Lyons calls for responsibility for a safe Halloween

I have called for all to act responsibly and safely this Halloween, to make sure it is an enjoyable event for all.

Public safety has to be the number one priority this year and I would ask everyone to behave responsibly and act safely. Parents should warn their children of the dangers of the misuse of fireworks and watch out for underage drinking.

I would also ask residents to be aware of the €1 million annual cost to Dublin City Council in dealing with Halloween related issues, such as litter and damage.

Last year, it cost the Council over €77,000 for bonfire clean-up operations alone. These costs are simply too high and use funds that could be better spent on events that benefit all residents of the community.

Halloween is an event for all to enjoy and I am proud to say that the Ballymun festival is the largest in the country, with Finglas providing an impressive festival to its residents also. All residents have a responsibility for the areas we live in and if we were a bit more cautious, we would have more money to spend on local events like these.

I urge all residents to be vigilant this year, and I wish them all a very enjoyable and safe Halloween.

Safer Ballymun Week November 7th-11th

Safer Ballymun Week makes a welcome return this year from Monday, November 7th, with a week full of activities for all the family.

Monday 7th November: Alcohol Awareness Challenge, 10am-12pm, Ballymun Civic Centre Atrium

Tuesday 8th November: Problem Solving Policing Workshop, 9.30am-1pm, Council Chambers, 1st Floor, Ballymun Civic Centre. Learn about a new approach to tackling anti-social behaviour problems in Ballymun. To register call 01 222 7870

Wednesday 9th November:
Garda Charity Cycle, 10am outside the Ballymun Garda Station
Community Action Day, 10am-1pm, Ballymun Plaza and Main Street. GAP, DCC Litter Wardens and local residents working together to combat littering.

Friday 11th November: Ballymun Garda Station Open Day, 10am-2pm. Units involved are the horse mounted, motorbike and mountain bike units.

Lyons welcomes works to remove pyrite from Ballymun homes

I have today welcomed the announcement of works to remove pyrite from approximately 124 almost complete homes in Ballymun, as a major step towards addressing housing issues in the area.

These homes, known as Slillogue 4, have not been able to be completed since pyrite was discovered in them three years ago. The presence of pyrite has delayed the de-tenanting of the housing blocks in Ballymun and the completion of the Ballymun Regeneration Programme.

The start of these works is very good news for those who have been waiting years for their new homes. I know many of these people and they have been frustrated by the delay in moving into their homes. The works will begin right away on November 1st and will take 18 to 24 months.

Since being elected I have met the Minister of State with responsibility for Housing & Planning, Willie Penrose, a number of times on housing issues including pyrite in Sillogue 4.

I am very pleased with the Minister's commitment to addressing the housing issues in Dublin North West and I will continue to work with him to address these issues over the coming years.


If you have any questions or queries on this matter, do not hesitate to contact me on 01 618 3280 or email john.lyons@oir.ie

Lyons welcomes new funding for local sports projects

I have today welcomed new funding for a number of community sports facilities, in Ballymun and Finglas, as part of the Sports Capital Grant Scheme.

The scheme, which is aimed at sports clubs, voluntary and community organisations, has allocated €138,861 to three community projects in Dublin North West, to significantly improve facilities for local residents.

I am delighted that this well-needed funding has been allocated to the Ballymun Leisure Centre, Poppintree Sports Centre and the Finglas Leisure Centre. This new funding has been made with a view to boost participation in local sports and it is welcome news for the people of Ballymun and Finglas.

This targeted measure for Local Authority sports facilities, is testament to the value placed in the importance of sports to communities. It is also an investment in the young people of Finglas and Ballymun who get great use out of these facilities.

These improvements, which include the construction of changing rooms and extra security fencing, are all vital to maintaining sports facilities in local communities.

This funding will help to maintain facilities that bring communities together and improve residents' quality of life. I look forward to when all of these improvements are complete.

Ballymun News Autumn 2011

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Labour Delivers on Mortgage Arrears

I have been speaking to many people over the last few months who are in mortgage arrears, and the many difficulties they are facing because of this.


I would like to inform you of the actions we have taken as a means to implement real change for those in arrears. The mortgage arrears crisis is a human crisis, that is keeping thousands of families in a state of fear and distress, and which is acting as a drag on our economy.  It is now time to confront it.

Up to now, there were only two solutions to mortgage arrears: forbearance or foreclosure.  Labour has strongly supported the forbearance policy, insisting that families should where at all possible stay in their homes. 

People cannot, however, stay in Limbo forever – we now need to see solutions put forward other than the simple choice between forbearance and foreclosure. The Keane Report on Mortgage Arrears contains proposals for a set of targeted and tailored measures that will provide new options for families that find themselves in distress.

The targeted interventions include:

• Reform to the bankruptcy law and the introduction of a non-judicial debt settlement process to strengthen the hand of the borrower 
• At least 100 mortgage advisors to help home-owners who will be making difficult decisions, and to level the playing field with the banks.  The banks will pay for this service. 
• Two new mortgage-to-rent schemes, one involving housing associations and one involving Local Authorities 
• A ‘split mortgage’ scheme that will divide a mortgage into what a person can reasonably be expected to buy, and the residual that will be ‘warehoused’.

I look forward to when these proposals are legislated, which should be done urgently, in order to offer practical, meaningful supports to those in mortgage arrears.

If you would like to get in touch with me about this, please do not hesitate to contact me on 01 618 3280 or email john.lyons@oir.ie

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Ireland

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Ireland is a fantastic initiative which provides youth mentoring intervention that has demonstrated a real impact at both local and national level.


An internationally recognised mentoring programme with proven impact for 10-18 year olds, this is cost effective early interventon for  vulnerable young people at a local level.


Since 2006 BBBS has supported over 5,700 young people in Ireland providing improved outcomes for those at risk of crime, drug abuse and early school leaving.


They have school based and community based  programmes, supporting the delivery of national goals for youth physical and mental health and well-being.


For more information, visit their website.

Lyons welcomes agreement on school book costs

I have today welcomed the agreement reached by Minister Quinn with school book publishers to reduce the costs of books bought in bulk by schools for rental schemes, as a very positive development for schools and parents alike.

Under the agreement reached between the Minister and the book publishers, schools who buy in bulk for rental schemes will receive discounts in the range of 12.5 -17.5 per cent. A code of practice on textbook revisions will also lower the cost of providing these books.

In the past few months I have received a number of calls from parents concerned about the costs of the back to school period. Though many supports exist for families, this agreement shows that there is scope for savings to be made on back to school essentials. Consideration should now be given on how to find savings on other school essentials, to help parents with these costs.

I commend the Minister for his initiative in finding savings on school books. This agreement will translate into real savings for schools and I hope to see these savings passed onto families.

Deadline to register to vote for the Presidential election

The deadline for late applications to register to vote in the Presidential Election is next Monday, Oct 10th.


To see if you're on the register go to www.checktheregister.ie or check with your local authority, post office, Garda station or public library.

If you're eligible to vote but not registered, you still have time to apply for entry in the supplement to the Register of Electors.To apply, complete the RFA2 form - which can be downloaded from www.checktheregister.ie or obtained from City and County Councils - and send it to your local authority.

The application must be received by the final deadline of Monday, October 10th.

IT skills shortages show need for revised IT training in schools- Lyons

Speaking after discussing the potential of the digital gaming & IT industries, at the Oireachtas Committee on Jobs, Social Protection and Education this week, I highlighted that to achieve the potential of these sectors, the provision of IT training and skills in our schools needs to be reviewed.

One sector of the economy which has seen strong growth in recent years is in the area of Information Technology. This growth is evident in the setting up and expansion of operations here, by major players such as Google, Facebook & Twitter.

As well as attracting these high profile names, Dublin has become a digital gaming hub and a service support centre for businesses dependent on internet technologies for their growth.

To facilitate the future growth of these sectors there must be a pool of technical and creative talent. In today's committee, skills shortages were identified, including an estimated 2,500 job vacancies for IT positions, as the greatest impediment to the development of these sectors.

I believe that as part of this we should now review the way IT skills are thought at primary and secondary level. In particular, we need to look at ways to give students a fluency in IT instead of the current approach of giving them a basic form of IT literacy.

We have a generation of students who technologically adept but our teaching of IT skills does not encourage students to explore their aptitude in these areas or promote careers in these growing industries.

We now need to look at innovative approaches such as using the proposed revised Junior Certificate curriculum to develop courses in IT that expose students to aspects of these industries such as programming and software development and I intend to make these suggestions to the Minister for Education and Skills.

Back to School Allowance - Claim Processing Update

As I mentioned previously, the Department of Social Protection received a record number of applications for the Back to School Clothing & Footwear Allowance.

The process identified 127,000 households (243,000) qualified under the scheme and were paid at the end of June. To date, a further 90,500 claims have been received, 72,000 which have been processed.

The Department is working to clear the remaining claims as quickly as possible and is currently working on claims received at the end of August.

If you have any questions or queries on this, please do not hesitate to contact me on 01 618 3280 or john.lyons@oir.ie

Lanesborough Park Leaflet Autumn 2011

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