Your signature could make a difference in Budget 2010

Darragh

Would you sign a petition to stop budget cuts affecting the poorest children in our country?

The eagle-eyed amongst you will spot some banner advertising for Barnardos around the site.



It's to do with their new YES/NO Campaign which is asking people to sign the petition on their website to tell the government that you are against budget cuts that could have a negative effect on the lives of vulnerable children.

It says YES to the following:

YES to a fair deal for the most vulnerable children
YES to more effective public services
YES to maintaining social welfare benefits
YES to a chance to learn, to grow, to live.

It says NO to the following:

NO to 76,000 children living in consistent poverty
NO to making kids pay for grown up mistakes
NO to budget cuts for children living in disadvantage
NO to a hard life made unbearable.

Names and messages will be passed on to the Government to put pressure on them not to make cuts that will affect vulnerable children and families.

I've put up a blog post about it including a Boards.ie video interview with Barnardos CEO Fergus Finlay where he talks about how your signature will make a difference.

Two striking elements for me from the interview:

1. It costs €20 million to create 1KM of road in Ireland. Say we didn't create 10km of road next year? That saving could go to people who need help.
   
2. We are currently near completion on super prison Thornton Hall. In its first 10 years of operation it will cost €1,000 million. In its second ten years, it will house the children that Budget 2010 will affect.

You can find out more details here and watch the video interview with Fergus Finlay here.

Please note, there is no onus on you to sign the petition. We are not asking you to or telling you to. We are simply saying it's there and if you want to sign it, feel free. It could make a difference.


Thanks for your time.

Darragh

moceri

The best and most effective way to avoid cuts, particulaly in programmes to alleviate Child Poverty is to give the Present Incumbents in Government the biggest booting out of office come the next election.

The Tax reliefs given on Pension contributions this year, which mostly benefited high earners, was greater than the whole social welfare budget spend in 2009. There's justice for you.

Tellox

Sorry, I don't get point #2.. In years 10-20 of this super prison, it'll house starving kids? What?

dunworth1

moceri wrote: »

The best and most effective way to avoid cuts, particulaly in programmes to alleviate Child Poverty is to give the Present Incumbents in Government the biggest booting out of office come the next election.

The Tax reliefs given on Pension contributions this year, which mostly benefited high earners, was greater than the whole social welfare budget spend in 2009. There's justice for you.

do you really think that Fine Gael or sinn fein Etc. could do a better job.

every one of them should be booted from their parties.

and fresh young minds should be brought in.

the people who allowed this to happen which includes all the parties should be booted.

pljudge321

moceri wrote: »

The best and most effective way to avoid cuts, particulaly in programmes to alleviate Child Poverty is to give the Present Incumbents in Government the biggest booting out of office come the next election.

The Tax reliefs given on Pension contributions this year, which mostly benefited high earners, was greater than the whole social welfare budget spend in 2009. There's justice for you.

Purely as a matter of interest can I would be grateful if you could post up some figures for this.

DaireMac

Ha, the only signature worth anything in this banana republic is the one on your passport. So for those who haven't figgered it out yet!!!! you train in Ireland so you can spend your life in a country thats got at minimum a good health service.

Shame on this country!!!!!!!!

Ok sorry rant over.................But its true.

Permabear

This post has been deleted.

jhegarty

Darragh wrote: »

1. It costs €20 million to create 1KM of road in Ireland. Say we didn't create 10km of road next year? That saving could go to people who need help.

The roads are capital spending. That's what we are allowed borrow for.

You need to find the saving in non-capital spending.

Stark

moceri wrote: »

The Tax reliefs given on Pension contributions this year, which mostly benefited high earners, was greater than the whole social welfare budget spend in 2009. There's justice for you.

The pension they'll draw when they retire is taxable income. If you tax people when they're putting the money in, then you're taxing them twice.

Stark

Darragh wrote: »

1. It costs €20 million to create 1KM of road in Ireland. Say we didn't create 10km of road next year? That saving could go to people who need help.

Then we'll have several extra dead, paralysed, disfigured and maimed children and parents a year for the next umpteen years. Where should we not build the roads? The N11 Arklow - Rathnew stretch outside the Beehive pub claimed 3 lives in the space of 6 months and that's just taking fatalities into account. Is it worth it just so more kids can have Playstations at Christmas?

robindch

Darragh wrote: »

Please note, there is no onus on you to sign the petition. We are not asking you to or telling you to. We are simply saying it's there and if you want to sign it, feel free. It could make a difference.

No, it won't make a blind bit of difference and I'm amazed that anybody could think that this kind of point-and-click charity will achieve anything.

I suggest that if people want to help the vulnerable -- kids and otherwise -- then either join one of the volunteer agencies and donate your time and energy, or get out your checkbook and hand over something substantial (and I've done both).

conolan

Darragh wrote: »

[*]We are currently near completion on super prison Thornton Hall.

It hasn't even started. No contract to build yet. Bad information makes for terrible argument.

conolan

moceri wrote: »

The Tax reliefs given on Pension contributions this year, which mostly benefited high earners, was greater than the whole social welfare budget spend in 2009. There's justice for you.

Social Welfare spending 2009 €10,073,695
The 2007 Green Paper on pensions estimated that the total cost of tax and PRSI relief on pensions in 2006 was €2.9 billion. (Sunday Business Post)

Check your facts.

ctrl-alt-delete

Tellox wrote: »

Sorry, I don't get point #2.. In years 10-20 of this super prison, it'll house starving kids? What?

I'm sure it means that these kids will become the ones that end up in Prison, not because they are starving etc, but because that life has led them down such a path.

Max Power1

robindch wrote: »

No, it won't make a blind bit of difference and I'm amazed that anybody could think that this kind of point-and-click charity will achieve anything.

I suggest that if people want to help the vulnerable -- kids and otherwise -- then either join one of the volunteer agencies and donate your time and energy, or get out your checkbook and hand over something substantial (and I've done both).

+1
Social welfare and child benefit need to be cut. Anyone who doesnt see this is blindly naieve.

Also, we all know online petitions arent worth the paper they are written on

madmoe

I could not agree more Max Power1!! I work in the public sector and I will be the first to admit that the overall pay bill is too high and needs to be tacked but so too does social welfare in an equal manner! Its just way way out of line with the UK and the rest of Europe.

mink_man

donegalfella wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

ah this is not america...

Max Power1

madmoe wrote: »

I could not agree more Max Power1!! I work in the public sector and I will be the first to admit that the overall pay bill is too high and needs to be tacked but so too does social welfare in an equal manner! Its just way way out of line with the UK and the rest of Europe.

I will add that I am completely in favour of the public sector wage bill being drastically cut before anycuts in SW payments, and I am in no way affiliated with or supportive of the public sector, its workers, or their strike.