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LAWLESS URGES GOVERNMENT TO ACT ON CLIMATE CHANGE

James Lawless spoke in the Dáil today about climate change and criticised the Government’s inaction.

James said, “The Government recently published a climate action plan but their failure to properly finance public transport and the SEAI retrofitting fiasco highlights their hypocrisy on this most important issue, as does the Taoiseach’s delayed criticism of the Mercosur deal and the fires in the Amazon.”

“Tomorrow’s climate strike by students across the country is a timely reminder for the Government that minds need to be focussed on urgently improving Ireland’s climate record.”

You can watch James’ speech below :

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JAMES LAWLESS : “IRISH RESEARCH IN CRISIS”

James tackled the Government in the Dáil today on the stagnation in Irish Research

James Lawless TD questioned the Government on the current state of Irish Research on the first day of the new Dail session . It has emerged that just one of more than 400 recently announced European Research Council grants has been awarded to Ireland.

James said, “Many stakeholders would agree that Research in Ireland is in crisis. The Government responded with the usual bluster but they cannot deny that changes brought in by Fine Gael and Labour in 2012 hindered Irish Research by directing funding away from discovery research. This is why I have introduced the Industrial Development (Science Foundation Ireland) (Amendment) Bill 2018, which aims to achieve a better balance between discovery and commercial research.”

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O’ROURKE – FF BILL CRACKS DOWN ON INSURANCE FRAUD

Frank O’Rourke TD says a new Bill being brought forward by his party should lead to reduced insurance costs, as it will clamp down on fraudulent insurance claims

Fraudulent insurance claims have been a contributory factor in the rising insurance costs, which people in Kildare and across the country have been hit with in recent years

“The average premiums today are still €300 higher now than they were in 2014. Constituents regularly raise the high cost of motor and business insurances with me at my weekly clinics”  stated Deputy O’Rourke.

“Our Bill, the Civil Liability and Courts (Amendment) Bill 2018, is the latest measure from our party aimed at tackling spiralling insurance costs. I have raised the high cost of insurance with the Government on many occasions and have offered a number of proposals which the Government should have pursued. The Government has not given focus to this issue and it is affecting the cost of living for many people.”

“The majority of insurance claimants are genuine. However, there is an underlying issue with fraudulent claims, which is driving up the cost of insurance for motorists, businesses, community groups and individuals. We need to address this issue and our Bill is designed to make would-be false claimants think twice about making a claim. If passed, the Bill will direct a court to refer the matter to the Director of Public Prosecutions where a case is deemed to be a fraudulent action.”

“This proposal was captured in the report published by the Cost of Insurance Working Group earlier this year. Reducing insurance costs has been a key priority for me and our party, and we must make better progress in reducing the cost of insurance and bring rates more in line with EU norms rates,” concluded Deputy O’Rourke.

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LAWLESS CRITICISES MENTAL HEALTH WAITING LISTS

James Lawless TD has criticised the amount of time it can take for a patient to access Mental Health Services in Kildare

James made the comments after his Parliamentary Question on the mean time a patient might wait for a Child and Adult Mental Health Services (CAMHS) appointment was found to be 3 to 6 months for a non urgent routine appointment. Continue reading “LAWLESS CRITICISES MENTAL HEALTH WAITING LISTS”

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LAWLESS SPEAKS ON CLIMATE EMERGENCY MEASURES

James Lawless TD spoke recently in the Dail on proposed Climate Emergency measures.

“The longer we keep looking for other sources, the more we delay a transition to an entirely renewable energy mix. Apart from the environmental and moral imperative there is huge economic opportunity in a ‘green revolution’ to create high tech jobs in engineering, renewable technologies and a whole new energy industry.”