centre in Roscommon town at 11am tomorrow morning and will proceed from there to the hospital itself, where a ‘Hands Around Our Hospital Protest’ will take place.

Like other hospitals throughout the region, Roscommon's has already suffered severe cutbacks and is bracing itself for more in the imminent future, including the possible closure of the hospital completely.

Roscommon County Hospital

A report commissioned earlier this year by the HSE West recommended the closure of the hospital.  Ironically, it transpires that the cost of having that report commissioned cost the HSE a massive €90,000, money which IMPACT Trade Union say could have kept 12 nurses or clerical staff employed from now until the end of the year.

Urging people throughout the West and Midlands to support Saturday's march, éirígí activist Gerry Casey said that there must be no compromise or backing down by the Unions in relation to the proposed cutbacks in the HSE West region.

Casey said:  "What is at stake here is of vital importance for future generations.  The planned cutbacks are not about reducing services or even closing hospitals due to necessity.  It is part of a planned strategy by the HSE, on behalf of the Fianna Fáil /Green party coalition to run down the public health service in order to pave the way for the privatisation of our hospitals and our health care system."

He added:  "The current health system we have is a medical form of apartheid where the wealthy get treated whenever they want, while those reliant on the public health service have to join ever lenghtening queues to receive essential treatment.  Such a system ensures that people suffer needlessly and die needlessly."  

"The release this week by the Irish Cancer Society (ICS) of figures showing the continued increase in the numbers waiting more than three months for a potentially life saving colonoscopy, is yet more evidence of the danger to life posed by the HSE and this administrations health policies.  People should be under no illusion.  Lives have been lost as a result of cutbacks and even more will be lost if they get to impose new cutbacks"

Casey continued:  "Mary Harney and her cronies in government peddle the lie that they have not the finance to properly fund our health service and that cutbacks are unavoidable.   But the bottom line is, as éirígí have repeatedly pointed out, that none of these cutbacks are in any way necessary.  Imposition of a wealth tax, the nationalisation of our natural resources and the proper distribution of the current finances at the governments disposal, would allow not just for a halt to any cutbacks, but also for a reversal of those already imposed and more importantly for proper new investment to be made to create an efficient public service available to all, based solely on medical need and not based on ability to pay." 

"Fianna Fáil and the Green Party have pumped tens of billions of euros into bailing out the banks and developers.  This is money that could have been used to fund our hospitals and invest in their future.  Given the choice of protecting the health and welfare of patients who rely on the public health care system or protecting the excessive living standards of the wealthy political and business elite, the coalition chose the latter."

"This is a fight that we cannot afford to lose.  There can be and must be no compromise or 'deals' on these cutbacks particularly from the leadership of the Trade Unions within the health service.  Reducing the cutbacks is not a solution - only the scrapping and reversal of cutbacks is acceptable.   Previous 'deals' have led us to this point.  As the INMO (Irish Nurses & Midwives Organisation) General secretary pointed out recently: 'The INMO voted against the Croke Park proposals primarily on the basis that they require 6,000 posts to be taken out of our health service in a haphazard, uncontrolled and unplanned manner with scant regard for the impact upon patients and their needs and requirements.  We are now seeing the real impact of this flawed approach.'"

Casey concluded:  "Support tomorrows (Saturday August 14) march and rally in Roscommon town and all similar protests against the proposed cutbacks.  Send the message to Leinster House - Fund our Hospitals, Not the Banks."