Reboot Republic is the innovative Podcast that delves beyond the headlines and soundbites and pulls up the roots of our Social Crises to unearth progressive solutions. We talk to world leading experts, politicians, activists and everyday change-makers. This not about tinkering around the edges. Hosted by Lecturer of Social Policy in Maynooth University and Social Justice Campaigner Dr Rory Hearne and independent podcast nerd Tony Groves, we look beyond the political speak for real, globally tried and tested solutions. Reboot Republic aims to be the podcast for an optimistic and inclusive future and not the polarised present. @RebootPod
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Tanya Ward #NoChild2020
This Reboot Republic Podcast talks to Tanya Ward, the Chief Executive of the Children’s Rights Alliance (CRA) and former Deputy Director at the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL). We discuss the CRA’s 2019 Report Card that identifies and evaluates the Government’s progress on actions for Children. The highest individual grade in Report Card 2019 is an ‘A-‘ for ‘LGBTI+ Children and Young People’, with the lowest grade being awarded for ‘Child and Family Homelessness. We also talk affordable childcare and discuss the scandal of child poverty in Ireland, solutions and policy alternatives – and the collaboration with the Irish Times and the Children’s Rights Alliance in the No Child 2020 campaign – to build this conversation on the causes of child poverty and what it will take to end it.
Rob Sweeney
#Inequality
In this latest podcast we talk with plolicy analyst at the inequality think tank, TASC, Dr Rob Sweeney. Rob has a PhD in economics from University of Leeds, which concentrated on financial markets and investors, banking, international macroeconomics, and housing and his current role focuses mainly on issues surrounding the Irish political economy and wealth distribution.
Gerard Howlin
#Chumocracy
This Reboot Republic Podcast talks to the experienced political analyst, Gerard Howlin. Gerard is a Public Affairs Consultant, Columnist, Commentator and Former Senior Political Adviser to Government. Gerard offers interesting insights into the real world of Irish politics and policy making.
Tom Healy
#Hope
This latest Reboot Republic Podcast is with Tom Healy, Director of the Nevin Research institute & leading economist – we talk to him about his forthcoming book ‘An Ireland Worth Working For: Delivering the Democratic Programme a Century later’ and the concrete & visionary policies, solutions and changes required to make Ireland’s economy ensure a decent fair and dignified standard of living for everyone.
Frank McDonald
#TrulyFrank
This Reboot Republic Podcast talks to author, campaigning journalist & gentleman- Frank McDonald. Frank is the former Environment Editor of The Irish Times and author of the books, Chaos at the Crossroads and The Builders.
We talk to him about Dublin – the city it has become and his latest book, Truly Frank: A Dublin Memoir.
Darragh O’Brien
#RaiseTheRoof
Fianna Fail spokesperson for Housing, Planning and Local Government and TD for Dublin Fingal, Darragh O’Brien talks candidly about apologies, learning the lessons of the past, the current housing crisis, state-lead solutions and exclusively for the first time about his view on the constitutional right to housing. This is an honest and sometimes combative conversation with Darragh delivering some spicy moments of his own!
Prof PJ Drudy
#NewPublicHousing
The New Public Housing Conference took place in Maynooth University in Feb 2019. The first of these short talks is with Professor Emeritus of Economics, TCD (and more importantly Tortoise Shack Alumni) PJ Drudy.
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Colm O’Gorman
#Stand4Truth
Our guest in The Tortoise Shack is Executive Director of Amnesty Ireland, Colm O’Gorman. He joins us to discuss the Rights-Based-Society and some of the obstacles and challenges facing us here and across the globe.
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Leilani Farha
#MakeTheShift
In this weeks podcast we talk to The United Nations Special Rapporteur for Housing Leilani Farha about the global housing crisis and why governments & cities must #MakeTheShift to guaranteeing the right to housing ensuring everyone can live in dignity.
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Rebecca Keatinge
#HousingFirst
In this Reboot Republic Podcast we talk to leading human rights lawyer with the Mercy law Resource Centre, Rebecca Keatinge, if it would help address the housing crisis if we put it in the constitution?
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Róisín Shorthall
#Integrity
Róisín walks us through her time in government, explains why she was willing to act on her principles and shares with us a fascinating insight on the reasons behind her resignation.
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Wayne Stanley
#HomelessnessIsNotNormal
Our guest is research and policy analyst with Focus Ireland, Wayne Stanley, who discusses working on homelessness, its causes and the underlying issues.
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Seamus Coffey
#Choices
Seamus outlines that there is the money to invest in a major public housing programme- it’s just a question of priorities.
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Mary Lou McDonald
#Unity
Getting behind the sound bites in an open and honest conversation with President of Sinn Féin, Dublin TD and potential future Taoiseach, Mary Lou McDonald.
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Michael Taft
#BrexitProof
Brexit is almost upon us so what should the Government be doing? We are joined by Researcher and Economist for SIPTU, Michael Taft, to talk about the steps we can take right now.
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John Harris
#BrexitBreakdown
We are delighted to welcome back Guardian Columnist and British Political Commentator of the Year, John Harris, to talk us through the current state of the Conservative Party made mess that is Brexit.
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Orla O’Connor
#Feminism
Director of the National Women’s Council of Ireland Orla O’Connor joins us to talk challenges and hopes of women in Ireland today.
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Emmet Kirwan #DublinOldschool
Emmet tells the stories of Austerity that you cannot see on a spreadsheet. His play Dublin Oldschool captures the highs and lows of the drug scene, without glamourising it.
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Ciaran Cuffe
#ClimateJustice
Green Party Councillor, Ciaran Cuffe, joins us to talk about his time in Government, the possibility of a Left Alliance, the Carbon Tax, a Just Transition and all things Climate Action related.
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JP Swaine
#FirstFortnight
Our guest, Mental Health Social Worker, Cognitive Psychotherapist and co founder of mental health charity First Fortnight, JP Swaine, believes in the potential for art, music, film and literature to help us deal with some of the issues and traumas life puts in our path.
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Catherine Connolly
#IndependentThinking
We are delighted to round out the year with Independent TD for Galway West and many people’s Best Dáil Performer in 2018, Catherine Connolly – one of the sharpest minds in Leinster House.
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Fr. Peter McVerry
#Solidarity
Father Peter McVerry has dedicated his life to helping those impacted by homelessness and is able to speak with an authority higher than any Housing Minister or Rebuilding Ireland Spokesperson.
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Kathleen Lynch
#Solidarity
We are delighted to be joined by Professor Kathleen Lynch, one of the leading scholars and public intellectuals on issues of inequality, social justice, education and feminism.
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Housing Is A Human Right
A Compilation
In advance of this Saturday’s march we’ve put together a few clips of some of the wonderful people we’ve spoken to over the last few months.
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Michelle Byrne
& Bernard Joyce
In this special Podcast we talk to Michelle Byrne from USI and Bernard Joyce from the Irish Traveller Movement, who are part of over 90 groups in the Housing and Homeless Coalition.
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Síona Cahill
#StudentUnity
Our guest is President of the Union of Students in Ireland, Síona Cahill. We talk to her about the key issues facing students and young people. We discuss the housing crisis & the impact on students, the chronic under-funding of the third level sector.
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Orla O’Connor
#Feminism
Director of the National Women’s Council of Ireland and leading campaigner in Together for Yes and Repeal the 8th Orla O’Connor joins us to talk about the challenges and hopes of women in Ireland today.
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Niamh Randall
Michael Taft
Budget 2019 is in the books and the analysis has ranged from middling to a bit meh. We have National Spokesperson and Head of Policy with the Simon Community Niamh Randall and Economist and Researcher with SIPTU Michael Taft to discuss the real meat of the budget.
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Pearse Doherty
#FiscalSpace
It’s Budget Season and while the “fiscal space” the government have to operate in will be the best in a decade, we need to ask if they are making the right decisions with our money? Our guest is Sinn Fein TD for Donegal and Party Spokesperson for Finance, Pearse Doherty.
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Paul Sweeney
#StoppingNeoliberalism
We talk to Paul Sweeney, an economist who has been involved in analysing the Irish economy for over 40 years. We start by asking who really runs Ireland, are we heading towards another financial crash and what should the government do in the coming Budget?
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Patricia King
#RaiseTheRoof
We speak with Patricia King, General Secretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions who outlines The ICTU’s concerns with the housing crisis and their call for unions and civil society to take part in the upcoming Raise the Roof rally on the housing crisis set for October 3rd.
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Ed Honohan
#Vultures
We talk to the Master of the High Court, Ed Honohan, about the increasing role of vulture funds in buying up distressed mortgages and the proposal of the Affordable Housing and Fair Mortgages Bill to halt the vultures.
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John McGuinness
#StraightTalk
There is a perception that more and more we are represented by TD’s and Ministers who are more the product of media training than political nous. Our guest, Fianna Fail TD for Carlow/Kilkenny, John McGuinness certainly can’t be seen in that same bracket.
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Take Back The City
#HomesForAll
The actions of housing activists occupying vacant buildings in Dublin have once more captured the public imagination and highlighted the ever worsening housing crisis.
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Lynn Ruane
#SocialClass
The impact of class on reducing the opportunities of children growing up in disadvantaged areas is given little air time in Irish media and politics. We are talking with Lynn Ruane, a Senator and former President of Trinity College Student’s Union, who is from Tallaght and worked in addiction and community work.
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Dr John Bisset
Rita Fagan
This podcast discusses an innovative solution to the housing crisis –cost rental housing – that is being proposed by the Our Community – A Better Way housing campaign and which Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy launched in Inchicore this week.
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Michael Taft
#LivingWage
The Living Wage is an idea which is gaining increased support as a way to solve rising inequality and in-work poverty, low pay and precarious (short term and insecure) employment. Joining us in Reboot Republic to discuss this is Michael Taft, a Research Officer with the trade union, SIPTU and member of the Living Wage technical group.
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Grace Dyas
#OurValues
So much of our political discourse is dominated by statistics and financial jargon. Well our guest, writer, producer, a founder of Theatre Club and activist, Grace Dyas thinks we need a national conversation on more than numbers, we need to talk about our values.
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Tom McDonnell
#TheEconomyStupid
Economics is often called the dismal science. But our guest, Senior Economist at the Nevin Economic Research Institute, Tom McDonnell, is anything but. He gives us a lesson in economics for dummies (Groves) and outlines a way of building an economy that is both sustainable and inclusive.
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Dr Sara Burke
#Slaintecare
Whether it’s the Trolley Count or the inhumane number of people on hospital waiting lists, our Health Service is not all that it could be. Our guest, Health Policy Analyst, Dr Sara Burke, was one of the architects of a road map to a Universal Healthcare System – Sláintecare.
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Mike Allen
#FocusIreland
The Minister for Housing, Eoghan Murphy, in an ill judged interview on RTE Drivetime, attacked Focus Ireland for ‘misinterpreting’ his own report. The truth is they hadn’t, not at all. We were delighted to sit down with Director of Advocacy for Focus Ireland, Mike Allen to discuss the housing crisis.
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Hugh Brennan
#BuildingCommunities
The State are currently paying €365,000 to Private Developers for “Social Housing”. Our guest, Hugh Brennan, Co-Founder & CEO at O Cualann Cohousing Alliance CLG, can and has built top quality homes for half this price.
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Leilani Farha
#MakeTheShift
It’s not everyday the UN’s Special Rapporteur on Housing, Leilani Farha, is in Dublin. So naturally we were delighted to sit down and get her views on the Irish Housing and Homelessness Crisis and its potential solutions.
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Mick Byrne
#SocialHousingThatWorks
In Reboot Republic we are going to deal with the issues that the government don’t deal with. First up is Dr Mick Byrne of the School of Social Policy, UCD.
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The Archive
#MuchMore
Enjoying our podcasts and want to hear more? Just visit our Archive Page where you’ll find links to many more hours of top quality content.