Séamus Healy (Tipperary, Workers and Unemployed Action Group) | Oireachtas source

One hundred years ago this week, the men and women of the Rising declared a Republic and read the Proclamation from the steps of the GPO. The Proclamation includes the following statement: "We declare the right of the people of Ireland to the ownership of Ireland, and to the unfettered control of Irish destinies, to be sovereign and indefeasible". Sadly, successive Governments, in particular the most recent Fine Gael-Labour Party Government and its predecessor, the Fianna Fáil-Green Party Government, surrendered our sovereignty and economic independence. As a result, the glossy brochure before us amounts to a programme for continued austerity for low and middle income families.

The fiscal treaty rules previous Governments allowed the European Union to impose on us and the annual debt interest repayments of €7 billion that flow out of this country have a practical outcome for every household. They mean a continuation of the chaos in the health services, an ongoing housing and homelessness crisis, with more than 100,000 families on local authority housing waiting lists, major problems in the mental health service, underfunding of education and roads that are almost impassable in most, if not all, counties.

To mitigate the debt repayment provisions of the fiscal treaty, virtually all Irish fixed assets, including many homes, have been sold off to international vulture capitalists. If one pays to use the facilities in a shopping centre, part of the 10 cent charge will go to Texas Capital Bank, Allianz or a similar company. The Twenty-six Counties Exchequer is paying €7 billion per annum on debts incurred to avoid taxing the super-rich and repay the gambling debts of international investors who invested in Irish banks.

Rents and loan repayments from businesses and home owners pour out of the country to international capitalists. UCD economics professor, Morgan Kelly, says that Irish small and medium sized businesses owe €28 billion. It is probable that research would show there is a higher proportion of Irish output pouring out of the country now than was the case before the land league campaign led by Michael Davitt commenced in the late 1800s.

The fiscal treaty agreed following the Lisbon treaty has created a new colonialism in Europe. This treaty flies in the face of the 1916 Proclamation. It is not a sovereignty sharing treaty. It effectively sets aside Irish sovereignty and hands it over to big European Union powers. It must be renegotiated. This could best be done in the framework of a debt neutralisation conference. Ireland should demand such a conference and seek support for it from other peripheral countries such as Greece, Portugal, Cyprus, Spain and others. We must seek the renegotiation of the fiscal treaty and the halting and cessation of the payment of €7 billion in debt servicing which is crucifying families across the country. The Taoiseach told us approximately 18 months ago that we would see a game change and that this €7 billion would be wiped out. Of course that never happened. It must happen now if ordinary families, low and middle income families, are to have a reasonable standard of living in the future.

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