Dr Dáithí Downey is Head of Housing Policy, Research and Development for Dublin City Council where he also leads the Dublin Housing Observatory. In this short podcast he delivers a blistering review of our housing system, including the observation that at the current pace the Housing Assistance Payment will cost the state as much as building a new National Children’s […]
Today the number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 seen their highest rise so far in Ireland, with 39 new cases and sadly a second person has died. While this is alarming, it is not unexpected. With a large spike in testing we will see more spikes in cases. No is not the time to panic. No is the time to […]
With the first day of “lockdown” just about over we talk about some of the best things to happen in these uncertain times. Initiatives like #LightTheWay, #SelfIsolationHelp and #CovidCommunity show that we can all help in our own ways. Then GP and friend of the pod Maitiu O Tuathail joins me to talk about the dramatic changes to his role […]
With the news that schools, colleges and childcare facilities are to close, we focus on the things that can alleviate the crisis: a rent freeze, increasing the fuel allowance, a Universal Basic Income and supports for businesses. Rory argues that government should act now to take the fear of having to chose between paying the rent or eating away from […]
The WHO have no declared Covid-19 a Global Pandemic. A woman has sadly died in the east of Ireland from the disease and there are calls for governments around the world to act faster. We discuss these developments, the need for personal responsibility, public initiatives like #selfisolationhelp and how we can all step up. The audio is a bit off […]
We are in unprecedented territory as Covid-19 spreads across the globe and Italy has locked down 60 million people. In Ireland the government have announced several measures as part of their containment strategy, but we would hope they will move more quickly to the mitigation stage. Martin, just out of hospital, argues for more decisive action and for the “I’m […]
We traveled to NUI Maynooth to sit down with Emeritus Professor of Social Policy at the University of Bath, Ian Gough. Ian is also Professorial Research Fellow at the Centre for the Analysis of Social Exclusion (CASE) and his current research project is on the intersection of climate change mitigation policy and social policy. For the last decade he has […]
Martin, whether he likes to admit it or not, is high risk when it comes to the Covid-19 outbreak and he feels strongly that not enough focus is on the people who will be the worst impacted by the disease. Protecting consumer sentiment won’t stop the spread; not spooking the markets won’t stop people getting spooked. So I called him […]