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7 February 2011

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Waterford's David Cullinane on General Election 2011

By David Cullinane, General Election 2011 Candidate, Waterford

LAST WEEK, I launched my and Sinn Féin's election campaign in Waterford when 300 people packed into the Granville Hotel to hear Mary Lou McDonald and I set our Sinn Féin's policy platform.

This is one of the most important elections in the history of this state.

I seek election to the Dáil so I can be part of the national debate on how we solve the big problems facing our country and county.

We are putting forward economic polices that will deliver growth and jobs.

We are seeking a new beginning in banking that delivers for citizens and business.

We seek to reward and encourage innovation and enterprise.

We want a deficit reduction strategy that is realistic and deliverable.

We want a fair and just taxation system.

We also want to end the madness of the taxpayer being saddled with private banking debt. We want an economy that serves the people and all the people.

Sadly, this outgoing Government has ruined the economy.

The Government policies we warned against in the 2007 election have brought about economic chaos.

Our public finances have collapsed, our banking system has caved in under its own greed and we have record high unemployment. 14,600 people in Waterford are out of work with thousands more having emigrated. We need to change course.

I and Sinn Féin are arguing for a more realistic deficit reduction strategy.

We are calling for a six-year plan and one that reduces the deficit by protecting middle and low income families and targets high earners and wealth.

We have published comprehensive taxation alternatives which are fully costed by the Department of Finance.

No individual who earns under €100,000 or family earning less than €200,000 a year is affected by our proposals.

These proposals include a third rate of tax of 48% on individual incomes in excess of €100,000 a year, standardising all tax reliefs, the introduction of a 1% income-linked Wealth Tax on all assets in excess of €1million and modest increases in capital gains and capital acquisitions tax.

We are also arguing for a 3.5 year, €7billion stimulus plan funded from the National Pension Reserve Fund.

We are opposing the IMF/ECB deal which sees the state borrow €35billion to pay for private banking debt.

We will stand up for Ireland’s interests and not those of international investors who took a gamble and lost.

Working families who are getting hit hard should not be saddled with more private banking debt. It is morally, socially and economically wrong. It is time to make the decisions that our in Ireland’s interests and we in Sinn Féin stand ready for that challenge.

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Contributions from key figures in the churches, academia and wider civic society as well as senior republican figures

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