For many families the cost of childcare is crippling. In many instances it is more than the monthly mortgage
and there appears to be little appetite from the Government to tackle the issue. It is very distressing for some families who are trying to ensure that they can keep at work and also to provide for their children.”
“Another issue relates to the savage cuts to discretionary medical cards by the Government. Over the past three years the government has taken away more than 38% of discretionary medical cards from people. One lady in Castleisland told me about her circumstances and to be honest I was shocked that the Government can preside over such a barbaric system.”
“There is huge concern about unemployment and especially youth unemployment. There are so many people under 26 years old, who are not in education, not in work and who are really despondent. As an employer in the area, I know the dignity that people get from work, as well as an income. A young man in Rathmore stopped me on the street and told me that he has applied for 45 jobs and has got no interview. This is soul destroying.”
“There is a huge concern about the loss of local services in our community. A big focus relates to the ongoing threat to the post office network, which come on top of all the other cutbacks. Our local communities have lost far too many local services in recent years. Our community Garda services have been cut, bank branches have closed down, many local businesses have been forced to shut their doors, jobs have been lost, funding for local services has been cut and our small schools are facing a third year of cuts.”
