Housing and jobs priorities for Sinn Féin in new Dublin City Council alliance

KEY PRIORITIES for the 16 Sinn Féin councillors in the new ‘Dublin City Alliance’ agreement including addressing the housing crisis and unemployment, Sinn Féin Dublin City Council Deputy Leader Councillor Mícheál Mac Donncha has said.

The Dublin City Alliance includes Independent, Labour and Green Party councillors for the running of the City Council in the next five years.

The agreement will also see a Sinn Féin Mayor of Dublin City in 2015/2016 and 2017/2018.

The Establishment media and ultra-Left opponents of Sinn Féin have misrepresented Sinn Féin’s main concern as holding the mayoralty in 2016, the centenary of the 1916 Easter Rising. While this is obviously important to republicans, Councillor Mícheál Mac Donncha emphasised the very first item in the Dublin City Alliance Mission Statement and said:

“Our top priority will be to help address the housing crisis in our city.”

Responding to criticism from People Before Profit Alliance councillors, Mícheál Mac Donncha said:

“We kept them up to date. All the meetings were open to them if they wanted to participate. They spoke at the City Council inaugural meeting of their disappointment that Sinn Féin did not form a Left alliance but they never put any such proposal to us.”

He said the agreement will see Mayor and Deputy Mayor positions allocated proportionally among the groups, adding:

“It is Sinn Féin’s aim that the parties to this agreement on Dublin City Council will work together to achieve a budget for 2015 and subsequent years that is equitable, that adds no further to the financial burden on citizens and, where possible, eases that burden.”

He said that Sinn Féin would work for a budget “that fully maintains Council services and that allows the Council to work with all sectors of civic society and economic life in Dublin to make our capital a vibrant, prospering, diverse and fair city”.

The Sinn Féin councillor continued:

“Both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael had the opportunity to be part of this agreement – including the proportional allocation of mayor and deputy mayor positions – but they chose to pull out.

“In the case of Fianna Fáil they could not overcome their prejudice against Sinn Féin and objected to our holding the Mayor position in 2015/2016.

“In the case of Fine Gael they wanted us to sign a blank cheque for all future Council budgets.

“As the largest group on the Council we will fulfil our mandate to the full, including opposing the Local Property Tax and Water Charges. In line with the agreement, we will be working to reduce the Local Property Tax burden on our citizens.”

Mícheál Mac Donncha commended Sinn Féin Group Leader Councillor Séamus McGrattan for his leadership role in securing the agreement.

The Dublin City Alliance Agreement 

We, the undersigned councillors, commit ourselves to the following agreements for the Council term 2014-2019, and will actively pursue the agreed Mission Statement for its duration.

This Alliance will be comprised of members of Sinn Féin, the Labour Party, the Green Party and Independent councillors.

2014 to 2015 – Independent Mayor; Sinn Féin Deputy Mayor

2015 to 2016 – Sinn Féin Mayor; Independent Deputy Mayor

2016 to 2017 – Labour Mayor; Labour Deputy Mayor

2017 to 2018 – Sinn Féin Mayor; Labour Deputy Mayor

2018 to 2019 – Independent Mayor; Sinn Féin Deputy Mayor

Our groups on Dublin City Council will work together to achieve a budget for 2015 and subsequent years that is equitable, that adds no further to the financial burden on citizens and, where possible, eases that burden, that fully maintains Council services and that allows the Council to work with all sectors of civic society and economic life in Dublin to make our capital a vibrant, prospering, diverse and fair city.

Recognising the additional Local Property Tax burden imposed on Dublin residents because of huge property values, the parties to this agreement are committed to reducing that burden, subject to the powers available to them.

Similarly, recognising the need to protect jobs and enhance commercial activity, the parties to this agreement are committed to continuing the previous Council policy of not increasing commercial rates, and where possible, decreasing them.

Mission Statement of Dublin City Alliance 2014 to 2019

1.  Housing

• Make tackling the housing crisis the priority for the new City Council.
• Press central Government to change its housing policy and to prioritise the construction of Council housing.
• The provision of new high-quality housing on sites close to high-quality public transport.
• Establish a City Housing Trust to access funding for the building of social housing.
• Regeneration projects. Reallocate empty units. Prioritise remaining regeneration projects.
• Put in place a tackle voids and reduce the costs of returning voids back to use.
• ‘Living in the City’ initiative.
• Address the housing shortage for single people.
• Maintenance: Improve quality and speed of maintenance. Seek additional capital funding to address the serious problems in Dublin City Council dwellings.
• Oppose rent increases in local authority housing.
• Ensure full drawdown of funding for Traveller accommodation and timely delivery of local Traveller Accommodation Plans.
• No cuts to ‘Homeless’ budget and continued support for ‘Housing First’ for homeless.

2.  Policing & Community Safety

• Additional powers for Joint Policy Committees to ensure direct input in the development, implementation and oversight of Local Policing Plans.
• Adequate resources for Local Policing Forums.
• Seek the establishment of a Community Court on a pilot basis in Dublin City.
• Expansion of community restorative justice to include all JPCs.

3.  Transport

• Promote more effective local regulation of the taxi industry which is compatible with the interest of taxi drivers and operators and the public.
• Further expand the Dublin Bike rental scheme.
• Implement Cycle Network plan.
• Appoint a Cycling Officer for Dublin
• Increase provision of recharging points for electric cars.
• Seek the devolution of roads and transport planning to local and regional authority.
• Ensure the city is accessible for people with disabilities.
• Make Dublin a pedestrian-friendly city by: (i) Auditing our footpaths with a view to upgrading paths over 10 years, starting with poorest quality paths; (ii) Tackle the issue of cycling on footpaths.

4.  Economic Development

• Support legislation to abolish upwardly-only rents.
• Seek the introduction of a fairer system of commercial rates.
• Work with NAMA to maximise investment in unfinished estates.
• Use Dublin City Council’s land banks for development of industry where appropriate.
• Use empty commercial units for enterprise  incubation units or pop-up shops.
• Introduce measures to support enterprise including setting aside a portion of rates against investment in businesses to stimulate local economy and consider the provision of grants rather than reduced rates to support start-up business.
• Support a Derelict Sites Levy.
• Introduce a Markets Plan for the city.

5.  Planning

• Introduce new measures to promote family housing at reasonable densities such as underground parking.
• Introduce street frontage requirements to ensure attractive streets.
• Reform the city’s planning to encourage greater citizen involvement in the collaborative planning of the city.
• Support the efforts of local communities in improving their neighbourhoods.

6.  Jobs

• Implement the social employment and training clause.
• Establish employment task forces in areas of high unemployment.

7.  Community Development

• Demand that monies seized under the Criminal Assets Bureau be channeled into community-based services.
• The Local Community Development Committee will target resources at areas of most disadvantage.
• The Local Community Development Committee membership to reflect the communities it serves.
• Social inclusion and equality will be central to the work of the Local Community Development Committee.

8.  Finance

• Reduce the burden of the Local Property Tax on households.
• Include Dublin City Council as priority creditors of those companies now in NAMA.
• Agree action plan to increase the collection rate of commercial water rates.

9.  Environment & Waste Management

• Update Dublin City Council’s climate change strategy and action plan in line with international best practice.
• Terminate the contract to develop the Poolbeg incinerator.
• Adopt a Zero Waste Strategy for Dublin region in co-operation with the the other three local authorities in Dublin.
• Lobby for Dublin City Council to become the chief regulator of domestic waste collection services in the city, ensuring a comprehensive and accountable service is provided to the public.
• Lobby Government to introduce legislation to provide bin collection waivers for low-income households.
• The provision of dog fouling bins with small openings.
• Improve the frequency of street cleaning.
• Implement by-laws on waste management.

10.  Youth & Recreation

• It will be a priority to ensure that there are no cuts to core funding for library, arts, sports and recreation facilities.

11.  Arts, Heritage and Culture

• Promote Dublin as a ‘City of Creativity and Culture’ through work with relevant stakeholders.
• Develop a plan to commemorate the centenary of the 1916 Rising to include the role of the arts in commemoration.
• Provide for a Local Area Plan to protect the older buildings and Battlefield Site bounded by Moore Street, Parnell Street, O’Connell Street and Henry Street with a view towards the development of a 1916 Historic Quarter.
• Establishment of Coiste Gaeilge Comhairle Bhaile Átha Cliath (Dublin City Council Irish Language Committee).
• Enhancement of Dublin’s role as a ‘City of Literature and Art’.
• Promotion of public events will be bilingual
• Develop an arts strategy for the city involving all stakeholders including Dublin City Council, the Arts Council and Fáilte Ireland
• Ensure the resources of arts, cultural and community programmes are allocated fairly.