SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Irish Anti-Austerity Groups Form New Party for 'Genuinely Left Government'
People Before Profit and Anti-Austerity Alliance announce new political campaign against high taxes and water privatization
Sep 16, 2015
Two Irish anti-austerity groups are joining forces to galvanize a new left political party in Ireland ahead of the country's upcoming general elections, which are set to take place before next April.
The Anti-Austerity Alliance (AAA) and People Before Profit (PBP) announced Wednesday that the groups were establishing a new parliamentary group for Ireland's chamber, known as Dail, with plans to run up to 40 candidates in the election and launch a new party focused on empowering communities and unions through grassroots action.
"With the backdrop of a radicalization in Irish society, a growing rejection of the traditional establishment parties and, in particular, the active movement against water charges, the left can make gains in the upcoming general election," the group announced in its statement Wednesday morning.
Currently, the parliamentary members (TDs) who have joined the alliance include Ruth Coppinger, Paul Murphy, Joe Higgins, and PBP deputy Richard Boyd Barrett, along with 28 regional councilors.
The TDs plan to campaign against austerity cuts, water privatization, and abolishing for low- and middle-earners an income tax known as the Universal Social Charge.
The group said it will register for the elections following a three-week fundraising period. It also said it would not participate in government with establishment parties--such as Fine Gael, Fianna Fail Labour, or "any right-wing parties/independents."
"Instead we are fighting for a genuinely left government that will ensure that the economy and country's resources are used for people needs not profits," the statement concluded.
Both groups are relatively new, with PBP forming ahead of the last general election and AAA assembling last year in response to rising water taxes, but have garnered widespread support from activists and labor unions since their respective launches.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
Two Irish anti-austerity groups are joining forces to galvanize a new left political party in Ireland ahead of the country's upcoming general elections, which are set to take place before next April.
The Anti-Austerity Alliance (AAA) and People Before Profit (PBP) announced Wednesday that the groups were establishing a new parliamentary group for Ireland's chamber, known as Dail, with plans to run up to 40 candidates in the election and launch a new party focused on empowering communities and unions through grassroots action.
"With the backdrop of a radicalization in Irish society, a growing rejection of the traditional establishment parties and, in particular, the active movement against water charges, the left can make gains in the upcoming general election," the group announced in its statement Wednesday morning.
Currently, the parliamentary members (TDs) who have joined the alliance include Ruth Coppinger, Paul Murphy, Joe Higgins, and PBP deputy Richard Boyd Barrett, along with 28 regional councilors.
The TDs plan to campaign against austerity cuts, water privatization, and abolishing for low- and middle-earners an income tax known as the Universal Social Charge.
The group said it will register for the elections following a three-week fundraising period. It also said it would not participate in government with establishment parties--such as Fine Gael, Fianna Fail Labour, or "any right-wing parties/independents."
"Instead we are fighting for a genuinely left government that will ensure that the economy and country's resources are used for people needs not profits," the statement concluded.
Both groups are relatively new, with PBP forming ahead of the last general election and AAA assembling last year in response to rising water taxes, but have garnered widespread support from activists and labor unions since their respective launches.
Nadia Prupis
Nadia Prupis is a former Common Dreams staff writer. She wrote on media policy for Truthout.org and has been published in New America Media and AlterNet. She graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a BA in English in 2008.
Two Irish anti-austerity groups are joining forces to galvanize a new left political party in Ireland ahead of the country's upcoming general elections, which are set to take place before next April.
The Anti-Austerity Alliance (AAA) and People Before Profit (PBP) announced Wednesday that the groups were establishing a new parliamentary group for Ireland's chamber, known as Dail, with plans to run up to 40 candidates in the election and launch a new party focused on empowering communities and unions through grassroots action.
"With the backdrop of a radicalization in Irish society, a growing rejection of the traditional establishment parties and, in particular, the active movement against water charges, the left can make gains in the upcoming general election," the group announced in its statement Wednesday morning.
Currently, the parliamentary members (TDs) who have joined the alliance include Ruth Coppinger, Paul Murphy, Joe Higgins, and PBP deputy Richard Boyd Barrett, along with 28 regional councilors.
The TDs plan to campaign against austerity cuts, water privatization, and abolishing for low- and middle-earners an income tax known as the Universal Social Charge.
The group said it will register for the elections following a three-week fundraising period. It also said it would not participate in government with establishment parties--such as Fine Gael, Fianna Fail Labour, or "any right-wing parties/independents."
"Instead we are fighting for a genuinely left government that will ensure that the economy and country's resources are used for people needs not profits," the statement concluded.
Both groups are relatively new, with PBP forming ahead of the last general election and AAA assembling last year in response to rising water taxes, but have garnered widespread support from activists and labor unions since their respective launches.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.