Democracy and the EU

by Deirdre de Burca (deburcad@gofree.indigo.ie), Green Party Councillor for County Wicklow.

This paper was presented at the Desmond Greaves Summer School on Sunday 29th August, 2004. Deirdre de Burca argues that “the creation of the European Union has generally been subject to the process of “collusive delegation” and….the democratic deficit experienced by its citizens has been largely designed into its architecture rather than being an unfortunate by-product of agreements reached by its well-meaning political leaders and officials.”

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Feasta Money Group to fight change in Building Society law

Ireland has only two mutual building societies left – the EBS and the Irish Nationwide – and for at least ten years, Michael Fingleton of the Nationwide has made it clear that he intends that it should follow the example of the Irish Permanent and the First National and shed its mutual status. The Feasta Money Group intends to try to prevent it doing so. Here’s why.…

To Catch the Wind: The Potential for Community Ownership of Wind Farms in Ireland

To Catch The Wind

Download the entire document as one PDF file (5 MB)

A publication of the Renewable Energy Partnership, June 2004
Ireland has one of the most promising, untapped energy resources to be found anywhere in Europe – wind energy. It is one of the few sectors in which the West of Ireland in particular has a major competitive advantage over almost every other region in Europe.

It was for this reason that, early in 2002, the Renewable Energy Partnership (REP), which consists of Brí Nua Community Wind Energy Group, Mayo Community Wind Energy Group and the Western Development Commission (WDC), began …

Response to ‘Sustainable Rural Housing; Consultation Draft of Guidelines for Planning Authorities’

May 2004

This submission critiques the current Irish Rural Housing Guidelines, arguing that their formation lacked proper participation and consultation; they are based on insufficient information; they over-emphasise dispersed housing to the detriment of other types of housing, in particular that of small settlements and villages; they fail to acknowledge important environmental and social factors such as peak oil and the fact that dispersed housing is more likely to be built and inhabited by the relatively well-off; and they introduce a discriminatory planning system based on the provenance and circumstances of the applicant. It suggests that a Rural Housing Commission …

Debt, Climate and Global Justice: April 2004 conference

A conference jointly organised by Feasta and the Debt and Development Coalition Ireland on the links between climate change, the debt crisis and global inequity

Held in association with the New Economics Foundation, Jubilee Research, the Global Commons Institute, Friends of the Irish Environment and GRIAN, the Irish arm of the Climate Action Network. With contributions via a live video link from a simultaneous conference on the same topics in South Africa.…