1 Labour Youth National Conference 2013 - Clár

1 Agriculture, Food and the Marine

2

3 1 – General Agriculture Policy

4 Conference calls on the following to be included in Labour Youth’s Policy on Agriculture:

5 Introduce an Installation grant to young farmers (Under 25) of 15,000 (Cost 7 6 Million)

7 The rate per hectare paid to farmers must not fall below 285 under the Pillar one 8 scheme in CAP. 9 10 Ensure CAP Pillar Two payments are proportional to the DAS classification. 11 12 Introduce a cost benefit analysis of all rural development funding schemes (as is 13 the case with the Micro Finance Fund) 14 15 Ensure that all Local Enterprise Offices have agricultural training and funding 16 scheme awareness, and tie these offices to the Rural Development partnerships. 17 18 Exclude LEADER scheme boards from ‘alignment’ 19 20 Attach Management training courses to all rural development and farming related 21 grants. 22 23 Establish co-operative inter and intra rural development bodies between local 24 authorities, development boards and Local Enterprise Offices. 25 Kerry Labour Youth 26

27 2 - National Ploughing Championship

28

29 Conference notes the lack of a Labour Party stand at this years’ National Ploughing 30 Championship in Stradbally Co. Laois.

31 Conference further notes that all political parties with Dáil representation had 32 stands at the championships.

33 Conference calls on the Labour Party to have a stand at all future Ploughing 34 Championships as it is an excellent opportunity to engage with rural voters. 2 Labour Youth National Conference 2013 - Clár

35 University College Cork Labour Branch

36

37 Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht

38

39 3- Irish Language

40

41 Créideamh an crinnu seo, Is é an Gaeilge an chead teanga den stát na hEirinn, mar raite 42 san article 8 den bunracht na hEirinn. Glachamid an crinnu seo, an fadbh mor leis an 43 eacnamaíocht ar súil san tír anois.

44 Creideamh an crinnu seo, nach bhfuil aon praghas ar ag sabhail an chead teanga sa tir, ár 45 gcultúr agus an oidhreachta, gan dabht den na fadbhanna eacnamaíochta.

46 Molann an criunnu seo, tá gá ar an Oireachtas agus an rialtais, lóistín agus iompar a 47 tugadh, chuig agus ó go dtí an Gaelthacht, de gach daoine faoi ocht mbliana deag daois, 48 má mhaith leo, i rith na laentha saoire, saor in aisce. Is gá é a tabhairt cabhru den teanga 49 naisúnta na hÉireann.

50 Ollscoile na hÉireann Gáillimhe, Partí an locht Oibre sochaí

51 Conference recognises the first official language of the Irish State, as stated in article 8 52 of the constitution. Conference recognises the dire economic circumstances the country is 53 now in.

54 Conference would still reaffirm there is no price on protecting our national language and 55 heritage, regardless of the economic situation.

56 Conference proposes, the government provide free travel and accommodation costs to all 57 children up until 18, if they so wish, to attend a Gaelthacht school, during the summer 58 holidays, to ensure the preservation of our national language.

59 National University of Galway Labour Society

60

61 Children and Youth Affairs

62

63 4 - Beauty Pageants 64 Conference expresses concern at the recent beauty pageant held in Dublin for 65 children.

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66 Conference believes children are not emotionally equipped to deal with the 67 consequences of being participants in such beauty pageants. 68 Conference calls for a ban of all beauty pageants involving participants under the 69 age of sixteen years old. 70 Louth Labour Youth

71

72 Communications, Energy and Natural Resources

73

74 5 - Internet Access

75 Due to size of this motion/policy Standing Orders have broken it up into 11 76 sections. The motion will be taken as one during Conference, but amendments can 77 be put to each individual section. Each section will be taken individually, and 78 delegates will be able to make an observation or object to that section. If an 79 objection is raised from the floor to a section, following debate as normal, that 80 section can be voted on whether to retain or delete from policy. At the end of the 81 11th section, motion as amended will then be voted on. 82 Conference adopts the following as Labour Youth policy:

83 Section 1 – Fundamental Right

84 Labour Youth believes access to the internet is very important. It is a very 85 important way for people to access government services and political information. 86 It is an important way for people to quickly communicate with elected 87 representatives and effectively hold them to account. It is an important way to 88 access health information and helps patients keep informed. It is becoming more 89 important for health information and monitoring. It is important for education, 90 not only being an essential part of primary and secondary schools, but it is now 91 impossible to complete a 3rd level course without it. It also has a lot of free 92 educational resources which are important for lifelong learning. As more and more 93 people leave the country, it is becoming a critical method of communication. It 94 can also be used to help deal with rural isolation. For all these reasons, Labour 95 Youth believes access to the Internet is a fundamental human right. 96

97 Amendment Number 1- Motion 5, Section 1.

98 Remove 'is a fundamental human right' and replace with 'is a basic 99 requirement for each and every citizen of this state and ultimately allows 100 for fundamental rights to be exercised, such as the right to freedom of 101 expression and opinion.'

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102 Amendment proposed by DIT Labour Society

103 Amendment Number 2- Motion 5, Section 1.

104 Replace “Fundamental Right” with “Internet Access” 105 Also replace “is a fundamental human right” with “should be advanced as a 106 priority for the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources”

107 Amendment proposed by Dublin South West Labour Youth

108

109

110 Section 2 - ICANN

111 ICANN, or the Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers decides on the 112 domain names like .com or .ie and allocates them. Recently they allocated more 113 descriptive ones like .apple or .guardian. They also released names like .blog or 114 .app. They didn’t have a requirement for these names to be opened for anyone to 115 be able to access. Recently, the US government seized some names for dubious 116 reasons. Labour Youth believes ICANN should be under the control of an 117 independent body like UNESCO. 118

119 Section 3 – Net Neutrality

120 One of the great things about the Internet is that everyone can have equal access 121 to it. Everyone has the potential to make the next Facebook or YouTube. This is 122 under threat by Internet Service Providers who are trying to charge companies to 123 access consumers. Here’s how the Internet works. You pay your Internet Service 124 Provider to access the Internet. YouTube pays their Internet Service Provider to 125 publish the content to the Internet. Some ISPs try to make YouTube pay again to 126 reach their users. This is a disgrace because they have already paid to host their 127 content. Imagine if another political party paid so only their website loaded 128 quickly on EIrcom? Imagine if videos on Labour’s website didn’t lode on some ISPs. 129 The idea that every provider has the same access to users on the Internet is Net 130 Neutrality. Labour Youth supports the EU Commission’s proposal to introduce Net 131 Neutrality across Europe. 132

133 Section 4 – Three Strikes Regulation

134 Three Strikes Regulation means that on three unsubstantiated allegations of piracy 135 your entire household is prevented from accessing the Internet. As stated above, 136 this involves letting private corporations strip people of basic human rights.

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137 Denying access to the Internet is something that is a radical step which should only 138 be done by the courts in exceptional circumstances. Labour Youth believes Three 139 Strikes regulation should be illegal. 140

141 Amendment - Motion 5, Section 4

142 Remove 'basic human rights' and replace with 'their right to internet access'.

143 Amendment proposed by DIT Labour Society

144

145 Section 5 – Content Filters

146 Content filters do not work. The Internet is too big to manually classify, so filters 147 can only work by automation. These automated filters really don’t work because 148 computers can’t tell the difference between porn and non porn. If someone is 149 dedicated enough to getting around these filters, they will, the only effect they 150 have is to block innocent websites.

151 Section 6 – Piracy & Copyright

152 Piracy is a fundamentally good thing. It involves people who love great films, 153 books and games sharing them with friends. People have lent friends books 154 practically since books have existed and the book publishing industry still exists. 155 Every (non publisher funded) piece of research shows people who pirate content 156 also buy content. Services like Netflix and Spotify are popular because they are 157 easy to access. If companies won’t make their content easy to access then people 158 will pirate it. No restrictions should be placed on piracy. Copyright is outdated 159 and should be updated for the digital age and sharing should be encouraged.

160 Section 7 - DRM

161 Digital Rights Management (DRM) is software or hardware that breaks a user’s 162 computer to stop the copying content. Nearly every piece of DRM has been broken 163 within weeks of release, so it serves no function accept to block people from doing 164 what they want with their content. DRM should be banned and everyone should 165 have the right to break DRM. 166

167 Section 8 – Rural Access

168 Access to the Internet is important for rural development. With high quality 169 Internet, people can live in rural areas and work from home in nearly any industry. 170 Access to high quality Internet will encourage rural communities to develop and

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171 remain sustainable. Labour Youth believes provision of high quality Broadband to 172 all rural communities is important.

173 Section 9 – Digital Divide

174 It is important that we try mitigating the upcoming digital divide. One way to do 175 this is by providing refurbished second hand computers to people who don’t have 176 them. This could be done through CE schemes, teaching people computer repair, 177 as well as social enterprises. It would be important to provide people with low 178 cost or in some cases computers as well as training on how to sue them. 179

180 Section 10 - WIFI

181 Labour Youth welcomes the limited role out of free Wi-Fi. We believe this should 182 be expanded across Ireland in cities and towns.

183 Section 11 – Open Source

184 Labour Youth supports the Open Source movement and encourages all government 185 departments to use Open Source software where possible. Open Standards are 186 also important and should be widely adopted. Labour Youth believes all 187 government departments and other state bodies should publish data in an open 188 and transparent format. Data should be public by default unless keeping it private 189 is absolutely necessary.

190 National University of Ireland, Maynooth Labour Society

191

192 6 - Mobile communication

193 Conference adopts the following as Labour Youth policy:

194 Labour Youth welcomes the European Commission’s decision to introduce a 195 common market in mobile phones across Europe. However, Ireland’s mobile 196 market is the costliest in Europe. Labour Youth believes some sort of price 197 controls should be introduced. 198 199 Labour Youth believes the postal system is important and should not be privatised. 200 Labour Youth condemns the EU’s attempts to introduce competition in the postal 201 market. 202 203 It is important that media represents all parts of society fairly. All media should 204 be equality proofed and all shows that demonise particular groups of people should 205 be discouraged.

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206 National University of Ireland, Maynooth Labour Society

207

208 Defence

209 7 – Neutrality 210 211 Conference calls for a reassertion of Ireland's neutrality, an end to American 212 military flights through Shannon airport and a full investigation into the possibility 213 of rendition flights taking place through Shannon. 214 Dublin City University Labour Society 215

216

217 Education and Skills

218 8 – General Education Policy 219 220 Due to size of this motion/policy Standing Orders have broken it up into 5 221 sections. The motion will be taken as one during Conference, but amendments can 222 be put to each individual section. Each section will be taken individually, and 223 delegates will be able to make an observation or object to that section. If an 224 objection is raised from the floor to a section, following debate as normal, that 225 section can be voted on whether to retain or delete from policy. At the end of the 226 5th section, motion as amended will then be voted on. 227 Labour Youth supports the following policies in relation to education: 228 Section 1 – Traveller Inclusivity

229 Conference calls for the Irish education syllabus to be inclusive and mindful of 230 Traveller culture and of the existence of more than one distinct native community 231 at all times.

232 Section 2 – Childcare Standards

233 Conference calls for more rigorous upholding of child care (pre school services) 234 regulations of 2006, including if necessary an increase in the number and 235 frequency of inspections.

236 Section 3 - Enrolment

237 Conference supports greater inclusivity and equality in determining enrolment in 238 schools. Therefore LY supports the standardisation of admissions policies across

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239 the education system, including the eradication of entrance exams and an end to 240 the outdated practice of preferential admission based on parish lines.

241 Section 4 - History

242 Conference strongly believes that history should be a core part of every citizens 243 education and should remain a mandatory part of the Junior Certificate (or its 244 equivalent)

245 Section 5 – Politics/Philosophy

246 Conference strongly believes that CSPE should be replaced by a combined politics 247 and philosophy course, available through Junior and Leaving Certificates (or its 248 equivalent).

249 Dublin Bay North Labour Youth

250

251 9 - Bunreacht na hEireann availability

252

253 Conference recognises Bunreacht na hÉireann as the founding document of our Republic.

254 Conference believes all citizens should have easy access to a constitution, and should 255 understand the document with governs their lives within the national territory.

256 Conference believes all children of primary and secondary school age should receive an 257 updated copy of the constitution after every amendment to the constitution is passed, 258 free of charge.

259 National University of Galway Labour Society

260

261 Environment, Community and Local Government

262 10 - Housing

263 Labour Youth considers housing to be a right and not a privilege. Labour Youth 264 support a social housing programme that would see the stock of social housing in 265 Ireland increased.

266 Labour Youth calls on the Government to implement its Housing Policy Statement 267 by its deadline of 2016. “The Government’s Housing Policy Statement has an 268 overall objective to enable all house-holds access good quality housing 269 appropriate to their circumstances and in their particular community of choice. It 270 acknowledges that delivering better outcomes for vulnerable and disadvantaged

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271 households is a key priority for the Government. In this context, a continued focus 272 on tackling the root causes of homelessness and maintaining an integrated and 273 efficient approach to service delivery is required.”

274 Labour Youth calls on the implementation of a Deposit Protection Scheme as was 275 contained in the Programme for Government. Labour Youth believes that a deposit 276 protection scheme, where deposits are held by an independent third party like the 277 PRTB (Private Residential Tenancies Board) or private provider and not by the 278 landlord would lead to the prompt return of deposits and protect tenants and 279 landlords alike.

280 Labour Youth supports the removal of restrictions that allow for tenants 281 benefitting from rent allowance to be denied housing on that ground.

282 Labour youth believes the current Rent Allowance Scheme has become inefficient 283 and needs to be reformed so as to meet the challenges of today. Many people on 284 Rent Allowance are facing homelessness due to landlords increasing their rent and 285 making it impossible for them to continue living there.

286 Kerry Labour Youth

287 288 11 – Housing Law Review 289 290 Conference condemns the actions of many negligent developers during the so 291 called ‘property bubble’ and calls for a root and branch review of all law in the 292 building and development sector. 293 Dublin City University Labour Society 294

295 12 – Elected Mayor of Dublin

296 Conference calls for the establishment of a directly elected mayor for Dublin and 297 mandates the NYE to campaign for such 298 Dublin City University Labour Society 299

300 13 – Establishment of a Dublin Assembly

301 Conference calls for the abolition of the four Dublin councils to be replaced by an 302 assembly modelled on the Greater London Assembly to act as a legislator for the 303 Mayor.

304 Dublin City University Labour Society 305 Amendment to Motion 13

306

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307 Delete everything after “Conference calls for…” and replace with: 308 “the establishment of a Greater Dublin Authority with responsibility over 309 Transport, Planning, Environmental, climate change and waste 310 management, Education, Policing and Crime strategy, Fire and emergency 311 services, Tourism, Water Provision and other functions seen fit to devolve 312 from central government departments and quangos in City of Dublin and 313 Counties of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal and South Dublin. 314 315 Conference further calls for the Authority to be governed by a directly 316 elected Mayor supervised by a directly elected “Dublin Assembly” 317 318 Conference opposes any attempt to take powers away from the existing 319 local authorities in the Dublin Region but believes that the Government, 320 Authority and local councils examine the possibility of shared services being 321 provided by the Greater Dublin Authority on behalf of local councils”

322 Amendment proposed by Dublin South West Labour Youth

323

324 14 - Preservation of nature

325

326 Conference recognises the national importance of our flora and fauna to our national 327 image, our environment, and our economy through tourism. Conference believes we 328 should preserve, and expand all forested areas (excluding all those commercial purposes), 329 both private and public, and replant large sections of land to encourage wildlife.

330 Conference believes we should preserve all mountains, lakes, rivers, seas fields and bogs, 331 to allow our plant and animal life to flourish, by restricting planning permission for 332 industry and residential uses.

333 Conference believes it should be extremely difficult to rezone areas of areas of 334 environmental land, to any other form of land use.

335 National University of Galway Labour Society

336 Amendment - Motion 14

337 After final sentence insert 'Given the financial income Ireland's landscape 338 provides to the State, directly through the tourist industry, Labour Youth 339 condemns any attempts to privatise the nations forestry and bogs. Its 340 privatisation would ultimately see the deterioration of the natural 341 environment in order to sell off assets to increase the economic capital of 342 multinational corporations.'

343 Amendment proposed by DIT Labour Society

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344

345

346 Finance and Public Expenditure

347 15 - VAT reform

348 Conference notes with concern our current VAT system.

349 Conference believes that vital products such as medical or educational equipment 350 or healthy food like fruit and vegetables should not be taxed at a higher VAT level 351 than non essentials like racehorses and fast food.

352 Conference mandates the Education and Policy Officer to write up a 353 comprehensive policy on VAT reform.

354 Dublin Central Labour Youth 355

356 16 - Multinational tax avoidance

357 Conference notes that the current rate of corporation tax in Ireland is sufficiently 358 low enough for multinationals and that Ireland’s tax system should not be used to 359 avoid paying tax or in fact paying significantly less tax than is expected of some of 360 the largest corporations in the world

361 Conference further notes that rather than working people paying more than their 362 fair share that multinationals should be forced to pay the rate of 12.5% and that no 363 secret deals can be secured which will shed multinational corporations of a 364 significant tax burden

365 Conference therefore proposes a system whereby there is greater tax transparency 366 among corporations and conferences also proposes for a tax ombudsman who 367 would oversee the tax system in Ireland and ensure its fairness and equality and be 368 completely impartial of both Government and Corporations influence and will also 369 bring back credibility to Ireland not being seen as a tax haven among our European 370 and Global partners.

371 Dublin Institute of Technology Labour Society

372

373 17 - Tax Avoidance by the Wealthy Irish Citizens

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374 Conference notes the large-scale tax avoidance by the wealthiest members of the 375 Irish public through various tax havens, such as the Netherlands.

376 Conference notes this behaviour as deceitful and immoral, going against the 377 principles of citizenship. Especially when a group of said tax avoiding residents 378 have a high profile that parades ‘Irishness’ as part of a well-known public image.

379 Conference calls on the government to revoke the citizenship of individuals who 380 engage in such activities.

381 Kerry Labour Youth

382 383 18 - Comparative Earnings Limit 384 385 Conference notes with concern that disparity of income in our nation is staggering;

386 Conference also notes with concern that this disparity has increased consistently since the 387 1970s;

388 Conference notes with alarm that this trend is not unique to Ireland, and the same has 389 taken place across Europe, in most developed nations, and across the world, and that 390 many Social Democratic governments have failed to even slow the rate at which their 391 nation becomes more unequal;

392 Conference calls for bold new policies to deal with this inequality;

393 Conference calls for a Comparative Earnings Limit to be implemented across Europe and 394 promoted in trade discussions with the United States of America; under such a limit, the 395 lowest-earning employee of a company cannot be paid less than one-fifth of the wage of 396 the highest earning employee, as a measure to abate the exponential increase in wealth 397 disparity that continues to be fuelled by the almost-exponential increase in income 398 disparity.

399 Dublin Bay South Labour Youth

400 401 19 - Corporation Tax

402 Conference Notes:

403 The increasing international attention and opprobrium which Ireland’s corporation 404 tax rates have been receiving

405 The growing momentum on an international level for adequate measures against 406 corporate tax avoidance

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407 The ultimately unsustainable nature of an economic development strategy that is 408 built around a beggar-thy-neighbour strategy of competing for foreign investment 409 through low corporation taxes

410 That economic policies built around low corporation taxes ultimately end up 411 mainly serving the interests of corporations

412 Conference therefore calls for:

413 The closing of tax loopholes with the intention of ensuring that corporations 414 actually pay the current official corporate tax rate of 12.5%

415 The adoption of an EU-wide Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base

416 Conference mandates:

417 The National Youth Executive to lobby other parts of the Labour Party, including 418 the Parliamentary Labour Party, in support of both these measures.

419 Trinity College Dublin Labour Branch

420

421 Political Reform 422 423 20 - Voter Registration

424 Conference notes the procedural difficulties that can occur when registering to 425 vote.

426 Conference further notes a general apathy towards registering to vote among 427 young people.

428 Conference calls on the government to introduce an automatic voter registration 429 process via the Personal Public Service Number system.

430 Kerry Labour Youth

431 21 - Seanad Reform

432 Conference welcomes the recent decision by the people to reject the abolition of 433 Seanad Éireann.

434 Conference recognises the sovereignty of the people and recognises this decision 435 as a clear mandate for meaningful political reform.

436 Conference calls for the Constitutional Convention to consider how the Seanad can 437 be reformed.

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438 Conference mandates the Education and Policy Officer to hold a seminar on 439 political reform to include Seanad reform which would inform the development of 440 Labour Youth’s proposal for political reform. This process should have 441 opportunities for members to make submissions.

442 Dublin Central Labour Youth

443 444 Amendment to Motion 21 445 Replace “welcomes” with “respects”

446 Amendment proposed by Dublin South West Labour Youth

447 448

449 22 - Political Reform Policy Document 450 451 Due to size of this motion/policy Standing Orders have broken it up into 31 452 sections. The motion will be taken as one during Conference, but amendments can 453 be put to each individual section. Each section will be taken individually, and 454 delegates will be able to make an observation or object to that section. If an 455 objection is raised from the floor to a section, following debate as normal, that 456 section can be voted on whether to retain or delete from policy. At the end of the 457 31st section, motion as amended will then be voted on. 458 Conference adopts the following as Labour Youth policy on Political Reform: 459 460 Section 1 – Preamble 461 462 “Labour Youth believes in a Republic of equals, accessible and inclusive to all, and 463 one in which a person’s citizenship is the only necessary qualification to engage 464 fully in the political discourse and decision-making of the nation. We believe that a 465 real Republic should involve a great deal of accountability, preventing any leader 466 or over official from overstepping their constitutional or legal role – such that all 467 persons are finally treated equally before the law. These ideals inform Labour 468 Youth’s support for many much-needed reforms to our political system and 469 Constitution of Ireland. 470

471 Gender and Religion

472 Section 2 – Gender and Religion 473 In seeking the realisation of an inclusive Republic of equals, we must ensure that 474 no group is favoured over another or offered a privileged place in society. We must 475 also ensure that no group is denigrated in the effort to achieve an inclusive

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476 Republic. Labour Youth thus believes in the absolute separation of church and 477 state as well as the freedom to practise religion in such a manner that does not 478 cause harm to others. In relation to gender, Labour Youth policy is one of a 479 proactive approach to gender equality, seeking in the tradition of socialism and 480 equality of outcome, not simply an equality of opportunity. Included in this policy 481 is a support for certain political and constitutional reforms – some already made 482 and some yet to be made. 483 484 Section 3: Individual measures under Gender & Religion (Measures A to H – each 485 may be objected to individually) 486 487 Labour Youth proposes a number of amendments to the Constitution, to: 488 A. Replace the current Preamble, removing all religious references; 489 B. Ensure that the article guaranteeing religious freedom and religious rights is 490 free of bias or religious invocation; 491 C. Ensure that non-religious institutions, particularly in education, are given an 492 equal footing in the constitution to religious institutions; 493 D. Replace blasphemy as an offence with hate speech; 494 E. Remove all references to public morality, except in reference to the state’s 495 conduct in international affairs; 496 F. Remove religious references from the rest of the document, including oaths of 497 office, while noting the right of office holders to append a religious invocation 498 to their oath; 499 G. Reverse the clause on the women’s place in the home, replacing it with a 500 clause seeking to promote the place of women in public and economic life 501 should that be their choice; 502 H. Make the Constitution gender-neutral in its description of officers. 503 504 Section 4: Internal Gender Quotas 505 506 Labour Youth supported and welcomed the Electoral (Amendment) (Political 507 Funding) Act 2012, and continues to support its aim to increase the number of 508 women being proposed by political parties for General Elections, though our policy 509 goes further. Any reform of the Dáil, Seanad or local electoral systems should 510 consider the accessibility of those institutions to all citizens. Labour Youth 511 supports the continuation of Labour Party internal gender quotas for the selection 512 of candidates. 513 514 Section 5: 50% Gender Quotas 515

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516 Labour Youth supports a constitutional amendment to introduce a mechanism for 517 50% gender quotas in both houses of the Oireachtas, which can be removed by the 518 Oireachtas only after it has been utilised in 4 general elections. 519 520 Amendment - Motion 22, Section 5

521 Replace “50%” with “45%”

522 Amendment proposed by UCC Labour Branch

523 524

525 Section 6 – The Oireachtas and the Government

526 The Oireachtas and the Government

527 Labour Youth seeks changes to the constitution and political culture that raise the 528 status of the opposition in the Oireachtas, the status of a reformed Seanad, the 529 status of backbenchers in either house, the status of the President as 530 representative of the Irish people and as a neutral arbiter in political affairs; and 531 guarantee the neutrality of those chairing meetings of the Oireachtas. 532 533 Labour Youth notes that Ireland’s parliamentary system, inherited from 534 Westminster, is designed around a structural tradition wherein the executive has a 535 clear position of privilege above the legislature, advising the monarch of the day. 536 Labour Youth sees no reason for this tradition to remain in place in a country that 537 does not have a monarchy, especially given the detrimental effect it continues to 538 have on the democratic process.

539 Section 7 – Reformed Seanad 540 Following the rejection of the 32nd Amendment, Labour Youth seeks a reformed 541 Seanad that is neither a rival to the Dáil nor a toothless subordinate, but an 542 independent, scrutinising body.

543 Section 8 – Pay & Pensions 544 Labour Youth does not support the current regime of pay & pensions for the 545 President, Oireachtas members and Government Ministers, where by a Ministerial 546 pension may be claimed by a sitting Oireachtas member, and resigning or retiring 547 Ministers are offered severance pay. Labour Youth does not believe that such 548 pensions should be 100% payable before the state retirement age, as they are 549 public pensions. 550

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551 Labour Youth seeks the introduction of a single Oireachtas & Government pay and 552 pension scheme, under which a person’s pension increases with their length of 553 service to the Oireachtas or the government, regardless of the office they serve in, 554 and under which a person cannot claim their pension before the state retirement 555 age, or while they are still serving in the Oireachtas or the Government.

556 Section 9 – Parliamentary Questions 557 Labour Youth notes notes with concern the situation whereby parliamentary 558 questions and enquiries can go unanswered with the excuse that they concern a 559 statutory or semi-state body. We do not believe that any organisation that the 560 state maintains a stake in or authority over can be unaccountable, though we 561 respect the rights of some state-owned bodies (such as RTÉ) to direct their own 562 actions independently of the government or the prevailing opinion of the majority. 563 564 Labour Youth proposes an extension of the parliamentary question system, so that 565 it shall be a statutory duty on any body established by or under statute, or with a 566 majority ownership or funding by the State, to submit to the same parliamentary 567 questions regime as applies to Government Departments.

568 Section 10 - The President, Cathaoirligh, and the Council of State

569 The President, Cathaoirligh, and the Council of State 570 Labour Youth cherishes the office of President as a directly chosen representative 571 of the Irish nation and a check on the power of the Government. Labour Youth sees 572 no reason to weaken this office by removing the right to call ordinary referendums 573 or decreasing the length of Presidential terms. 574 575 Labour Youth remains concerned at the dominance of Government officials in the 576 constitutionally defined situations in which the President must seek or receive 577 advice, and sees this as part of the tradition in which a prime minister is a 578 representative of, and charged with reporting to, the crown. Labour Youth also 579 sees the potential in the office of President for an arbiter in political affairs, and 580 thus seeks to slightly strengthen the office of President with this in mind. 581 582 Labour Youth proposes amending the Constitution to allow the President to 583 convene a meeting of all parliamentary leaders from Dáil Éireann in two situations: 584 firstly, to seek their advice on a request from the Taoiseach for a General Election; 585 secondly, to host a discussion on possible government coalitions should Dáil 586 Éireann fail to nominate a Taoiseach following a General Election. 587

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588 Section 11 - The President & Ordinary Referendum 589 590 Labour Youth believes that the Ordinary Referendum should be utilised by the 591 President on occasion, and its use encouraged by a major reform of Seanad Éireann 592 to allow a non-governmental majority to form around an issue in that house. We do 593 not propose to scrap or amend the process for holding such a referendum.

594 Section 12 – Dail & National Emergencies 595 596 Labour Youth believes that the majority in the Dáil may not be the best judges of 597 when to declare national emergencies, noting the reluctance of the 2007-2011 598 government to declare one in the wake of a financial disaster that soon left the 599 public purse unfundable by ordinary means. 600 601 Labour Youth proposes amending the Constitution to allow the President to declare 602 a National State of Emergency with the support of one-third of both Houses of the 603 Oireachtas.

604 Section 13 – Ceann Comhairle & Cathaoirleach 605 606 Labour Youth believes that offices of Ceann Comhairle and Cathaoirleach should be 607 seen to be “above politics”, and cannot be tainted by partisanship, either for 608 confidence in the democratic process or the effectiveness of the Oireachtas. 609 Labour Youth is concerned with the neutrality of the Ceann Comhairle and 610 Cathaoirleach in the Oireachtas, believing as is evident that both offices are 611 essentially gifts of the Taoiseach in their current form. 612 613 Labour Youth proposes a number of amendments to the constitution, to change the 614 role of the Ceann Comhairle and the Cathaoirleach, such that: 615 ● Both shall be nominated by the President from among the membership of the 616 respective houses; 617 ● Their nominations shall be confirmed unless their respective house votes, using 618 a secret ballot, against their nomination; 619 ● The terms of both offices shall expire with the term of the President, as with 620 the dissolution of their house; 621 ● Both shall be automatically re-appointed to their respective house at the next 622 election, if they remain in office until its dissolution, but shall not be included 623 in the total number elected from any constituency. 624 ● For the duration of their time in office, alternates shall take their regular 625 position in the Oireachtas, unless at the most recent election they were re- 626 appointed to the house, rather than elected. 627

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628 Labour Youth also supports the strengthening of both offices in the standing orders 629 of the Dáil and Seanad, such that they are given more powers to determine if a 630 Minister has failed to answer a question or provide reasonable information in 631 response to one. 632

633 Section 14 – Council of State 634 635 Labour Youth believes that the makeup of the Council of State such represent the 636 fact that the government is representative of the majority in the legislature, and 637 opposition representation is otherwise necessary. At the moment, Two 638 representatives likely to be loyal to the government represent the legislature on 639 the Council of State. Labour Youth notes that until 1990s, the appointment of 640 opposition figures by the President was considered conventional. 641 642 Labour Youth policy is to amend the Constitution so that the membership of the 643 Council of State is changed by: 644 ● The addition of the Leaders of parliamentary groupings in Dáil Éireann 645 (including the Technical Group but excluding the party/parties from which the 646 Taoiseach and Tánaiste are drawn); 647 ● The addition of four Senators, elected by Seanad Éireann, at the beginning of 648 each new Seanad and Presidential term; 649 ● The removal of the Ceann Comhairle and the Cathaoirleach. 650

651 Section 15 – Office of President 652 653 Labour Youth believes that there should be only two qualifications for the office of 654 President: that the holder is a citizen of Ireland and that the holder has been 655 elected by the people of Ireland. Labour Youth supports an opening-up of the 656 nominations process for the office of President, so that no one is barred by virtue 657 of their age or political association. 658 659 Labour Youth proposes a number of amendments to the constitution, to: 660 ● Reduce the minimum age requirement for the Presidency, so that it is equal to 661 the minimum age requirement for TDs and Senators; 662 ● Replace the current methods of nomination with a requirement that 663 prospective candidates receive the signatures of 1-2% of registered electors, 664 with the precise number being set by the relevant authority before a 665 Presidential Election. 666 667 Section 16 – Dáil Éireann and The Government

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668 669 Dáil Éireann and The Government 670 671 Labour Youth seeks the rebalancing of power between the executive and the 672 legislature, as well as the rebalancing of power between central government and 673 local government. Labour Youth sees room for improvement in the current way 674 Dáil Éireann is elected, as well as room for improvement in the way the Dáil works 675 and is organised. Labour Youth acknowledges the vast multitude of suggestions for 676 Dáil reform that are in the public domain, and their influence on Labour Youth’s 677 own policy. 678 679 The most pressing concern for Labour Youth in relation to Dáil Éireann is the 680 current culture and application of the whip system. We believe the system to be 681 counter-democratic, except in circumstances where deputies are being asked to 682 fulfill specific manifesto pledges - however even in this case, an absolute whip, 683 whereby the deputy is cast out as a “rebel”. We continue to be concerned at the 684 complete waste of non-Ministerial talent in Dáil Éireann, as non-Ministerial TDs 685 have very little reason to put in the effort involved with scrutinising legislation and 686 pushing for its being amended, supported or rejected. This has continued to the 687 point where now, a Government Minister currently takes so much power from 688 deputies that they cannot themselves wield it, but rather transfer it on to 689 departmental advisers or civil servants. We believe that this absolutist approach 690 has, through such a transfer of power, put the legislative power firmly into the 691 hands of Government Departments and Ministers, in a manner that is very anti- 692 Republican, and to such an extent that TDs commit fewer and fewer resources to 693 their job as national legislators and upholders of the national will. We believe that 694 this system survives only with the tacit acceptance of the backbench TDs who work 695 under it, though we note how difficult the system makes their job. Ultimately, we 696 believe the quality of government has been held back or even eroded by the 697 application of the current system. 698 699 Section 17 – Whip System 700 701 Labour Youth calls on the major parties’ backbench TDs to unite in opposing the 702 absolutist whip system, working together through collective action to bring it 703 down. 704 705 Labour Youth calls on Labour to reform its current whip system and the wording of 706 the party pledge. 707 708 Section 18 – Length of Dáil 709

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710 Labour Youth notes that the maximum term constitutionally allowable for the Dáil 711 in non-Emergency situations is seven years. Labour Youth believes that the current 712 statutory limit of five years should be put on a constitutional footing. 713 714 Labour Youth proposes amending the constitution, such that the maximum term of 715 a Dáil shall be reduced to five years. 716 717 Section 19 – Size of Dáil 718 719 Labour Youth believes that the size of Dáil Éireann should not be a political 720 football, and that the constitution should therefore be as precise as possible in 721 determining it. Labour Youth rejects the idea that a feasible change to the size of 722 Dáil Éireann would affect its ability to legislate or its ideological makeup. The ratio 723 of the representatives in a lower house to the population should not remain static 724 as the population grows, but must be increased. Labour Youth appreciates the 725 work of Donald S. Lutz in this regard, and follows his cubed root principle. 726 727 Labour Youth proposes amending the constitution, such that the number of 728 deputies elected to Dáil Éireann is equal to the rounded cubed root of the 729 population, as recorded in the most recent census. 730 731 Section 20 – Ministers 732 733 Labour Youth supports the basic structure of the Oireachtas, wherein the 734 executive is sourced from the legislature, as a basically accountable model, which 735 prevents the Taoiseach from building an unaccountable executive. Labour Youth is 736 concerned that a cabinet of unelected “professionals” or “experts” would in 737 reality be a cabinet of wealthy employers, friendly with the current governing 738 party. Labour Youth does not propose to change the current structure insofar as 739 most members of the executive should be sourced from the Dáil, with the option 740 to source some from the Seanad. Labour Youth does not believe, however, that a 741 sitting government Minister is able or should be expected to fulfill two full-time 742 jobs. 743 744 Labour Youth proposes amending the constitution, such that for the duration of 745 their period in office, Ministers are replaced by alternates for their regular position 746 in the Oireachtas. 747 748 Section 21 – By-elections 749 750 Labour Youth does not believe by-elections in their current form to be a suitable 751 method for filling Dáil vacancies, as the supporters of the former deputy may have

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752 represented only one-sixth of the electorate being asked to vote. Subsequently, 753 the supporters of the former deputy may be denied their representation in Dáil 754 Éireann. Similarly, any reform of the Dáil electoral system should take note of the 755 principle that a replacement TD should represent the voters of the person they are 756 replacing. 757 758 Labour Youth proposes that the law be changed, such that casual vacancies in the 759 Dáil are filled by persons on a ranked alternative list, as is currently the case for 760 MEPs. 761 762 Section 22 – Order of Business & Guillotining 763 764 Labour Youth laments the present situation, whereby the Order of Business sees 765 more “drama” and receives more public attention than the actual deliberations on 766 legislation or policy questions. We suggest that a Dáil regime and timetable that is 767 less able to be manipulated by the Government will also be approached with 768 maturity by the Opposition. 769 770 Labour Youth notes with concern that government business can, at present, be 771 rushed through Dáil Éireann without giving time to the opposition or backbench 772 TDs to properly consider it or form an opinion on its merits or necessity. We note 773 to the ability of the Government to extend or guillotine debate on a topic at their 774 will, with the whip being used even on votes on procedure or the Order of 775 Business. 776 777 Labour Youth believes that the current practise of rushing emergency legislation 778 through the Oireachtas without prior private consultation with legislators 779 demonstrates a lack of trust in the political system. We believe that, rather than 780 publishing emergency legislation in the evening and forcing its passage upon a 781 bewildered Dáil by 6am the next day, the Government should share sensitive 782 legislation prepared for certain scenarios with the relevant Oireachtas committee, 783 well in advance of it ever needing to be used, so that in the event of its 784 publication the committee can vouch for its necessity. 785 786 Labour Youth proposes that the Standing Orders of Dáil Éireann set in stone a 787 process by which all government legislation is allotted the same time in the 788 respective stages of its passage through Dáil Éireann, save for occasions when the 789 majority of both Government and Opposition TDs - or a supermajority on the 790 relevant committee - agree it is necessary to alter the standard timetable; 791

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792 Labour Youth proposes that Standing Orders of Dáil Éireann be amended so that 793 the Order of Business is taken weekly and subject to the approval of two-thirds of 794 Dáil Éireann. 795 796 Section 23 – Electoral System 797 798 Labour Youth appreciates the electoral regime used in Irish General Elections, both 799 for providing stable government and relatively proportional results. We note, 800 however, several problems with the system’s outcomes: very few women or ethnic 801 minorities are elected to the Oireachtas; the electoral register is inaccurate and 802 entry onto it can only be granted after jumping many hurdles; there is little 803 variety in the characteristics of successful candidates, from their financial standing 804 to their career before politics. We also note that Dáil constituencies in Ireland are 805 very large, meaning that candidates with less means to fight an election may find 806 it hard to cover a large enough area to have a hope of election. 807 808 Labour Youth notes that despite their dominance of the political system, parties 809 are not mentioned in the Constitution and barely acknowledged on the ballot. We 810 also acknowledge that the alphabetical listing on the ballot can give some 811 candidates an advantage. 812 813 Section 24 – Vote at 16 814 815 Labour Youth has long endorsed campaigns to lower the voting age to sixteen. We 816 believe that young people, now more than ever, are qualified to make the 817 decisions that will usually affect them more in the longer term than older citizens. 818 819 Labour Youth notes as well that Labour’s own candidates and representatives share 820 the same characteristics: they are mostly male and wealthier than the average 821 Irish citizen. 822 823 Section 25 – Compulsory Voting 824 825 Labour Youth believes that voting is a civic responsibility, as well as a right. We 826 support compulsory voting as a measure to dissuade people from apathy, and 827 ensure that all people in Ireland are compelled to influence public policy with 828 their opinion and interests. We do, however, believe in a person’s right to spoil 829 their ballot. 830 831 Section 26 – Referenda on elections to Dáil – A to E. Each can be objected to and 832 voted on. 833

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834 In addition to its policy on gender quotas, Labour Youth proposes amending the 835 Constitution with respect of elections to the Dáil to: 836 837 A. Introduce a list element to Dáil elections, without regional or national 838 thresholds; 839 B. Replace multi-seat constituencies with smaller single-seat constituencies, 840 electing TDs through Instant Run-Off Voting; 841 C. Give constitutional footing to a neutral Electoral Commission; 842 D. Lower the Voting Age to 16. 843 E. Make voting in national elections compulsory. 844 845 Section 27 – Electoral Law Changes 846 847 Labour Youth proposes amending electoral law, to: 848 849 ● Bring voter registration under the control of the Electoral Commission, and link 850 it to PPS numbers to ease the process for those moving house or attaining 851 voting age. 852 ● Follow the Australian model for ballots, whereby the candidates and parties are 853 listed differently on most ballots, according to an algorithm guaranteeing that 854 the ballot sheets together do not offer any one party an advantage; 855 ● Group party colleagues together on the ballot. 856 857 Section 28 – Selection Quotas 858 859 Labour Youth proposes the introduction, within the Labour Party, of selection 860 quotas for people earning the average or below average industrial wage, taking 861 into account the earnings of sitting Oireachtas members from before they became 862 members of the Oireachtas. 863 864 Section 29 – Seanad Éireann 865 866 Seanad Éireann 867 868 Labour Youth is committed to the reform of Seanad Éireann, particularly following 869 the rejection by the people of its proposed abolition. Any reform of Seanad 870 Éireann must be constitutional in nature, removing some of the inherent 871 inequalities in its makeup and inadequacies of its role. 872 873 Labour Youth proposes that any reform must adhere to the following principles, 874 and that such reform is urgently needed: 875

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876 ● Every citizen must have an equal vote in Seanad Elections; 877 ● The Taoiseach cannot continue to appoint Senators; 878 ● The Seanad cannot be allowed to present a partisan rival to the Dáil; 879 ● The Seanad must be an alternative house of the Oireachtas, not a backup, for 880 candidates; 881 ● The Seanad may have more powers conferred upon it, but cannot be allowed to 882 hold the Government collectively to account, as that must remain solely the 883 job of Dáil Éireann. 884 885 Section 30 – Money and Politics 886 887 Money and Politics 888 889 Labour Youth supports a political system that is equally accessible for all, and in 890 which citizens are allowed to form their opinions in an atmosphere of equal access 891 to information and alternative opinions. We believe that the greatest threat to a 892 fair democratic discussion outside of the Oireachtas is the money involved in 893 politics, particularly the money donated by corporate organisations. We believe 894 that an institution founded to make profit should not be involved in the political 895 life of the nation, whereas representative or non-profit organisations should 896 completely retain that right. 897 898 Labour Youth proposes to: 899 ● Completely ban corporate donations to political parties and candidates, and to 900 severely limit the maximum amount an individual can donate to a party; 901 ● Allow NGOs or representative organisations, such as trade unions, to operate 902 outside of such a ban; 903 ● Fund political parties mostly through accountable public financing. 904 905 Section 31 – Other Measures 906 907 Other Measures 908 909 Labour Youth proposes to: 910 911 ● Restore the Freedom of Information Act to its original form, and to extend its 912 scope to all semi-state and state-owned bodies; 913 ● Introduce effective Whistleblowers’ legislation.” 914 Dublin Bay South Labour Youth

915

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916 Foreign Affairs, All-Ireland Affairs and Trade

917

918 23 - EU-US trade negotiations

919 Conference notes with concern:

920 Reports that have been coming out with respect to the on-going negotiations for a 921 new trade deal that have been taking place between the European Union and the 922 United States, particularly with respect to their potential to weaken government 923 regulations of corporations and leave states liable to lawsuits by corporations if 924 they take actions which interfere with their profits.

925 Conference notes:

926 That such actions would be utterly repugnant to the principles of democratic 927 sovereignty as it would potentially place wealthy, unaccountable and transnational 928 entities beyond the control of democratic bodies.

929 Conference further notes:

930 The extensive lobbying that is being conducted by corporate interests to secure an 931 agreement that is in their favour.

932 Conference therefore mandates:

933 The National Youth Executive to campaign both nationally and in cooperation with 934 sister and likeminded organisations in other countries to prevent the adoption of 935 any agreement that undermines government regulation or that places corporate 936 interests beyond democratic control.

937 Trinity College Dublin Labour Branch

938 939 940 941 24 - Northern Ireland 942 Due to size of this motion/policy Standing Orders have broken it up into 10 943 sections. The motion will be taken as one during Conference, but amendments can 944 be put to each individual section. Each section will be taken individually, and 945 delegates will be able to make an observation or object to that section. If an 946 objection is raised from the floor to a section, following debate as normal, that 947 section can be voted on whether to retain or delete from policy. At the end of the 948 10th section, motion as amended will then be voted on. 949

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950 Conference endorses the contents of the following document as Labour Youth 951 official policy on Northern Ireland: 952 953 Section 1 - Constitutional Status of the Six Counties 954 955 Labour Youth affirms it believe in the principle of self determination for all 956 peoples of the world. 957 958 Labour Youth supports the concept of a United Ireland based around the principle 959 of consent outlined in the Good Friday Agreement 960 961 962 Section 2 - Government of the Republic of Ireland 963 964 Labour Youth believes that in order to increase cross border cooperation in all 965 aspect of the functions of Government the creation of a Minister of State for Cross 966 Border Cooperation is needed. 967 968 The Minister would have the responsibility to engage with the Northern Irish 969 Executive and seek to expand cooperation in all areas and report back to cabinet 970 so as to increase the level of forward planning outside of the already existing 971 inter-parliamentary bodies. 972 973 974 975 Section 3 - Joint formation by the Irish and British Labour Parties of a regional 976 Northern Irish Labour Party 977 978 Labour Youth believes that while power-sharing and the power sharing 979 arrangements in the Northern Irish Assembly are key parts of the Peace Process in 980 the North, the assembly as a form of parliamentary representation is 981 dysfunctional. Labour Youth foresees that until an alternative to the Green and 982 Orange politics that dominates Northern Ireland is offered, the people of the North 983 will be held back from progress as a result of institutional sectarianism. 984 985 In order to offer voters in Northern Ireland a choice beyond the old politics of 986 Orange and Green, Labour Youth call on the Irish Labour Party and the British 987 Labour Party to jointly organise in counties Antrim, Armagh, Derry, Down, 988 Fermanagh and Tyrone by forming the Northern Irish Labour Party. Members 989 resident in Northern Ireland who join the Northern Irish Labour Party will 990 automatically be members of both the Irish Labour Party and the British Labour 991 Party, with all rights afforded to individual members as set by the two respective

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992 parties. The Northern Irish Labour Party will run candidates at Local, Northern 993 Ireland Assembly, Westminster and European Parliament elections and will sit as 994 Labour Party members in all institutions. The Northern Irish Labour Party will, as a 995 regional structure of both mother parties, hold an annual conference at which 996 members will elect a leader, a deputy leader and members of the executive of the 997 Northern Irish Labour Party. Once the Northern Irish Labour Party is established 998 and is successful electorally in the Northern Irish Assembly, rules should be 999 changed to ensure that the party leader is an MLA and will become the lead voice 1000 of progressive, non-sectarian, left wing politics in the Northern Irish Assembly. 1001 1002 1003 Section 4 - Reform of the Northern Irish Assembly 1004 1005 Labour Youth calls for the removal of the official designation in the Assembly as 1006 “Nationalist, Unionist and Other” as it serves only to further divide politics in the 1007 Six Counties into Orange and Green. 1008 1009 Labour Youth further feels that the failure of the Assembly to deliver for the 1010 people of the Six Counties and the drop of in the participation in elections in the 1011 Six Counties is linked to the lack of opposition within the Assembly. Therefore 1012 Labour Youth calls for the retention of the power sharing arrangement, while the 1013 official designation procedure is still in operation, but featuring some form of 1014 opposition so as to hold the Northern Irish Executive to account 1015 1016 1017 Section 5 - Representation in the Oireachtas 1018 1019 Labour Youth feels that the people of Northern Ireland should be represented in 1020 the Oireachtas and while Labour Youth feels that this would be best achieved 1021 through directly elected representatives this is not practical at this time. 1022 Therefore Labour Youth believes that the eighteen Members of Parliament of the 1023 United Kingdom elected by the people of Northern Ireland should be automatically 1024 members of Dáil Éireann with speaking and sitting rights but as non-voting 1025 observers with the possibility of serving as the Minister for Cross Border 1026 Cooperation. 1027 1028 1029 Section 6 - Flags and Emblems 1030 1031 Labour Youth supports the decision of Belfast City Council to only fly the Union 1032 Jack on 17 designated days a year. Labour Youth condemns the failure of 1033 mainstream unionism to address the concerns of the flag protests, who feel they

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1034 are marginalised in society. However true progress can only occur when we discard 1035 symbols and regalia that are offensive to each other and move towards building a 1036 classless society. 1037 1038 Labour Youth support the Haas Talks and are hopefully of an outcome that will 1039 help society progress in a way that tackles sectarianism and improves community 1040 relations. 1041 1042 1043 Section 7 - Economics and Health 1044 1045 Labour Youth believes the economic interests of all the people of the island of 1046 Ireland are served by unification. 1047 1048 Labour Youth notes with concern the failure of the Assembly to bring about a 1049 meaningful reduction in the level of poverty and deprivation in the North. What is 1050 of particular concern is the level of child poverty experience in Northern Ireland 1051 with the Nevin Economic Research Institute finding that one in four children grow 1052 up in poverty. They found that more than 120,000 children in the Six Counties 1053 grow up in homes with income below the poverty line. Further they found that the 1054 level of poverty amongst old age pensioners and the working age has increased 1055 between 2002-2010. Labour Youth believes that much of the sectarian rhetoric is a 1056 cover for the parties within the Assembly failing to deliver for their constituents 1057 1058 In response to this increase in the level of poverty, Labour Youth calls on the 1059 British and Irish Governments in conjunction with the Northern Irish Executive to 1060 strategically invest in poverty black spots with schemes like the Youth Guarantee 1061 to reduce long term unemployment and social deprivation in these areas. 1062 1063 Labour Youth opposes the austerity agenda being inflicted on the citizens living in 1064 Northern Ireland by the Tory-led government in Westminster and facilitated by the 1065 parties in the Assembly. In particular Labour Youth condemns any cuts to social 1066 welfare which is already insufficient to maintain a decent standard of living. This 1067 is exemplified by Labour Youth’s opposition to the Bedroom Tax and the benefit 1068 cap which seeks to punish the most vulnerable in our society such as Carers, the 1069 Unemployed and those in receipt of Disability allowance. 1070 1071 Labour Youth has seen that the austerity policies with particular regard to the 1072 education sector and its cuts to social welfare of the Tory-led government in 1073 Westminster and facilitated by the parties in the Assembly is forcing the 1074 vulnerable to go to exploitative measures to make ends meet. Labour Youth 1075 condemns the actions of pay day loan in charging extortionate interests rates.

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1076 1077 Labour Youth supports the Cross Border economic development plan for the area of 1078 Ulster, West Connacht and North Leinster. 1079 1080 Labour Youth asks that the Minister for Transport engage with his counterpart in 1081 the North to investigate the possibility of reopening the Derry to Dublin train 1082 alongside the development of a Derry to Sligo route as part of an overall 1083 development plan for the North West. 1084 1085 Labour Youth fully supports the A5 construction project between Derry and 1086 Aughnacloy. As part of the main route between Derry and Dublin, Labour Youth 1087 believes that further road improvement to the highest of standards is needed to 1088 ensure economic investment occurs in the North West of Ireland. 1089 1090 Labour Youth feels that expanding cross border cooperation in the area of 1091 healthcare provision is desirable. In particular, it would cut down on the level of 1092 stress experienced by those in the Border Mid West region who would otherwise 1093 have to travel to Dublin to avail of tertiary services such as cancer treatment and 1094 the treatment of Cystic Fibrosis. 1095 1096 1097 Section 8 - Culture and Sport 1098 1099 Labour Youth recognises the power of sport to bring communities together and 1100 create reconciliation. 1101 1102 Labour Youth believes that a merger of the Irish Football Association and Football 1103 Association of Ireland is necessary to further normalisation on this island. 1104 1105 Labour Youth notes that with All-Ireland rugby and cricket teams able to foster 1106 cross community spirit it is impractical and detrimental to both sport and 1107 community relations to have two national teams and two national leagues on this 1108 island. 1109 1110 Labour Youth recognises the role played by the Gaelic Athletic Association in the 1111 struggle for the revival of Irish culture. However Labour Youth feels there is an 1112 endemic problem when it comes to the alienation of the Unionist community in 1113 Northern Ireland. This was highlight by a survey in 2013 which state that only 1% of 1114 people describing themselves as Protestant/Unionist had a attended a GAA match. 1115

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1116 Labour Youth feels that in order to continue its programme of community outreach 1117 in the Six Counties, the GAA should discontinue using Flags, Songs and Symbols that 1118 are offensive to the Unionist community in Northern Ireland. 1119 1120 Labour Youth feels in the interest of reconciliation the GAA and other sporting 1121 bodies should adopt the approach of the International Olympic Committee and 1122 oppose the use of any sport or athlete for political purposes and free of political 1123 message or an agenda. 1124 1125 1126 1127 Section 9 - Education and Social Affairs 1128 1129 In the interest of facilitating cross border study, Labour Youth believes that 1130 application to Third Level institution in Northern Ireland should be facilitated 1131 through the Central Applications Office. Similarly it is felt that students within the 1132 North should be able to apply to Third Level institutions within the Republic of 1133 Ireland using the UCAS System. 1134 1135 Likewise Labour Youth calls for the maintenance grant and similar supports for 1136 students to be extended to those studying in North beyond the current tax that can 1137 be claimed back on tuition fees. 1138 1139 1140 Labour Youth supports the abolition of the 11 plus and the secularisation of 1141 education in Northern Ireland. Labour Youth feels that one of the most important 1142 means of desegregating and integrating society is through the coeducation of 1143 children in a manner than is respectful to both constitutional traditions. 1144 1145 Labour Youth acknowledges that the Infant Life (Preservation) Act 1929 allows for 1146 an abortion to take place where there is a serious risk to long term physical or 1147 mental health of the mother. 1148 1149 However Labour Youth notes that this does not grant the right to a termination in 1150 the case of Fatal Fetal Abnormalities and in line with long standing Labour Youth 1151 principles, Labour Youth supports the extension of the Abortion Act of 1967 to the 1152 North. 1153 1154 Labour Youth supports the principle of Marriage Equality and fully believes that 1155 legislation should be introduced in the Assembly in order to extend the right to 1156 marriage to Northern Ireland. 1157

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1158 1159 Section 10 - Justice and Policing 1160 1161 Labour Youth full endorses and supports the Police Service of Northern Ireland, the 1162 Courts and Judicial system of Northern Ireland. 1163 1164 Though Labour Youth recognises that PSNI officers require firearms in the current 1165 climate due to extreme threats to their safety, Labour Youth demands that at such 1166 a point that the terrorist risk is downgrade that the PSNI engage in a transition 1167 towards being an unarmed police force. 1168 1169 Labour Youth supports the attempts to reach a 50:50 membership of the PSNI as 1170 this can only serve to increase the legitimacy of them as a police force. Labour 1171 Youth applauds the attempts by the PSNI to identify with both communities with 1172 an example being the use of symbols which resonates with both communities in the 1173 new insignia of the force. 1174 1175 Labour Youth condemns in the strongest possible terms attacks on the state forces 1176 of Northern Ireland by terrorist organisations of any affiliation. 1177 1178 Furthermore Labour Youth supports the Parades Commission and believes that its 1179 rulings are in the interest of allowing the marching season to pass off peacefully 1180 1181 Labour Youth condemns the Orange Order for its role in precipitating and 1182 facilitating public disorder in its reaction to the ruling of the parades commission's 1183 and for its defiance of the rule of law. 1184 1185 Labour Youth calls on all remaining paramilitary groups to decommission and put 1186 their arms beyond use and attempt to achieve their goals within the peace process 1187 and the political and constitutional status of Northern Ireland 1188 1189 Labour Youth calls for a Truth and Reconciliation Commission in order to establish 1190 the truth and facts about the Troubles in a fair, impartial and non-punitive model 1191 in the vein of the South African model. 1192 1193 Labour Youth calls on all paramilitary groups to come forward to disclose the 1194 information surrounding those victims of conflict whose families are still seeking 1195 answers surrounding their deaths 1196 1197 Labour Youth calls for a full inquiry into all accusations of collusion and 1198 collaboration between British Security Forces, the Royal Ulster Constabulary and 1199 Loyalist paramilitaries including the murder of Rosemary Nelson and the accusation

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1200 that senior members of the Thatcher government were aware that there was a 1201 systematic problem with collusion at the time of the death of Pat Finucane and did 1202 nothing about it. Furthermore Labour Youth calls for a full inquiry into the 1203 allegations of the operation of a “shoot to kill” policy by the British Security 1204 Forces. 1205 Policy Document submitted by Donegal Labour Youth 1206 1207 25 - Trade Agreements

1208 Conference notes with concern the expanding complexity of trade agreements. These 1209 agreements involve radical changes to legislation which is negotiated in secret.

1210 Conference welcomes the decision of the European Parliament (the only democratically 1211 elected body to vote on it) to vote against ACTA.

1212 Conference further notes the negative effects of free trade agreements as a tool to spread 1213 neo-liberal ideology.

1214 Conference notes the impact the TTIP will have on Fracking, Financial regulation and 1215 GMO’s as well as copyright. This includes limiting access to HIV drugs and free speech.

1216 Conference further notes the contempt with which US treats non-US citizens by spying on 1217 them and the purge of whistle-blowers like Chelsea Manning.

1218 Conference condemns investment protection programs as an anti-democratic neo-liberal 1219 assault on future government’s ability to implement left wing policies.

1220 Conference opposes free trade and believes it is a right wing argument which prevents 1221 state intervention.

1222 Conference opposes trade agreements as a way to radically change laws.

1223 Conference calls for the TTIP to be rejected.

1224 Dublin Central Labour Youth

1225 1226 26 - Legalisation of Cannabis:

1227 Conference notes the introduction of the Cannabis Regulation Bill 2013.

1228 Conference acknowledges the benefits which would result from the enactment of 1229 the Bill, including the removal of the supply of cannabis from persons engaged in 1230 organised crime, the health benefits from the provision of medicinal cannabis and 1231 the economic benefits from the production of cannabis.

1232 Conference supports the passage of the Bill through the Oireachtas

1233 Trinity College Dublin Labour Branch

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1234

1235 27 - Asylum Seekers:

1236 "The Conference notes the continuing plight of those seeking refuge in Ireland 1237 under the 'Direct Provision' system. The Conference calls on the Minister for Justice 1238 to immediately cease the continuing detention of those within system, and for an 1239 alternative and humane system to be introduced to process those seeking refuge in 1240 Ireland"

1241 Trinity College Dublin Labour Branch

1242

1243 Health

1244 28 - Mental Health (1)

1245 Conference welcomes the actions taken to reform mental health services, however 1246 conference is concerned at the lack of funding made available to theses services. 1247 Conference calls on the government to free up these funds to provide this vital 1248 service.

1249 Dublin Bay North Labour Youth

1250 29 -Mental health (2) 1251 1252 Conference notes with concern the rise in people suffering from Mental Health 1253 issues since the recession began. 1254 Conference further notes the continuing stigma surrounding Mental Health and the 1255 lack of education and awareness highlighting the various Mental Health issues that 1256 are most common. 1257 Conference believes that if people were educated correctly regarding Mental 1258 Health illnesses it would go a long way towards ending the stigma. 1259 Conference mandates the Equality Coordinator to run a campaign highlighting and 1260 educating people in regards to Mental Health illnesses. 1261 Louth Labour Youth 1262

1263

1264 Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation

1265

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1266 30 - Zero hours contracts (1)

1267 Conference notes with concern the use of zero hours contracts by large retailers.

1268 Conference abhors such actions as they are unjust, provide little job and income 1269 security, and are a modern neo-liberal incarnation of worker exploitation.

1270 Conference welcomes the recent condemnation of zero hours contracts by our 1271 sister party in the UK and calls for the Party to take a strong stance on said 1272 behaviour.

1273 University College Cork Labour Branch

1274 31 - Zero Hour Contracts (2) 1275 1276 Conference notes with concern the rise in precarious work.

1277 Conference further notes the hugely detrimental impact such precarious work can 1278 have on employees.

1279 To help improve working conditions, Conference mandates the new national 1280 executive to campaign for zero hour contracts to be abolished, an increase in the 1281 minimum wage to €10 an hour and for the full and proper implementation of the 1282 EU Working Time Directive.

1283 Dublin Central Labour Youth 1284

1285 32 - Full Commission Pay

1286 Conference notes with concern paying employees on a commission only basis.

1287 Conference notes that this can amount to free labour in certain cases and should 1288 be abolished.

1289 As such conference calls for a strong stance, and action, to be taken in regard to 1290 such working contracts.

1291 University College Cork Labour Branch

1292

1293

1294 Justice and Equality

1295

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1296 33- General Justice and Equality Policy 1297 Due to size of this motion/policy Standing Orders have broken it up into 12 1298 sections. The motion will be taken as one during Conference, but amendments can 1299 be put to each individual section. Each section will be taken individually, and 1300 delegates will be able to make an observation or object to that section. If an 1301 objection is raised from the floor to a section, following debate as normal, that 1302 section can be voted on whether to retain or delete from policy. At the end of the 1303 12th section, motion as amended will then be voted on. 1304 1305 Conference endorses the recommendations of the Justice and Equality policy paper: 1306

1307 Labour Youth strive for a more equal and fair society in all regards.

1308 Labour Youth reject all forms of discrimination regardless of sex, social class, race, 1309 ethnicity, religious or political beliefs, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, 1310 family or marital status, ability or disability.

1311

1312 Section 1 - The Irish Constitution:

1313 Labour Youth believe the Irish Constitution should be secular and free from all 1314 reference to religion.

1315 Labour Youth believe that the Irish Constitution should be rid of all sexist and 1316 chauvinist references. This includes getting rid of the articles 41.2.1 and 41.2.2

1317

1318 Section 2 - Human Rights:

1319 Labour Youth believe in the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights.

1320 Labour Youth also believe in the European Convention on Human Rights.

1321 Labour Youth believe that human rights should be enshrined into the Irish 1322 Constitution.

1323 Labour Youth believe that LGBT rights are human rights.

1324

1325 Section 3 - LGBT rights:

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1326 Labour Youth notes with extreme concern the discrimination and prejudice 1327 experienced by the LGBT community. Labour Youth reject all forms of 1328 discrimination against people for reasons of sexual orientation in all forms.

1329 Labour Youth support the Equality Employment Bill which criminalises 1330 discrimination against members of the LGBT community in areas of employment.

1331 Labour Youth reject the IBIS blood ban against gay and lesbian men and women.

1332 Labour Youth support full marriage equality for LGBT couples.

1333 Labour Youth rejects all forms of transphobia.

1334

1335 Section 4 - Persons with disabilities:

1336 Labour Youth believes in full accessibility for people with disabilities.

1337 Labour Youth calls on the Irish Government to provide more awareness through 1338 education.

1339

1340 Section 5 - Reproductive Rights:

1341 Labour Youth believe in a woman’s right to choose.

1342 Labour Youth call on the Irish Government to rid the Irish Constitution of Article 1343 40.3.3

1344 Labour Youth Support the work of the Abortion Rights Campaign.

1345

1346 Section 6 - Women in Politics:

1347 Labour Youth note with concern the lack of women in the Irish Oireachtas.

1348 Labour Youth note that this is a problem throughout Irish politics.

1349 Labour Youth support gender quotas up to 30%

1350

1351 Section 7 - Irish Travellers:

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1352 Labour Youth note with concern the discrimination experienced by the Irish 1353 Traveller Community.

1354 Labour Youth believe that Irish Travellers are an ethnic minority and call on the 1355 Minister for Justice to make this so.

1356 Labour Youth note with concern the disproportionate budgetary cuts to the 1357 Travelling Community. Labour Youth calls on the Irish Government to provide the 1358 Irish Travellers with adequate resources for education, accommodation and 1359 employment.

1360 Section 8 - Stem Cell Research

1361 Labour Youth supports embryonic stem cell research. Labour Youth calls on the 1362 Irish Government to fund such research through the Science Foundation of Ireland.

1363

1364 Section 9 - Prostitution and human trafficking:

1365 Labour Youth supports the decriminalisation of prostitution in Ireland, in an effort 1366 to protect the prostitutes but not the employers. Labour Youth call on the Irish 1367 Government to impose tougher sanctions on employers and organisers gaining 1368 profit from prostitutes.

1369 Labour Youth believes human trafficking to be abhorrent and the supports of 1370 human trafficking to be grossly insufficient.

1371 Labour Youth believes that:

1372  A special unit of An Gardai Siochana should be established to combat human 1373 trafficking; 1374  Victims of human trafficking should be entitled to the right to seek asylum, 1375 housing and work; 1376  Victims of human trafficking should be entitled to immunity from crimes 1377 such as entering the country illegally. 1378  Labour Youth calls on the Irish Government to provide more funding for 1379 organisations such as Ruhama which provide counselling and support victims 1380 of human trafficking.

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1381

1382 Section 10 - Asylum Seekers:

1383 Labour Youth notes with extreme concern the treatment of asylum seekers in 1384 Ireland. Labour Youth calls on the Irish Government to:

1385  The Office of the Refugee Application Commission should be replaced by an 1386 independent human rights body which shall ensure individuals are assessed 1387 on grounds of international human rights law, which have been ratified by 1388 Ireland. 1389  Asylum seekers should be able to access work in Ireland while they are going 1390 through the asylum seeking process, which is standard practice all of Europe 1391 and in line the Council of Europe recommendations to Ireland. 1392  Asylum seekers should be entitled to more than the measly sum of 19.10 per 1393 week. 1394  The application process should be significantly sped up and amended to 1395 ensure a higher rate of acceptance for asylum seekers. 1396  Labour Youth note with extreme concern the conditions in the Direct 1397 Provision centres. Labour Youth call on the Irish Government to end, not 1398 reform, the Direct Provision centres.

1399

1400 Section 11 - Cultural Diversity:

1401 Labour Youth believes individuals should have the freedom to express their culture 1402 and be free from discrimination and prejudice in doing so.

1403

1404 Section 12 - Family Affairs:

1405 Labour supports the abolition of all forms of legal discrimination against single 1406 fathers, and believes full guardianship rights should be awarded to any father on 1407 the birth certificate or natural father, who although not named as a parent on the 1408 birth certificate, has been acting in loco parentis for a period of at least four 1409 months.

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1410 Labour Youth notes that Irish fathers aren’t entitled to paternity leave. Labour 1411 Youth calls on the Irish Government to allow for 26 weeks parental leave at the 1412 discretion of the couple.

1413 Policy Document submitted by Dublin Bay North Labour Youth

1414

1415 Amendment - Motion 33, Section 12

1416 After 'months' insert 'Furthermore the current system where both parents 1417 need to be present at the Registration Office to sign a declaration 1418 recognising both parents on the birth certificate should be replaced with a 1419 system where a fathers name, instead, can be automatically registered to 1420 the birth cert by the mother. This recognises that in the cases of rape, 1421 abuse, violence or sperm donations that fathers should not be automatically 1422 registered to the birth cert nor automatically receive full guardianship.'

1423 Amendment proposed by DIT Labour Society

1424

1425 Labour Youth Internal Affairs

1426

1427 34 - Mission Statement

1428 Conference reaffirms that Labour Youth is a membership led organization that 1429 works together with the valued input of every member.

1430 Conference recognises all members have a role to play in furthering the goals and 1431 ideals of the organisation.

1432 Conference believes that Labour Youth is an organisation of true education, 1433 discussion and activism.

1434 Conference emphasises that Labour Youth tolerates many different views and 1435 ideas, but never those which support and maintain intolerance.

1436 National Youth Executive

1437

1438 Amendment to Motion 34 1439 Insert after “valued input of every member.”: 1440 “Conference further reaffirms Labour Youth as a Socialist organisation

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1441 committed to the principles of Equality, Social Justice, Trade Unionism and 1442 Feminism”

1443 Amendment proposed by Dublin South West Labour Youth

1444

1445 35 - NYE Crossover

1446 Conference mandates outgoing National Youth Executives to hold sufficient 1447 crossover training for incoming National Youth Executive officers in the form of 1448 crossover documents and face-to-face meetings.

1449 National Youth Executive

1450 36 - NYE Meetings times

1451

1452 Conference affirms that the Labour Youth constitution be amended as follows:

1453 In Article 7.3 by deleting “15 times a year” and replacing with “every 6 weeks.”

1454 National Youth Executive

1455

1456 37 - Women's Officer NYE member (Constitution) - Article 7

1457 Conference notes that despite efforts to increase female membership and activism 1458 within the organisation, these measures have not been as successful as intended. 1459 While female-only members meetings have proved successful in the past, the lack 1460 of an NYE officer, specifically committed to increasing female participation, is a 1461 major contributory factor.

1462 Conference recognises, despite the implementation of gender quotas, female only 1463 members meetings and panels which have had a higher ration of women: men, the 1464 membership of Labour Youth still sees a much lower representation of women than 1465 men.

1466 Conference calls; that despite various measures and attempts to see a greater 1467 inclusion of women, the creation of a Women's Officer, and not a Gender Equality 1468 Officer is needed. This role, would see this position reserved only for a woman* 1469 (and person identifying as Transgender) to run in an election at Youth Conference

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1470 for the position of Woman’s Officer, which would be a full voting member on the 1471 NYE, and would see the NYE as eight members, as opposed to seven. This Officer 1472 would work along with other Women's Organisations, whilst also working on female 1473 specific campaigns (at least one a year), and hold at least 3 women only meetings 1474 throughout the year, whether this be a general get-together, a movie on a feminist 1475 issue or whichever the Officer so decides.

1476 Conference therefore calls for the creation of a Woman’s Officer, to be elected at 1477 Youth Conference 2014. After Article 7.2 include

1478 ‘The National Women’s Officer shall have primary responsibility for increasing 1479 female membership within Labour Youth. This Officer will be elected at national 1480 Youth Conference and can only be contested by women* (and person identifying as 1481 Transgender). This officer is to hold at least one campaign in the year on a female 1482 specific campaign whilst also mandated to hold at least three women only 1483 meetings throughout the year. This Officer is to connect and reach out to other 1484 similar female and feminist organisations. This Officer is also mandated to hold at 1485 least one workshop on female participation focusing on the political sphere, 1486 consisting of at least two panels. This Officer will also produce a document in 1487 advance of recruitment season outlining the implementation of a female specific 1488 recruitment plan, which should assist in increasing female membership within the 1489 organisation.’

1490 Dublin Institute of Technology Labour Society

1491 Amendment - Motion 37, Lines 1421-1422

1492 Remove ‘woman* (and person identifying as Transgender)’ and replace with 1493 ‘person identifying as female’

1494 Amendment proposed by Louth Labour Youth

1495

1496 Amendment - Motion 37, Lines 1433-1434

1497 Remove ‘women* (and person identifying as Transgender)’ and replace with 1498 ‘persons identifying as female’

1499 Amendment proposed by Louth Labour Youth

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1500

1501 38 - Officers Missing Meetings (Constitution) - Article 7

1502 Conference affirms that the Labour Youth constitution be amended as follows:

1503 In Article 7.6 (b) after “In the event that an officer is missing from two meetings, 1504 without apology” insert or “in the event they miss three consecutive NYE or 1505 National Meetings the exception being apologies in extenuating circumstances as 1506 decided by the NYE”.

1507 National Youth Executive

1508 39 - Composite Motion 1: Membership of Labour Youth

1509 Recognising that:

1510  The age limit for Labour Youth is overly restrictive 1511  That many other youth wings have higher age limits 1512  That Labour Youth is an integral for the development of many Labour 1513 members 1514  That Labour Youth is heavily focussed on university branches, such an age 1515 limit excludes older students

1516 Conference amends the Constitution of Labour Youth in Article 4 (1) so that it 1517 reads:

1518 ‘Membership of Labour Youth is open to all Labour Party members under the age of 1519 30 who opt to participate’

1520 This amendment will come into force subject to the approval of the same provision 1521 at the Labour Party National Conference in 2013.

1522 Proposed: Dublin Bay North Labour Youth

1523 Seconded: Galway West Labour Youth

1524

1525 Social Protection

1526

1527 40 - Childcare

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1528 Conference notes, the growing commitment in both EU countries, and 1529 internationally, to recast family and childcare policies, in an effort to make them 1530 more supportive of, and accessible to, diverging groups of families in today’s 1531 society. Recognition of the vital role of family policies, the continuing promotion 1532 of gender equality, the strengthening of social cohesion and the widening of labour 1533 market participation, have led to the development of effective childcare policies.

1534 Conference further notes, despite recent progress in accessibility to early 1535 education and childcare policies, Ireland trails behind its EU counterparts, 1536 particularly in terms of accessibility and affordability of childcare. Initiatives to 1537 date have focused on improved co-ordination, (e.g. County Childcare Committees), 1538 quality improvements and increasing supply, to the neglect of the issues of high 1539 costs and affordability. In Ireland childcare costs are now amongst the highest in 1540 Europe and parents receive the lowest level of support in meeting these costs. The 1541 lack of statutory support and intervention has created a largely inaccessible and 1542 inequitable childcare market. The lack of focus from successive governments to 1543 the implementation of a feasible childcare model disproportionately affects lone- 1544 mothers and children from lower socio-economic backgrounds.

1545 Conference believes that the lack of action by the Labour Party in government 1546 goes against the core values of solidarity, community and equality. The 1547 implementation of a state-funded childcare system would help to reduce and 1548 lessen the systematic inequalities across the political, social, economic and 1549 cultural realms in Irish society. Due to the lack of such model Irish children are 1550 living in much higher rates of poverty than their EU 'counterparts'. There is a deep 1551 need to follow the social democratic traditions of our sister parties in Europe in 1552 implementing a state subsidised child-care model whom generally conform to a 1553 model of universalistic public services supported by high levels of statutory 1554 investment. However, recognising that Ireland has a different economic context, 1555 political discourse and population to many Nordic countries, the model, which 1556 would be most compatible with the Irish context, is based of the New Zealand 1557 model.

1558 Labour Youth calls on conference to support the basic model that;

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1559  All families, regardless of income will be entitled to a 50% subsidisation of 1560 childcare costs; 1561  Those families who pay income in the 20% tax band will be entitled to 75% 1562 subsidisation of costs; and 1563  Parents whose income is set at the minimum wage will receive full 1564 subsidisation of childcare costs.

1565

1566 The universal element of the Model for children 3 and 4 years will be free for all 1567 children. An income test will apply for the remaining features of the model.

1568 One Government department designated with the responsibility for childcare 1569 policy should manage the subsidisation programme. Local administration and co- 1570 ordination of the programme could be managed on a countywide basis, perhaps 1571 using County Childcare Committees.

1572 Labour Youth further calls on the senior party to commit to previous general 1573 election manifestos and promises on their position and implementation of a state 1574 subsidised childcare model.

1575 Dublin Institute of Technology Labour Society

1576

1577 41 - Lone Parent Payment

1578 Labour Youth notes the abhorrent attacks which lone-parents have encountered, 1579 especially evident in Budget 2012 where one-parent payment was reduced to the 1580 child in receipt from 14 to 7 years of age. This reduction lacks academic basis and 1581 is a cost-saving measure, which greatly damages the lives of those, most 1582 vulnerable and least well off in society.

1583 Labour Youth further notes that Budget 2013 cut 13 million from VEC programmes. 1584 This measure, again, disproportionately effects lone-parents. Given that many Fás 1585 courses have conventional start and finish times from 9 -5, these typically do not 1586 facilitate lone-parents and afford very little recognition to those parenting alone. 1587 It is widely recognised by lone-parent organisations such as OPEN and ONE, that 1588 VEC schemes allow lone-parents much more flexibility in attending classes,

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1589 training opportunities along with a variety of other services. The cut in funding by 1590 13 million to these schemes, again, disproportionately affected one of the most 1591 vulnerable groups within our society.

1592 Conference calls on the Labour Party to reverse these cruel budgetary measures 1593 and to reinstate lone-parent payment from 7 – 14 and to reverse the spending cuts 1594 incurred to VEC schemes. Without a reversion in these measures, those least well 1595 off continue to face a deeply unfair proportion of Ireland’s economic burden.

1596 Dublin Institute of Technology Labour Society

1597

1598 42 - Jobs Bridge (1)

1599 Conference acknowledges that under the current scheme Jobs Bridge internships 1600 are available to those who are currently in receipt of jobseekers allowance / 1601 jobseekers benefit / one parent family payment / disability allowance / signing for 1602 credits and have been in receipt of such for at least three months of the previous 1603 six months.

1604 Conference notes that under the current social welfare system young people under 1605 25 years of age who are currently living with parent(s)/guardians(s) may not be 1606 entitled to receive any sort of social welfare payment thus rendering them 1607 ineligible for the Jobs Bridge scheme.

1608 Conference calls for the Jobs Bridge scheme to be opened to all young people aged 1609 between eighteen years and twenty five years who are currently unemployed and 1610 not in education.

1611 Louth Labour Youth

1612

1613 43 - Jobs Bridge (2)

1614 Conference notes with concern the continued abuse of the Jobs Bridge internship 1615 scheme.

1616 Conference condemns the actions of retail, professional services and service 1617 employers for their misuse of the scheme and conference calls on the government 1618 to prevent further labour abuses through the scheme.

1619 Dublin Bay North Labour Youth

1620

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1621 44 - Social Protection general policy

1622 Conference notes:

1623 That the current Irish social protection system in Ireland is currently very unusual 1624 relative to Europe on account of

1625 a. A very low level of social protection expenditure as a proportion of 1626 GDP 1627 b. An extraordinarily high degree of reliance on means-testing 1628 c. The burden placed on social protection by the very high level of 1629 unemployment and deprivation leading to an

1630 Conference therefore calls for an approach to social protection policy that is 1631 geared towards tackling these three major deficiencies through:

1632 a. Maintenance of spending on social protection with a view to 1633 substantially increasing it in the medium term as Ireland’s fiscal and 1634 economic situation improves 1635 b. Greater emphasis on universalism, and protection of the few 1636 universal benefits that do exist 1637 c. Better employment, education and training schemes and a social 1638 protection system more adapted to allowing people to return to work

1639 Conference therefore endorses the following agenda for social protection with 1640 respect to short-term policy changes:

1641  Training and Employment Guarantees: We support the Youth Guarantee 1642 proposed by the Party of European Socialists and now endorsed by the 1643 European Parliament and European Commission. However, we also believe 1644 that while the unemployment crisis is particularly sever among young 1645 people, it is not a solely youth issues. The government should therefore 1646 introduce schemes to guarantee paid employment, training, apprenticeship 1647 or education for young people (ages 18-30) who are unemployed or are no 1648 longer in education (replacing the current JobBridge programme) but also 1649 for the long-term unemployed of all ages. The government should also 1650 establish of programmes targeted towards supporting at those with low skill 1651 or experience levels. 1652 The government should also target training through Solas for sectors which 1653 are currently being targeted by the IDA and Enterprise Ireland. 1654 Such employment, education and training guarantees should be paid for out 1655 of the European Social Fund and using the money currently dedicated 1656 towards JobBridge. 1657

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1658  Maintain current social protection rates: There should be no further cuts in 1659 either primary or secondary social protection rates. 1660  No further targeting of social welfare provision Attempts to save money 1661 should also not undermine in any way the principle of universalism in 1662 welfare provision. In particular, Labour Youth opposes any attempts to 1663 introduce either means-testing or taxation for child benefit payments. 1664  Increase in Self-Employed and Employers’ PRSI rates There should be an 1665 immediate increase in the rate of PRSI paid by the self-employed. The Jobs 1666 Initiative that cut the lower rate of employers’ PRSI in half set to end in 1667 2014 should not be extended and there should initially immediately be some 1668 moderate initial increases in the rates of Employers’ PRSI. 1669  More flexible welfare rules: Incentivise people to take jobs by reducing the 1670 rigidity in the requirements for means-tested payments, allowing people to 1671 move more easily into employment and training and out again in short 1672 spaces of time. 1673  New universal state pensions system: To deal with the inequality of 1674 Ireland’s current pension system, a number of reforms should be 1675 introduced: 1676 a. Standard-rating of tax reliefs for all private pension funds. 1677 b. New universal state pension for all those over 65 at the same level as 1678 the contributory state pension. 1679 c. Secondary income-linked mandatory social insurance retirement fund

1680 Conference further endorses the following two more long-term social protection 1681 policies:

1682  Steady further increase in social insurance: Building on immediate increases 1683 in the rate of PRSI paid by employers and the self-employed, the Irish 1684 government should work towards a steady increase in all forms of PRSI once 1685 the economy begins to recover – bringing us into line with EU norms for 1686 levels of social insurance. The revenue from this increase in social insurance 1687 should be to pay for substantial increases in rates of social insurance as a 1688 proportion of GDP. 1689 1690  Basic Income Guarantee: Ireland should move towards the abolition all 1691 current means-tested payment and their replacement with a basic income 1692 guarantee above the income threshold unconditionally paid to all citizens 1693 over eighteen 1694 Trinity College Dublin Labour Branch 1695

1696

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1697 Transport, Tourism and Sport

1698 1699 45 - Transport Infrastructure 1700 1701 Conference calls for strategic investment in our transport infrastructure to correct 1702 the regional imbalance on the island and address the economic difficulties 1703 confronting communities on the island. 1704 Dublin City University Labour Society 1705

1706

1707 Other

1708 46 - Death of Hugo Chavez

1709 Conference notes with regret the death of Hugo Chavez.

1710 Conference recognises the important role Hugo Chavez and the Venezuelan people 1711 have done in showing that there is a progressive alternative to neo-liberalism and 1712 American hegemony in Latin America.

1713 Dublin Central Labour Youth 1714

1715 Amendment to Motion 46

1716 Insert following “hegemony in Latin America”:

1717 Conference mandates the NYE to formally mark President Hugo Chavez’s 1718 one year anniversary as a mark of respect and in recognition, for not only 1719 the suffering he eased in Venezuela, but his contribution to global socialism 1720 that we on the left should all seek to emulate.

1721 Amendment proposed by Dublin South West Labour Youth

1722

1723 47 - Connaught

1724 Conference recognises the 4 provinces that constitute the Irish state. Conference believes 1725 all provinces have the right to their original name and its spelling.

1726 Conference would refer to the western province of Ireland, in the old Irish spelling, as 1727 Connaught, which has recently been replaced with a newer spelling as Connacht, in all 1728 official and unofficial documents produced.

1729 National University of Galway Labour Society

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1730

1731 SAMPLE MOTIONS

1732

1733 48 - Workers Republic

1734 Conference notes with concern the absence of a Worker’s Republic in Ireland.

1735 Conference calls for the immediate establishment of a Worker’s Republic, by 1736 political or military means. This is of pressing concern as the state in its current 1737 conception favours the capitalist beast and its oppression of the working class.

1738 Conference further notes that the conception of the Labour party was primarily 1739 established to publicise the plight of the worker and not as the basis of political 1740 change, which would come instead through the Trade Union movement.

1741 Therefore on the inception of said new republic conference calls for the abolition 1742 of the labour party in its current conception and the Worker’s Soviet that will then 1743 govern the nation of Ireland will be a party-less body.

1744 University College Cork Labour Branch

1745

1746 49 - Increase in the population of the Moran clan

1747

1748 Conference recognises the efforts contributed to it by all its members over the past 1749 number of years. Conference accepts that for the first time, there are two Moran brothers 1750 within the organisation. One of these members has been mistaken to be, and called by 1751 name, the other countless times. This house therefore believes, that in return, Cian 1752 Moran, shall be officially referred to as Cillian 2.0 or Cillians brother for the whole 1753 weekend of conference, or longer if preferred by everyone.

1754 National University of Galway Labour Society

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