Trade Unions council calls for more social housing

TRADE union members called for the county council to increase their efforts to provide social housing. This was at the AGM of the Bray and District Council of Trade Unions last week.

In a lengthy debate on the issue, Derek Casserly (SIPTU) criticised the performance of the local authority and called on the Trade Union Council to do more in highlighting the ‘failure to provide the housing desperately needed by people in the county’.

‘We are in the middle of the worst housing and homeless crisis ever and there appears to be little urgency in dealing with this emergency,’ he said. ‘I recently received a glossy brochure from Wicklow County Council and apart from the announcement of the housing development planned for Kilmacanogue there is nothing on what they are doing to house people.’

Mary Diskin (INTO) stated that there are areas of Bray which would be ideal for living space, such as a vacant property across from Supervalu in Castle Street which would particularly suit old people as it is very central to the town. Mick Ryan (TEEU) and Colm Kinsella (Unite) both referred to the number of boarded up houses and called for more resources to be available to ensure these are refurbished and utilised as a matter of urgency.

Motions dealing the immediate repeal of the legislation on financial measures in the public interest (FEMPI) in line with ICTU policy; the proposal by Leo Varadkar to ban public sector strikes, and defending workers’ rights in a post-Brexit Northern Ireland were also adopted.

The President of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, Brian Campfield, congratulated the Council on its 100th anniversary, and referred to the impact of young voters on the surprising outcome of the UK general election. He believed that the pessimism that many people had, due to years of austerity policies, must be replaced by optimism and the belief that people want fairness and justice in society.

George Sheehan (SIPTU) was unanimously elected President for a second term, with Judy Coolahan (INTO) as Vice-President.

(Back, from left) Margaret Moynihan, Dermot Tobin, Derek Casserley, John Anderson, John Sweeney, Margaret Coughlan, Judy Coolahan, Emmet Connolly, Mary Hannon, Mick Reid, (front) Mary Diskin; Brian Campfield, President ICTU; George Sheehan, Chairman...