The Policy & Advocacy Blog

Keep up to date with what's going on with the work of The Wheel in the sphere of policy and advocacy. Written by Ivan Cooper, Director of Advocacy with The Wheel, you can stay on top of all the big issues and contribute your thoughts and opinions right here .

Jobs initiative welcome - but we can do more if we think creatively!

there are thousands of people who would be willing to put their skills to use doing jobs that need doing - if there was a programme to enable them to work part-time at the going rate for a temporary job created in the public sector - paid for by their benefit entitlement plus a small top up payment to recognise their initiative.

While the government's jobs initiative is to be welcomed, and while it is vital that we create long-run, sustainable jobs, we also need to recognise that the scale of unemployment requires a

Surprise, Surprise - Ireland among OECDs worst for social justice!

IRELAND HAS one of the worst levels of social justice of all OECD member states, ranking 27th out of 31 countries in a new German study.

Just Chile, Mexico, Greece and Turkey are more socially unjust, according to Germany’s Bertelsmann Foundation.

IRELAND HAS one of the worst levels of social justice of all OECD member states, ranking 27th out of 31 countries in a new German study.

The Wheel Reacts to Budget 2011

Submitted by Ivan Cooper on 8 December 2010 - 12:30pm

The Wheel

In September this year The Wheel presented Government with a Five-Point Plan to Protect Vulnerable People in Budge

4 Year Recovery Plan, Eh?

Here's my initial reaction to the Government’s 4 Year recovery plan, published yesterday:

So much money is to be taken away from the incomes and services of vulnerable

The Deepening Social and Economic Crisis

We are operating in completely extraordinary times with a general election having effectively been called for mid January – but with the possibility of a snap election at any time.

Consider yourself well and truly softened up for Budget 2011! Will it be €4Bn, €5Bn, €6Bn, €7Bn - hey what's a few Billion between friends!

Taking €15Bn out of the economy – on top of the €14Bn that has already been taken out over the past two years- will have a totally devastating effect on the funding of community and voluntary organisations and the services and supports we provide with-and-for vulnerable people

Further thoughts folks - it’s now clear that the barely-discernable green-shoots of dissent in the Labour Party over the feasibility of achieving what was a fortnight ago a €7.5Bn downwards f

€5Bn adjustment now being touted for Budget 2011

The timetable for adjustment is too short - Government should spread the pain over 6 years - not 4 years.

It seems pretty clear that all the political parties (apart from Sinn Fein) have either bought into, or are about to buy into, the consensus that we absolutely have to achieve this budget adjustmen

Oireachtas Members Urged to Consider Budget Alternatives

Submitted by Ivan Cooper on 18 October 2010 - 5:55pm

Oireachtas Members Urged to Consider Budget Alternatives

The 17 member Community and Voluntary Pillar of Social Partnership (of which The Wheel is a member) briefed politicians in Dublinon Wednesday 6 October on how the Government can best develop an integrated national recovery strategy. The CV Pillar’s recommendations have already been presented to Government as a pre-budget submission.

The Wheel representing the sector: latest updates

The Wheel and our sixteen colleague organisations in the Community and Voluntary Pillar are continuing to work to protect vulnerable people, and the social infrastructure in place to support them,

The Community and Voluntary Pillar launches a plan for Government to protect vulnerable people in Budget 2010. What do you think of it?

Ireland’s total tax-take has plummeted towards a record low and major reform is now required.

The members of the community and voluntary pillar held a press conference this morning to demand that government adopts an integrated approach to Budget 2011, an approach tha