We Need to Develop Nordic-Level Childcare and Early Education Policies
Independent Senator Katherine Zappone and I are joining forces to develop policies that achieve high quality and accessible early childhood care and education in Ireland. Our aim is to put forward a coherent strategy and an implementation plan to deliver the social and economic benefits that Nordic-level childcare does. These include improved educational outcomes,...
We Need to Invest in Childcare
This week I spoke to childcare providers about the need for investment in early childhood education.
A Once in a Lifetime Chance to Revolutionise Irish Politics
Aneurin Bevan, the Welsh Labour MP who set up the NHS, said that “the purpose of getting power is to be able to give it away”. The principle underlying this is called subsidiarity – that idea that decision-making and responsibility should be pushed out from the centre of an organisation, as close to the action...
Why I’m not joining the Independent Alliance
I’m not joining the alliance of independents. Here’s why: As public trust in politics continues to fall, there is ever-growing demand for meaningful change to the political system. I will continue to push for that change, either as an independent TD as I do now, or as part of a new political movement. The type...
I’m not joining Reboot Ireland, but welcome any challenge to the status quo
While I won’t be joining the Reboot Ireland initiative, I wish them luck. Anything that challenges the stale cartel that is Ireland’s political establishment is welcome. The initial reaction from some is that it all feels very Fine Gael-y, if a little further right and a touch more socially conservative. But that analysis misses at...
Why I’m optimistic for 2015
While it’s been a shocker of a year for the Government parties, it’s been a very promising one for the future of politics in Ireland. This time last year, the Troika were packing their bags and the end of austerity was heralded from Government Buildings. But what a year in politics. In Justice, there was...
