• Meet the first time TDs Page 8 – Interview with new Tasc director Page 18 – TUF Membership Service Page 32 Vol.10 No.3 March 2011 ISSN 0791-458X IRELAND Victory at the Davenport P3 NEEDS A Battling Mortgage Slavery P10 ‘NEWCongress team DEAL’ to meet Report on HSE Skills with EU unions By FRANK CONNOLLY Fund THE Irish Congress of Trade Unions is to meet contracted by 1% last year. Marshall Aid programme. They are insisting on with key trade union leaders across the Commenting on the figures, SIPTU and piling misery on misery in the hope of appeas- P16/17 European Union this week as part of an initia- Congress president, Jack O’Connor said they ing those at the top of the major European tive designed to secure a new financial deal for confirmed the trade union view that austerity banks which are now exposed to the debts of Ireland. measures and cutbacks were a recipe for fur- the peripheral countries as a result of their It comes as pressure grows from the most ther recession forcing working people into reckless lending during the boom years,” Jack powerful Eurozone countries on the deeper poverty, unemployment and job inse- O’Connor said. Government to make further concessions on curity. “The right of centre leaders of Germany and the Irish corporate tax rate and to intensify “We have argued that economic stimulus France, in particular, have concocted a ‘com- already failed austerity measures. and a strategy for growth are the only way out petitiveness pact’ as a condition of underwrit- The delegation, led by Congress president, of the crisis caused by the recklessness of ing loans to enable countries like Greece, Jack O’Connor, and general secretary, David bankers, government mis-management and Ireland, Portugal and Spain to limp on from Begg, will meet with the Confederation of the failure of regulation. day to day. German Trade Unions – Deutscher “These latest figures show that our analysis “This grandiose title is a euphemism for a Gewerkschaftsbund (DGB) – in Berlin on on the recessionary effects of austerity was recipe which effectively imposes the conse- Wednesday (30th March). correct. The proof of the pudding is in the eat- quences of the profligacy of those at the top of The DGB represents more than seven mil- ing,“ said Jack O‘Connor. the European banking system on citizens gen- lion German workers. Meetings are also sched- In the meetings with European trade union- erally and working people in particular. uled with Dutch and Scandinavian trade ists, he said he and David Begg would be push- “It is patently unfair. Worse still, it is unionists. ing for a Marshall Aid-type programme to lift inevitably doomed to failure” he said. The visit follows the latest crisis to hit the stressed economies out of recession rather Calling for more imaginative and innovative What became Eurozone with the collapse of the Portuguese than adopt a reparations approach similar to policies from EU leaders he said that the idea government over its attempt to enforce a series that used after World War 1. of a ‘debt for equity’ swap with deeply stressed of Irish Citizen of austerity measures. “The dominant conservative outlook in banks should be considered as an alternative It also comes as the Cental Statistics Office Europe remains insistent on a reparations to failed austerity-driven policies. Army? P26 released new data showing the Irish economy approach when what is required is a kind of Continued P2 2 Liberty MARCH 2011 NEWS In this month’s ‘Ireland First’ group in privatisation push Challenge for Amanda Ziemele appearsin SIPTU video News P2-7 SIPTU short Your new TDs P8-9 the Republic is premiered A GROUP of powerful people is seeking to THE SIPTU premiere of a new short film – reshape the state with a plan it claims puts highlighting the plight of low paid workers “Ireland First”, write Padraig Yeates and Scott over threats to Employment Regulation Millar. Orders, the cut in the minimum wage and In recent weeks a so-called ‘Blueprint for budget tax increases – was screened at a meet- Ireland’s Recovery’ has been drip-fed to the ing of the Contract Cleaners Forum in Liberty media. The plan has also impacted on the Hall, Dublin on Saturday (26th March). A collaboration between Congress and The economy P11-15 agendas of the centre right parties, with Fianna SIPTU’s Strategic Organising Department, the Fáil admitting discussions with members of film will be distributed widely on YouTube, HSE skills report P16-17 the group “informed” its election manifesto. Facebook and other sites. TASC interview P18 The ‘blueprint’ is a menu for mass privatisa- It features two of SIPTU’s new workplace tion and cuts to public services with “Ireland leaders in the cleaning industry, Amanda Liberty View P19 First” seeking to sell off our airports, ports and Ziemele and Barbara Mola, as well as long electricity grid. standing security industry activist and NEC Health P20 Among the members of the “Ireland First” member Christy Waters. group is leading businessman, Dennis O’Brien. Moriarity Tribunal report shone a light on The showing is timely for the contract Fair Hotels P21 The Moriarty Tribunal found that former links between politicians and big business cleaners at Beaumont Hospital as they step up Fine Gael minister Michael Lowry “secured the Goldman Sachs has been heavily criticised their campaign to protect terms and conditions winning” of a 1995 competition for the state’s for its involvement in the current global sover- and reverse cuts to working hours. second mobile phone licence for O’Brien’s Esat eign debt crisis. Among the scandals with A few days before the Forum met, group. The tribunal also found O’Brien made Beaumont Hospital workers balloted for indus- two payments to Lowry in 1996 and 1999 that which the company has been associated are trial action against employer, the Resource totalled over £500,000 (€635,000). the Greek government’s credit swap opera- Group. With a 92% turnout, and a margin of Susan O’Brien responded that Judge Moriarty had tions that helped Greece mask the size of its 88% in favour of taking action, the newly- O’Keeffe P22 issued a report that was “factually wrong and national debt. organised workplace committee started talks deliberately misleading.” He claimed that the Another figure associated with the group is with management last week, secure in the rest of the judiciary were now protecting their knowledge that they had the backing of their party donor Michael O’Flynn. The Cork-based Diary of a Southside TD P23 colleague, “[He’s] one of their own. They’ve got colleagues. property developer featured last year in a RTE Global Solidarity P25 it wrong and now he has to be protected.” The Malta-based tax exile has accrued mas- documentary that filmed him attending race Tradition P26 sive financial resources and holds a prominent meetings by privatehelicopter while his firms SIPTU to get position within the Irish media. are largely controlled by NAMA. “O’Brien has quietly amassed a very signifi- Fronting the “Ireland First” group are its info on Rehab cant position in the Irish media due to his con- joint chairpersons, business man Philip Lynch THE Labour Court has granted SIPTU the right trolling interests in Independent News and to inspect the accounts of the Rehab Group Media group and a number of radio stations,” and Rehab group chief executive Angela Kerins. Kerins has acted as chairperson of the after an attempt by the company to impose pay said Gavan Titley, a lecturer on media at cuts without agreement on staff. Maynooth University. National Disabilities Authority and Equality SIPTU’s national committee approved the The “Ireland First” group also includes fin- Authority. She was chairwoman of the latter appointment of the Mazars auditors to carry ancier Dermot Desmond, who also gave evi- International News P27 when its former chief executive, Niall Crowley, out the examination which is now under way. dence to the Moriarty tribunal and who made resigned in December 2008. Sector Organiser Louise O'Reilly said: “The €127 million from his involvement in the Esat Among this well-heeled group’s plans are a Rehab Group claimed that they had no choice Ideas Institute P28 deal. Desmond is non-resident and does not €5.5 billion worth of cuts to social welfare, but to impose pay cuts. However, they never pay tax in Ireland. A former confidante of gave a full financial pictureto their own staff Know your rights P29 while it claims another €2.1 billion can be Charles Haughey, he is estimated to be worth to underpin this decision. Obituaries P30 €2 billion. saved by a further crackdown on welfare fraud. “It is regrettable we had to engage in indus- Another “Ireland First” member is interna- Its ‘ideas’ on job creation are ill-defined trial action to get this information. We are con- Sport P31 tional banker and Fine Gael grandee, Peter beyond a project to legalise global online gam- fident the report will be comprehensive and Sutherland who is also a former Attorney bling which it claims would generate 5,000 we will be in a position to engage with the firm General. A former chairman of AIB and BP, jobs. “Ireland First” also calls for the appoint- once we have a full financial picture”. Liberty is dedicated to providing a Sutherland is non-executive chairman of SIPTU members at Rehab voted in favour of platform for progressive news and views. ment of “business people” to the cabinet to investment bank Goldman Sachs industrial action when the company attempt- If you have a stories International.