Tag: Sinn Fein

The press release issued by Sinn Fein on 18 November 2022.

Sinn Féin MLA Caoimhe Archibald has said the British Government must urgently spell out when people here will get the £400 energy support and £200 heating oil payments.

The East Derry MLA said:

“The British government have provided no answers for families waiting on the £400 energy support payment and the now £200 oil payment.

“It is over six months since this support was announced and despite the DUP claiming the payments would be made in November, there is still no sign of it.

“And let us be clear, if we had an Executive this payment could already be in people’s pockets – the DUP blockade of the institutions is punishing workers and families.

“People are struggling right now with their energy bills and they deserve to know when they will receive the payment they are entitled to.

“The increase announced for families waiting on the oil payment will also be of no comfort as again there are still no details as to how it will be paid.

“The British government must urgently provide clarity on when these energy support payments will be made to give families certainty as winter deepens.”

The press release issued by Sinn Fein on 18 November 2022.

Striking Housing Executive workers are entitled to a pay increase that takes into account the growing pressures on workers and families impacted by the cost of living crisis, Sinn Féin MLA Pat Sheehan has said.

Pat Sheehan was speaking after urging the Housing Executive management to seek a fair resolution to the dispute.

The West Belfast MLA said:

“Sinn Féin fully supports the right of all workers to engage in industrial action and we are clear that Housing Executive staff are entitled to a fair pay increase that takes into account the current cost of living crisis.

“We are also concerned at the impact of a prolonged industrial dispute on tenants and crucial Housing Executive work such as repairs and wider house building programmes.

“Sinn Féin has therefore written to both the Housing Executive Board and Chief Executive to urge them to engage constructively with the representative trade unions to achieve a fair resolution and a fair pay settlement.

“I very much hope that is heeded and we can see a renewed push for a settlement that protects workers and tenants alike.”

The press release issued by Sinn Fein on 17 November 2022.

Sinn Féin MP Michelle Gildernew has said that today’s announcement of the temporary removal of emergency surgical services from the South West Acute Hospital in Enniskillen is deeply disappointing and she has challenged the Western Health and Social Care Trusts (WHSCT) to set out clearly their plan for the restoration of emergency surgical services at SWAH.

Speaking after meeting the Western Health and Social Care Trust, Michelle Gildernew said:

“The Western Trust has today said that from 18 December, South West Acute Hospital will be without emergency surgical services.

“This is as a result of the failure to recruit and retain the necessary surgeons.

“While the Western Trust are giving assurances that the loss of emergency surgical services are temporary, they must urgently put forward and publish a plan that will see the required emergency general surgeons recruited to SWAH.

“Vague assurances will not do.

“The people of Fermanagh (and South Tyrone) need clarity from the Trust on the steps they have taken to date, but most importantly, the actions they will now take, to ensure emergency surgical services at SWAH are urgently restored.

“Patients, staff and our community deserve openness and transparency from the Western Trust.

“Sinn Féin were to the fore in the campaign for a hospital in Enniskillen to meet the health needs of the community and we will continue to work tirelessly to ensure SWAH continues to meet those health needs today and into the future.”

The press release issued by Sinn Fein on 17 November 2022.

Sinn Féin MLA Conor Murphy has said today’s Tory Budget will further plunge society into an ‘unnecessary recession’ and make ordinary workers and families will pay more.

Conor Murphy said:

“Over a decade of Tory austerity budgets and cuts have decimated our public services, leaving them ill-prepared for the pandemic and the energy crisis, and left workers and families struggling to pay for essentials such as food and fuel.

“Liz Truss’ shambolic budget, cheered on by the DUP pushed up mortgage payments and put interest rates and inflation through the roof.

“What was needed today was a credible plan to rebuild public services and grow the economy through investment in health, skills, and the transition to net-zero.

“Instead the Tory Budget announced today will push us deeper into an unnecessary recession and result in workers and families paying even more as they struggle with the soaring costs of living and wages fall further behind and the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecast a 2% recession and a 7% fall in living standards.

“It is also totally unacceptable that we still have no clarity on when people will receive the £400 energy payment or the now £200 oil payment that they were promised and are entitled to.

“Let’s be clear, people would already have that money if the DUP hadn’t blocked an Executive being formed and left us at the mercy of a Budget brought forward by Tory millionaires.

“Sinn Féin will not give up on our efforts to form an Executive so that local ministers can work together to support people and businesses during this cost-of-living crisis and tackle the crisis in the health service.

“Given the huge pressures being faced in our hospitals just this week it’s imperative that we have an Executive to put an extra £1 billion into our health service to tackle waiting lists, recruit more doctors and nurses and invest in cancer and mental health services.

“Our health and social care workers deserve fair pay and conditions.”

The press release issued by Sinn Fein on 17 November 2022.

Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald TD this morning delivered the keynote address to the European Infrastructure Conference in Dublin.

During the course of her comments, Ms. McDonald called for a new industrial policy. She said that this is a time for the government to lead and for the State to be centre stage, and it also a time for collaboration between the public and the private sector.

Ms. McDonald said:

“I believe that we are once again facing a great transition and a new Whitaker plan will be needed to meet these challenges. We will need to invest in our people. We will need to promote innovation in how we deliver public infrastructure. We will need to harness the strengths of Ireland’s natural resources, like wind energy, and we can do this together.

“Conventional economic wisdom once held that the public sector and the private sector, the State and the market, were opposing forces. And what was good for one was bad for the other, and vice versa. That thinking was erroneous. This is a time to move from the conventional to the dynamic, and to look to the future with ambition and positivity.

“This a time for collaboration.

“Government must bring pace and urgency. Most importantly government must lead with an ambitious plan. The State must be centre stage. We need to reform our planning system so that it’s fit for purpose in delivering critical infrastructure.

“I recently spoke about how Ireland has three big, transformational opportunities in this decade. The reunification of our country and the building of the all-Ireland economy, the achievement of energy independence, and the power of our young people. We must show the ambition and the energy realise all three. We have the chance to revolutionise our public infrastructure, which as the IMF recently pointed out, continues to hinder our competitiveness.

“We want to see the State and industry collaborate on an agenda that sees innovation and high wages at the very heart of our economy. We want to invest in our universities and colleges – opening up opportunities so that our people can learn, develop and reskill and Irish firms can be helped to seize the opportunities and technologies of tomorrow.

“We want to collaborate and to work together across the all-island economy as we journey now to national unity. Taking an all-island approach to the key infrastructure projects will play a big part in unlocking Ireland’s huge potential. For example, our energy transformation would be supercharged by an approach that utilises all of our island’s resources. By adopting a strategy that fosters the synergies of our energy sector workforce, our ports, our storage capacity, north and south.

“Key to our prosperity and development today and in the future is not a race to the bottom, but a race to the top. Innovation is the engine of economic development. It’s the basis for improving productivity which in turn drives up employment, wages and living standards. Fixing our broken housing system – a key piece of Ireland’s public infrastructure  – would represent a smart investment in our long-term competitiveness.

“Delivering affordable homes to buy and rent is not only an urgent social imperative, but one which demands an unprecedent level of collaboration from all sectors, from all those willing to contribute solutions.

“We must for plan for change. Invest in change, and must harness change as the driver of Ireland’s success over the next decade. But talk is cheap. Empty visions are even cheaper, easy to present in glossy documents and even easier to discard. We’ve all had enough of that.

“We all know that delivery is what matters.

“I believe in getting things done. I believe that pace in not the enemy of the good, that we can deliver modern, world-class infrastructure on time and on budget. And I believe in working together to achieve big things – to create opportunities and see them realised too.

“As we build for the future, I understand that people need certainty, a sense of the plan, and full sight of the direction of travel. Here’s one thing you can be certain of.

“Sinn Féin is ambitious for Ireland, for our people, and for our economy. Revolutionising our public infrastructure is at the centre of that ambition. We will collaborate. We will co-operate. We will listen to and work hard with all sectors. We will bring fresh ideas with a relentless energy to succeed,  and if given the change to lead, make no mistake, we will get the work done.”

The press release issued by Sinn Fein on 16 November 2022.

Speaking ahead of the Autumn Statement, Conor Murphy has urged the British Chancellor not to impose another wave of austerity measures. The former Finance Minister said:

“A decade of Tory austerity and the Covid pandemic have left public services in crisis.

“With Britain heading into recession a further bout of austerity would be devastating and would only make the cost of living crisis worse.”

Conor Murphy continued:

“There is an alternative to austerity. The Chancellor should increase taxes on super wealthy individuals and corporations, including energy generators which are raking in huge profits.

“He should ensure that nurses are paid a fair wage, invest in skills, increase social security in line with inflation, and finance the transition to net zero.

“This is what will help people and businesses through the inflation crisis and lay the foundation for a stronger economy and high-quality public services.”

The press release issued by Sinn Fein on 13 November 2022.

Sinn Féin MLA and party chairperson Declan Kearney has said he is deeply concerned at the temporary closure of the Emergency Department at Antrim Area Hospital during the night.

The South Antrim MLA said:

“A Major Incident was declared at the hospital last night as a result of the number of critically-ill patients being treated and the Emergency Department was temporarily closed down.

“Hospital staff are doing all their power to discharge patients today to free up much-needed hospital beds.

“I urge the public to continue to co-operate with hospital staff and people should definitely attend the ED if their condition is urgent or life threatening.

“Unfortunately the knock-on impact of last night’s closure will be that those who attend with conditions which are not urgent may endure a long wait to be seen.

“This latest incident in our hospitals is deeply concerning with pressures increasing as we move into winter.

“Our health service and staff are under huge stress because of a decade of Tory cuts and underinvestment, and the DUP’s blockade of the Executive.

“Health service staff and patients need an Executive up and running, to put one billion pounds extra investment into health, to tackle waiting lists, recruit more doctors and nurses, and fund cancer and mental health services.

“The reckless actions of the DUP are blocking this vital funding from being released into the health and social care system. Hospitals such as Antrim Area are now at breaking point as a result.

“The DUP should get back to work and ensure that health workers have the resources needed to tackle the huge pressures across our hospitals, emergency rooms, our GP surgeries, and the entire health care system.”

The press release issued by Sinn Fein on 13 November 2022.

Sinn Féin MLA Conor Murphy said today that workers and families in the north need energy and oil payments promised by the British government to be delivered urgently as we move deeper into winter.

In a letter to the British Secretary of State for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy, Grant Shapps, Conor Murphy said that people in the north still don’t know when they will receive the £400 energy discount or the £100 heating oil payment.

Conor Murphy said:

“It is now more than six months since people in the North were promised a £400 discount on their electricity bill.

“This payment was rolled out to people in Britain last month, yet people here still don’t know when they will receive their discount.

“I told Grant Shapps that this delay is unacceptable and it’s vital the £400 is now paid out in one lump sum rather than instalments.”

The former Finance Minister also said that the two-thirds of people using home heating oil in the north were being treated less favorably than people using gas.

“The British government has also failed to confirm when the £100 payment promised to people who use home heating oil will be delivered.

“Two-thirds of people in the North use oil to heat their homes.

“I made it clear to the British Treasury in my previous role as Finance Minister that the £100 payment should be increased. I provided information that people using oil were being treated less favourably than those using gas.

“The DUP’s blockade of the Executive has made it more difficult to get these schemes out the door.

“However, the British government agreed to take responsibility for these schemes and people urgently need this money now as we move deeper into winter.”

The press release issued by Sinn Fein on 8 November 2022.

Sinn Féin MP Chris Hazzard has challenged the British Secretary of State for clarity on when workers and families will receive the £400 energy support payment.

Speaking after meeting Chris Heaton Harris in London today, Chris Hazzard said:

“Today, we challenged the British Secretary of State over delays in getting the £400 energy support payment out to households in the north.

“Workers and families are struggling to pay their bills. They need help now to get through a cold and difficult winter.

“It’s not good enough they still have no clarity on when they will get the money they were promised and are entitled to.

“This money has been held up enough by the DUP’s cruel boycott of the Executive. There must be no more delays. People need this money quickly.”

The South Down MP made it clear to the British government that the prolonged state of limbo they have created is failing people in the north.

“I also made it clear to Chris Heaton Harris that the prolonged state of limbo facing our politics from British government indecision is failing people here.

“It’s totally unacceptable that the Tories, along with the DUP, are fuelling instability and chaos and leaving people with no support during a cost-of-living crisis.

“People want parties working together in an Executive to put money in their pockets and fix the health service. That’s why they voted in May.

“The British Secretary of State must clearly and quickly outline what the next steps are now and end the dithering and delays.”

The press release issued by Sinn Fein on 7 November 2022.

Sinn Féin National Chairperson Declan Kearney MLA has called on the British government to ‘demonstrate political will’ and engage in good faith with the EU to reach an agreed resolution on implementation of the Protocol.

Speaking before attending a meeting at Westminster of the Parliamentary Partnership Assembly between Britain and the EU, the Sinn Féin Brexit spokesperson said:

“It’s very clear from our discussions with local businesses that they want certainty and stability so they can invest for the future and continue to create good jobs and attract investment.

“Key to that is their ability to maximise the full advantages which the Protocol affords, including unique access to the EU single market which is already creating jobs and helping businesses to expand.

“The British government must now demonstrate it has the political will to reach a genuine agreement on the way forward with the European Union. There is no credible alternative to the Protocol. That is the reality.

“Neither the Assembly or the Executive has any mandate or role in these talks.

“Despite that, the DUP is punishing the public by blocking restoration of our political institutions and compounding people’s suffering during a cost-of-living crisis.

“We need an Executive to support workers and families with rising household bills, and to invest £1 billion in the health service to cut waiting lists so that people are not suffering for years waiting on medical treatment.

“Following on from positive discussions between the new British Prime Minister and the EU Commission President last week, the next step should be to immediately resume urgent political talks between London and Brussels to find a pragmatic way forward, and a durable agreement.”