An update from Dún Laoghaire

These guys have good reason to celebrate.

They're Simon Evans and Fearghal O'Nuallain, and for the last year and a half they've been peddling around the globe, and I joined them for the last lap on Saturday, from Blackrock College down to Greystones. There was around 150 of us on the ride, and it was all for a good cause, raising funds for Aware - a charity tackling depression. After a 30,000 km bike-ride they had good reason to break open the champagne, particularly as Bubble Brothers provided some sponsorship.

Meanwhile there's ructions in Sandycove at the moment. The Council proposes slicing of some green space at Newtownsmith to accomodate parking for nearby residents, but my worry is that this could be the thin end of the wedge, particularly as the Council always seems to be chomping at the bit to provide more parking around the town, even it involves reducing green space. I've suggested that with a bit of tweaking and reducing the width of the road, footpath and wall they could squeeze in car parking if they really feel the need. It begs the question as to how everyone has managed to cope without parking along the sea-front, but that's a question for another day.

Up on Georges Street in Dún Laoghaire, traffic is also causing problems. Despite the Green Party's best efforts, the councillors voted to allow all traffic back onto the main street in Dún Laoghaire. Not suprisingly this is causing lots of wear and tear to the ill-conceived choice of rough granite cobbles that were put down when the environmental improvements were carried out several years ago. Now the plan is to rip up the granite road surface during the month of June and put down asphalt, at a cost to the tax-payer of several hundred thousand euro. I'm annoyed that the Council chose dodgy cobbles in the firsts space, but I'm mad as hell that the councillors performed a U-turn on pedestrianisation. At least there'll be less people tripping up on the rough surface and that can only be a good thing.

The main streets of Dún Laoghaire have had a tough time trading over the last few years. There's a life cycle to every business, and sometimes the second generation that takes over a business don't make as much of a go at it as their predecessors. Dundrum, and the city centre have also attracted some customers away for the County Town. High house prices also deterred young families from moving to Dún Laoghaire during the 'Tiger' years and that has taken its toll on the demographics over the last decade. There is some good news though, the Council has appointed a Brand Manager to develop a marketing plan for the town, and a new evening arts and music programme is about to kick off on Thursday 20th May. I am told that a typical Thursday evening will begin with film screenings and live performances at 5pm in the Pavilion Theatre Gallery followed by 'artist talks' series at 6 pm at the Sunshine Café', on Georges Street. At 7pm in Weirs of Dún Laoghaire, the Damian Evans Mixed Ground Jazz Series will be running, offering attendees the opportunity to hear both local and international jazz artists in a fun and informal setting. Meanwhile, art projects and performances by Naomi Sex and Sinéad Mc Cann will be underway every Thursday evening (and at other days during the week) at the artists' studios on Lr. Georges' St. I'm sure it'll give a much-needed great boost to the town.

In other local news, the Council has announced that it is withdrawing from providing a waste collection service. I'm not suprised, given that under a Fine Gael/Labour ruling alliance it has run up debts of €30 million in unpaid charges over the last ten years. It doesn't help, mind you when some councillors are saying that no-one should pay their waste charges. I'm told that the Council will ensure that there will be a seamless transition period, and I've urged the County Manager Owen Keegan to make sure that no-one is left without a waste collection. I'm glad to see that they've put up the answers to some frequently asked questions here. I suspect the withdrawal of the Council from direct waste collection services may make it more difficult for the four Dublin Local Authorities to press ahead with their plans for the Poolbeg incinerator. You can get the lowdown on our waste management challenges here at the DublinWaste website, but be warned, it does come with a pro-incineration bias.

Finally, it's nice to have some warmer weather on the way, though Met Eireann are warning that there's a chance of potato blight. Hopefully my Orla potatoes will prove resistant, as we head towards the summer and a busy few weeks ahead in the Dáil.

One last thing - the Green Economy Expo is on in Croke Park this Friday and Saturday21-22 June 2010 , lots of good ideas and speakers discussing ways of creating environmental job opportunities, and you can find out more here.

Smarter travel, good food and proper planning

It was chilly enough in Sandycove yesterday. There were a few brave souls in the water, but I stuck to the rock-pooling.

The weather's been a bit like the economy, turning the corner, but not quite there yet. Still, I'm optimistic about the months ahead: we're due a decent Summer, and figures are indicating a recovery in the economy as well.

I'm writing this from the train, on my way back up from a meeting of Forás Orgánach in Co. Offaly. I've finally worked out how do this tethering thing between my laptop and an iphone.

The meeting was held at the Department of Finance offices, decentralised a few years ago to Tullamore. I'm not convinced of the merits of decentralisation, especially when it is linked to building offices in out-of-town locations. The building is located in an office park, and although it seemed well-built, there was only one bike visible in a sea of surface car-parking. You can't detach proper planning from building in the right location in the first instance, and while the building standards may be high, it doesn't seem right to place such buildings a mile out the road from the town, where people are more inclined to drive, rather than walk, cycle or use public transport. On the same issue I was glad to see Bertie Ahern having a re-think on decentralisation in yesterday's Sunday Tribune. I'd have thought that one of the first aspects of decentralisation should have been a state-of-the-art video-conferencing suite in every decentralised office, but I suspect that if they do exist they're not being used to full capacity. I can only imagine that mileage claims have increased as a result of Charlie McCreevy's flawed decision.

Still, the meeting went well, and we had a good discussion of the draft plan from the Forás Orgánach Partnership Market Development Group. In my contribution at the start of the meeting I mentioned a report from the United Nations Environment Programme on 'Organic Agriculture and Food Security in Africa'. The report suggests that organic farming can feed Africa, and all the cases studied showed increases in per hectare productivity of food crops, challenging the myth that organic agriculture cannot increase agricultural productivity. Meanwhile the European Union has a new organic logo that comes into force at the start of July. It depicts a leaf outlined by European stars and is accompanied by the words- "organic farming good for nature, good for you" and should increase awareness of organics within the European Union.

Meanwhile I'm launching William Campbell's new book on Thursday 13th May 2010. "Here's How" is both provocative and challenging - packed with ideas for how to transform Ireland to meet the challenges ahead. It concentrates on the need for reform at all levels on how the State operates and is a thumping good read.

The Green Economy is turning out to be a huge part of how we turn Ireland around. Green goods and services are estimated to be worth €2.8bn to the Irish economy every year and this figure is growing rapidly. We're helping to organise a conference on Friday and Saturday 21st and 22nd May 2010 in the Croke Park Exhibition Centre. A keynote speech will be given by Gabriel D'Arcy, CEO, Bord na Móna entitled "A New Contract With Nature – the Green Economy in Action." I'll be adding my tuppence ha'penny worth as well on the issues of agriculture and planning.

Details of the conference are on the www.GreenEconomy.ie website.

Remembering Toyosi Shitta-Bey

I headed into town today to the march in memory of Toyosi Shitta-bey. Thousands of people walked from the Garden of Remembrance to the Dail. On behalf of the Minister for Integration I addressed the March and here's what I said:

Friends,

We are one.

There is no black Ireland or white Ireland there is one Ireland. There is no old Ireland and new ireland, there is one Ireland.

Today is day of sadness, a day to remember and a time of sorrow.

It is a day to remember the all-to-short life of young, talented member of his community and a gifted footballer

It is a day to remember and to celebrate the life of Toyosi Shitta-bey. My heart goes out to his family. My two young boys are privilaged to go to school with children of different colours, from different nations. It makes their lives richer and it makes Ireland richer. I can not imagine what it would be like for a parent to lose a child in this way.

Today is a day of peace and a day of solidarity.

My colleague the Minister for Integration and Equality Mary White TD stood in solidarity with Toyosi's friends and family at his funeral and is working hard to tackle this act of madness.

She will meet in the coming days with the Nigerian Ambassador. She will work with the Minister for Justice to make sure those who committed this crime face the penalties that they deserve under the laws of this land. She will review the work of the Equality Authority, and if laws need to be changed she will not be found wanting.

Today is also a day to stand together. It is a day to pay tribute to the work of Hartsown Community School, to Shelbourne Football Club, to Sports Against Racism in Ireland (SARI) and the people of Tyrallstown. It is a day to stand up to bullying, to stand up to racism, a day to stand up for integration, for tolerance and a day to stand up for Ireland.

I spoke with friend from SARI in Ireland earlier and they tell me that on the 8th May a memorial game will be played between a team from Charter in Northern Ireland and a team from SARI. Toyosi missed the last game in Belfast. This game will be in his memory.

Assistant Commissioner Mich Phelan from the Garda Forum on New Communities rang SARI last night and asked "How can we help?". On their behalf I appeal to leaders from Ireland's new communities to go to their Garda stations and offer their help to combat racism.

In the words of the late Dr. King it is a time for "dignity and for discipline". We are created equal and we shall work together to "hew a stone of hope out of this mountain of despair".

Let us go in peace to seek justice.

We stand in solidarity with Toyosi and his family

Joining the Dots

That's the view from the Limerick-Galway train looking out on the platform at Sixmilebridge on the 29th March.

The weather was absolutely miserable, but there were crowds on every platform welcoming the return of a train service linking the two cities by rail once more after a thirty-four year gap. That was my first 'official' engagement as the new Minister for State with responsibility for Sustainable Transport and Travel, and there was a great turn-out of support for the service in each of the stations that we passed through on the journey up from Limerick through Clare and up to Galway.

I've moved across the road from Leinster House and I'm now based in the Department of Transport on Kildare Street. The new job is, both wide-ranging and challenging. In a sense I'm trying to join up the dots on sustainability between the Departments of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food; Environment, Heritage and Local Government; and Transport. The official job title covers horticulture, sustainable transport and travel, planning and climate change.

In the Department of Transport there's a lot of projects slowly coming to fruition that have been around since the early nineties. The old Dublin Transportation Initiative report advocated integrated ticketing as well as real time passenger information, and hopefully I'll be able to push these issues along to implementation. There's also other opportunities. One challenge is the issue of rail freight. Tonnage has declined in recent years, and I'll be doing what I can to make the case for sending goods by rail where possible, in order to improve safety as well as reduce carbon emissions.

In agriculture it has been a tough winter after several years of wet summers. Last week the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food launched the new agri-environment scheme. It replaces the old Rural Environment Protection Scheme (REPS) , and will make payments to farmers for their careful stewardship of the land such as protecting watercourses, and conserving birdlife and built heritage.This was my first formal introduction to the Department, and the agriculture media, so I made a point of stressing my agricultural credentials. My first job was on John Leeson's farm in South County Dublin - milking cows, snagging fodder beet and painting gates. Trevor Sargent has done great work over the last few years in building up the organic sector, promoting a GM-free island developing the 'incredible edibles' campaign as well as the food dudes, and it'll be a hard act to follow, but I'll be doing my best to continue with that work.

In the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government, I'll be focussing on steering the Planning Bill through the Oireachtas. A proper planning system can help Ireland avoid future boom-bust cycles by removing some of the 'hope value' from land. I'll also have an involvement in facing up to climate change, peak oil and energy security - three inter-twined issues that require a coherent approach as oil prices head back up again.

Last week we also had Dáil votes on the future of Ireland’s banking system. Politics is the art of the possible, not the theoretical. There are no quick-fix solutions to the mistakes that were made between 2005 and 2007. A friend rang me up to pass on the bad news about the architectural firm Murray O’Laoire going into liquidation. I explained that we have to recapitalize the banks so that good business proposals receive the cash they need to create jobs. Just before Easter I met with Professor Alan Ahearne, economics advisor to an Taoiseach. He impressed me with his coherent analysis of Ireland’s financial challenges.


It’s only as we start filling packing cases in my Dáil office that it finally sank in. I have a new job, new responsibilities and a wide-ranging brief covering agriculture, transport, planning, heritage and climate change. In the course of the week I’ve been down to the Customs House to meet up with their management team. I’ve attended my first press conference in Agriculture House with Minister Brendan Smith and Minister of State Sean Connick. I’ve also met the enthusiastic team running the Sustainable Transport and Travel office.


On Good Friday I was in the constituency office on Patrick Street in Dún Laoghaire reading the Green Party’s submission on proposals for the Deansgrange Local Area Plan. It would be easy to get distracted or spread myself too thinly with the many challenges in each of the three Departments that I cover. However, all politics is local politics as the late Senator Tip O’Neill once stated, and it is important to cover the bases in Dún Laoghaire, as well as working on global and national issues.