Ambulance cuts in Wicklow will put lives at risk - Brady

Ambulance cuts in Wicklow will put lives at risk - Brady


Wicklow Sinn Fein councillor John Brady has voiced serious concerns
about the new rostering for the ambulance service that covers county
Wicklow. The new rosters are being implemented by the National
Ambulance Service to reflect the reduction of weekly working hours
from 40 to 39 and a ban on over time imposed by the HSE. Cllr Brady
said it will inevitably put lives at risk and lead to longer response
times from a vastly reduced service.

Brady was speaking after being briefed by Ambulance personnel on the
cuts "Under the new working arrangements due to come into force at the
beginning of September the working week will be cut from 40 hours to
39 hours, there will also be a ban on overtime. The HSE have told the
Ambulance Service that the new roster has to be achieved using
existing staff numbers. The net result is under the new rostering
arrangements a number of ambulance bases in Wicklow wont be staffed on
certain days of the week. Ambulance personal have informed me for
example that they will have no one available to operate the base or
ambulances from the Arklow base on a Monday because of the new
roster."

Cllr Brady continued "Currently there are serious problems with the
ambulance service right across Wicklow and a number of months ago i
met with senior management in the National Ambulance Service to
discuss the problems facing the service in the south of Wicklow and
presented them a petition containing thousands of signatures demanding
a better service. Under these new arrangements it will make a bad
situation worse and it will inevitably put lives at risk and lead to
longer response times from a vastly reduced service."

“As an elected representative I am asking what I believe is a
reasonable question - is the service that they are leaving behind
sufficient or able to cover the growing population of Wicklow? The
ambulance service that covers Wicklow operates from bases in
Loughlinstown, Wicklow Town, Arklow and Baltinglass, in 2010 they
responded to a total of 3577 calls, they are already at breaking point
and rely on ambulances from neighbouring counties to assist in
providing a basic level of cover, these cuts will however be the final
nail if implemented" Brady continued

Cllr Brady went on to say “In my opinion the HSE are gambling with
people’s lives. They are cutting the ambulance service and leaving
areas such as Arklow with no cover. It is not acceptable that other
areas will have to try fill that gap as well as provide cover in their
own areas. These cuts coupled with the planned closure of the 24hour
A&E in St. Columcilles Hospital, Loughlinstown will put lives on the
line and must be rejected. I have wrote to the HSE and Minister for
Health James Reilly seeking immediate answers on this life and death
matter."

Wicklow Businesses need to be cautious after attempts to extort money using Katie Taylor's boxing clubs name

Sinn Féin councillors John Brady and Rossa Murray have warned
businesses in Bray and Wicklow to be cautious of people claiming to be
be carrying out fundraising on behalf of Bray Boxing Club. The club is
home to Olympic gold medallist Katie Taylor and fellow Olympian Adam
Nolan.

Cllr Brady said "I am calling on businesses in Bray and Wicklow to be
very cautious of unscrupulous people trying to cash in on Katie
Taylor's fantastic achievement in the Olympics.  A number of
businesses in Bray have been contacted over the last couple of days by
an individual claiming to be carrying out a fundraiser on behalf of
Bray Boxing club, he is asking them for large sums of money for some
sort of production that will be used to raise funds for the gym.
However after speaking to the club chairperson and other members it
has been made clear that the club has given no authorisation to anyone
to use the clubs good name for any reason, fundraising or otherwise"

Cllr Murray went onto say "It appears people are trying to piggyback
on the success of Katie in the Olympics for their own selfish end. In
my mind this is a fraudulent attempt to extort money from hard hit
businesses by using the clubs name".

Cllr Brady ended by saying "The facilities the club had been training
from have been widely reported on over the course of the Olympics,
however a lot of that had been misinformation. The gym has recently
had extensive renovations which has seen a toilet and shower
installed, this has seen the club gym totally transformed. The
individuals using the clubs name are trying to exploit the goodwill
and generosity towards the club show by the public and businesses and
people need to be very cautious. Unfortunately there are vultures
hovering over Bray Boxing Club at the moment in an attempt to line
their own pockets and people should not be taken in as the club will
certainly not see a penny of it".

Bray held its breath for Katie’s gold: Cllr John Brady.

Wicklow Sinn Féin councillor, John Brady, congratulated Katie Taylor
on her Olympic gold medal victory and said that the town of Bray held
its breath waiting for the judges’ decision.

 “Success does not come easy and here in Bray, the people who know her
best know that Katie worked hard and long for her wonderful
achievement.

“Everyone in the town was here watching on the big screens in
Ballywaltrim and we held our breath waiting for the decision. When the
ref raised her hand, the roar that went up from the crowd of over
10,000 was phenomenal and it wasn’t just joy, it was relief too. It
was such a hard bout.

“Anyone who thinks that women’s boxing is some kind of paler version
of the men’s sport, got their answer. Her opponent was tough but Katie
had the beating of her and we are as proud as punch here in her home
town, her home county,” he said.

“I am delighted for Katie her dad Pete and her mum Bridget and all the
family. I know the hard work they all have put in over the years to
see this dream come true. I hope now the powers to be will sit up and
start investing in sports such as boxing and that facilities will be
put in place. It has been a battle in the past to get recognition for
Bray Boxing club and many obstacles had been put in place over the
years and I am glad that I supported Pete and the club over many years
and succeeded in securing their gym at Bray harbour and indeed more
recently getting the toilets and showers installed”

Cllr Brady concluded “Katie is a great role model for many thousands
of children and she has showed that anyone irrespective where they
might come from can have and dream and see it come true. She has done
the Oldcourt Estate, Ballywaltrim, Bray, Wicklow and indeed Ireland
proud and I am looking forward to welcoming her Pete and Bridget home
to Bray on Monday next” Ends

Wicklow County Council funding to be cut by €1.47million by Phil Hogan

Wicklow Sinn Féin Councillor John Brady, has said that Local
Government Minister Phil Hogan is "attacking local democracy" by
imposing further cuts in funding for councils, linking these cuts to
the Household Charge. Wicklow County Council has received confirmation 
from Minister Phil Hogan that the Local Government Fund paid to
the Council is to be cut by €1.47million.


Cllr Brady said "Minister Hogan and his colleagues in the Fine
Gael/Labour Coalition are mounting an assault on local democracy. By
tying local government funding to the un-collectable and inequitable
Household Charge the coalition is putting councils in an impossible
financial position. He is now going to impose further cuts in central
government allocations for councils for the remainder of 2012.

"At the time of Budget 2012 Sinn Féin said clearly that the cut to the
Local Government Fund was unsustainable, that the Household Charge was
unjust and would be widely boycotted and that by making local
government dependent on receipts from the Household Charge, the
coalition was going to undermine services across the board. This is
now taking place and it is citizens in Wicklow and across this State
who are paying the price for the coalition's dogged pursuit of a
failed policy of austerity."

Cllr Brady concluded "  Fine Gael/Labour are to cut the funding to
Wicklow County Council by €1.47million for 2012, this is on top of
previous cuts already imposed. This will have a direct impact on
front-line services unless its rejected. I am asking for an emergency
meeting of Wicklow County Council to be held to discuss the financial
crisis that is now pending in Wicklow because of this attack on local
democracy inflicted by this Government."

Bray Town Council to Demolish Property they purchased for €6.1 Million

Sinn Féin councillor John Brady has expressed concerns and said
serious questions needed to be answered following confirmation by Bray
Town Council that they are to demolish Kilbride House on Kilbride Lane
in Bray. The house makes up part of a site that the council purchased
using a compulsory purchase order a number of years ago and paid
€6.1million for. It was intended on using the site to construct badly
need social housing, however the Government is refusing to provide any
funding for this purpose.

Cllr Brady said "The Town Manager confirmed at Tuesdays council
meeting that he intends on demolishing Kilbride House on Kilbride
Lane. I am bitterly disappointed at this decision because this site
was purchased at the height of the so called 'Celtic Tiger' and the
council paid an incredible €6.1 million for. The land around the house
was always intended for the construction of housing, unfortunately the
government is now refusing to allow the construction of any new social
housing under their new housing policies"

Cllr Brady continued "Since this property was purchased it has lay in
a state of dereliction, a caretaker had been residing in the main
house but a number of months ago he moved out of the area. The
property has since lay empty and open for anti-social behaviour. I
recently had the council secure the property by placing shutters on
the windows and doors in an attempt to curtail the anti social
behaviour and to try stop the house getting ransacked and burnt to the
ground"

"The Town Manager has now decided to demolish the property, i have
major concerns about this. The over priced site was purchased for €6.1
million and was valued based on the existence of the house on the
site, which going on the value of property at the time was probably
valued at over €1.5million. It is unbelievable that the council now
wants to demolish something they paid so much for rather than to deal
with the real problem"

Cllr Brady went onto say "I have argued that yes we need to stop the
problems on site and the way to do that would be by giving the house
to a community group on a short term lease so the property would be
occupied which would stop any anti social issues. The council have
tried to justify the demolition of the house by saying the house is in
a poor state of repair, i totally disagree with this as i was recently
in the property and yes some small works may be needed but certainly
nothing that would warrant its destruction. I think at this stage the
files on this particular purchase by the council need to be opened so
we can see how the figure of €6.1 million was arrived at and what
value was placed on the house itself."

Brady concluded "Demolishing this property is the easy option by the
council and amounts to little more than the squandering of tax payers
money. There are more constructive things that should and could be
done with this property whilst we are waiting for a reversal of the
flawed housing policies of this Government. Turning the site into a
€6.1 million wasteland will only lead to more problems for local
residents and will amount to a total and utter waste of taxpayers
money."

Sinn Féin welcomes Anti Household Charge Protesters to Bray Town Council Meeting

Sinn Féin councillors John Brady and Rossa Murray welcomed campaigners
against the unfair Household Charge to Bray Town Councils July monthly
meeting which was held on Tuesday last. The protest which was held
outside the council meeting was timed to coincide with the threatening
letters that have been send out to those people who have failed to pay
the €100 stealth tax. A large group of Sinn Féin supports had joined
in with the protest outside the council meeting to show their
continued opposition to the charge. Towards the end of the protest a
small group broke away and proceeded to enter the council chamber and
interrupt the council meeting.

Speaking after the protest Cllr John Brady stated "Following the first
round of threatening letters that were sent out earlier this week a
protest had been organised to send a clear message to the government
parties that bully boy tactics that are being used by Fine Gael and
Labour simply wont work, the 50% of Wicklow residents who have not
paid the stealth tax done so because of the unfairness of it and
because they simply cant afford it. The protest outside the council
meeting on Tuesday had been joined by a large group of Sinn Féin
members and supports"

Cllr Brady continued "Towards the end of the protest a section of the
protesters broke away and proceeded to enter the council chamber where
the council meeting was taking place. The protesters put across their
message loud and clear, much to the dislike of the majority of the
establishment councillors. The officials and all the councillors
present proceeded to stand up and leave the council chamber with the
exception of the two Sinn Féin councillors myself and councillor
Rossa Murray. We stayed in the chamber and listened to the protest as
we agree on the issue of which formed their protest"

Cllr Murray stated "As someone who has stated publically that i was
not going to pay the Household charge i sat and listened to the
legitimate concerns of the protesters. Dragging ordinary people
through the courts for non payment of the unfair charge stinks of
hypocrisy, the people who have brought this state to its knees are
free to continue living their lavish lifestyles whilst the ordinary
people are forced to pay the cost. The other councillors at the
meeting ran and hid probably because they could not face the truth
from the people on the ground who are hurting because of the policies
of austerity"

Cllr Brady went onto say "The loud protest in the council chamber
lasted about 20 minutes and after the Gardaí were called i addressed
the protesters and welcomed them into the council chamber and stated
that i fully supported their legitimate concerns and i and Sinn Féin
also support the abolishment of the household charge. I also stated
that i had raised the issue of the threatening letters at the council
meeting in Wicklow county council the day before and had voiced my
opposition and Sinn Feins opposition to the charge continuously at
council meetings and had brought a number of motions to that effect
before the councils."

Cllr Brady concluded "The protest ended after Cllr Murray and i gave
assurances that the issue of the household charge and the threatening
letters would be on the agenda and discussed at the next council
meeting. The message that the protest did send out to the government
parties was that they had brought in the unpopular charges and they
had to face up to their policies and try to justify them as opposed to
running and hiding. I look forward to the next council meeting where
the issue will be debated and will again welcome the protesters to
listen to the debate."

Wicklow Olympians and Paralympians need to be honoured equally by the County Council

Sinn Féin councillor John Brady has welcomed the inclusion of two
Wicklow athletes in the London 2012 Paralympic Games which will take
place between 29 August and 9 September 2012. He has also called on
Wicklow County Council to make a financial contribution to the
athletes to help cover some of the costs incurred whilst representing
their County at the games. Recently Wicklow County Council made awards
of €2,500 each to the four Olympians from Wicklow who will participate
in the summer Olympics.

Cllr Brady said "Wicklow is going to be very well represented in the
Olympics and the Paralympics in London over the coming weeks, in all
we will have six athletes representing us. This is an extraordinary
achievement and i am very proud of each and everyone of them. Whilst
there is a lot of focus on the Olympics which starts on July 27th, we
must also be very proud of our Paralympians. The Paralympics are held
every four years in parallel with the Olympic Games, this is the
premier multisport event for elite athletes with a disability. The
standards are equally high for these games and are for those who reach
elite standards of performance."

Cllr Brady went onto say " Recently following a request from myself
Wicklow County Council awarded €2500 to each of the four Olympians
from Wicklow. This was unspent money from the conference budget of
2011. This was a small gesture to try help the athletes out in the run
up to the games, and i felt it would be better than another civic
reception. Now that the Irish Paralympic team for London 2012 has been
named and Wicklow has 2 athletes in the squad i am calling on the
council to make the same gesture to them."

Cllr Brady concluded " It is a fantastic achievement for any athlete
to represent their County on the largest sporting stage in the world
and for Wicklow to have six is certainly going to give us all
something to cheer for over the summer months. On Monday the Bray
Olympic Committee which i am a member of will be unveiling our planned
programme to get behind the athletes and hopefully everyone throughout
Wicklow will do likewise. I hope Wicklow County Council will treat all
our athletes equally and make an equal financial contribution to our
two Paralympian heroes."