Workers Solidarity Movement

Last night in Dublin former US president Bill Clinton told an invited gathering of 575 of the richest 1% of Ireland's population that they were the greatest problem facing the world. They paid over 2500 a head to hear this as they chomped down on "Atlantic salmon, Connemara lamb and lemon posset, washed down with Chablis Domaine de la Mandeliere 2007 and Chateau Les Roches Gaby 2001."

Within hours of announcing that the real cost of the Anglo bailout was going to be 30 billion plus rather than the 1.5 billion first estimated the government was revealing its plan for further cuts in our pay welfare, and public services to pay for this. The bank bailouts, not totalling 45 billion, will push the budget deficit to 32% of GDP, the government has the intention of continuing to attack the living standards of workers in Ireland until this is reduced to the 3% required by the EU.

The 1% Network has said that the tackling of wealth inequality must become a political priority.  Citing the TASC survey[i] published in mid-August which showed that 87% of Irish people believe that wealth is unfairly distributed, Gregor Kerr spokesperson for the 1% Network said: “It’s clear that ordinary people see tackling the unfair way in which wealth is distributed in this country as something which should be a political priority.  The government want to continue to take the easy option of cutting public services and taking money from the pockets of ordinary people.  But the rest of us know that it is unfair that the 1% who own 34% of the wealth should continue to be protected while the we suffer.”

Up to 1,500 workers (Irish Times estimate) marched from Anglo-Irish Bank to the Dáil at lunchtime today. For a lunchtime event with very little publicity it was a surprisingly good turnout. The ICTU leaders had only planned for a stunt to get themselves on the TV news, their original idea was that a couple of hundred union officials and activists would provide a backdrop for David Begg or Jack O'Connor delivering a soundbite.

It was one of those moments when you're certain that tens of thousands of other people are going through the same emotions at the same time as you. One of the rarer ones of late when the emotion is sheer joy. I wasn't really paying attention to the crackling radio as I was coming around with my cup of tea this morning, chit-chatting to my housemate. But the words 'cement truck', 'Leinster House', 'Dail Eireann', 'Gates' eventually got our attention. Oh the delight of it! 

On Thursday it was William Slattery of State Street.  Today it’s the chair of Goldman Sachs International “a leading global investment banking, securities and investment management firm that provides a wide range of financial services to a substantial and diversified client base that includes corporations, financial institutions, governments and high-net-worth individuals.”  And workers and the unemployed are again the target.

William Slattery, Executive vice-president of financial services company State Street and head of its Irish operation has called for 30,000 public servants to be sacked.  Mr. Slattery made his call at a conference to discuss the implementation of the Croke Park agreement.

Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan, Taoiseach Brian Cowen and representatives of the National Treasury Management Agency have spent the time since early Tuesday afternoon boasting about their latest “successful bond auction”. 

Unite Union's Christchurch office has been flooded with phone calls and text messages from worried workers in post-earthquake Christchurch.

The €25 billion cost of reducing the pupil teacher ratio in all primary schools to 10:1 for the next 20 years is “manageable” and will not bankrupt the country, Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan has contended.

Following consultations with his government colleagues and with the EU Commission, Mr. Lenihan said that the children of Ireland had had to live with the problems caused by the economic policies of his and previous governments and had had to “navigate some very difficult waters”.