Blog Archive
World Alzheimer's day - 13 years in government and still no national strategy on dementia
Posted on September 20, 2010 by Bronwen Maher
The government has more interest in bailing out failed banks than taking a planned and co-ordinated approach to meeting the current and future needs of people with Alzheimer’s and related dementia, Nessa Childers MEP said today.
The Leinster MEP, who is currently working on a European Parliament Report with the aim of better co-ordinating services and research into Alzheimers and dementia across the EU said: “Tomorrow (21st September), another World Alzheimer’s Day will pass. This marks yet another year with no concrete plan and no firm future strategy to target the limited resources we have available at the 44,000 people and 50,000 carers in Ireland who are impacted by Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia.
“The Minister for Health, Mary Harney informed me last August that the government will commence the preparation of a policy on dementia in 2011. Nothing less than a fully resourced national strategy will suffice.
“In light of our changing demographics we know that the numbers of people worldwide living with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia is predicted to double every twenty years. The time for a simple policy response has long passed.
“A detailed, comprehensive and multi-agency national strategy is demanded to meet the needs of the current generation of those living with the disease, their carers and their families and to enable the State to plan properly for the future delivery of services and supports.
“To guarantee quality of life for Alzheimer's patients and to drastically diminish the number of patients must be the major objective of decision-makers. Better cooperation at European level too, must be one of our key objectives also. At present 85% of European research takes place without EU coordination leading to fragmented and overlapping results. In these pressing economic times a convincing case exists for an EU wide approach to research into Alzheimer’s and dementia.”
Patients with rare cancers will benefit from cross border healthcare directive
Posted on September 15, 2010 by Bronwen Maher
“Access to cross border healthcare will be considerably easier and more patient-friendly if a proposed new EU Cross Border Healthcare Directive is adopted,” Labour MEP Nessa Childers told a seminar in Brussels today.
Hosting the Second Forum Against Cancer in Europe (FACE) which was addressed by the EU Health Commissioner John Dalli, the Leinster Labour MEP said: “Patients with diseases such as rare cancers, and residents of Border Counties from Louth to Donegal will see considerable benefits from the proposed EU Cross Border Healthcare Directive.”
Childers to hold EU seminar on cancer patients and proposed cross-border healthcare directive
Posted on September 13, 2010 by Bronwen Maher
Event: Cross-Border Healthcare – A Necessity for Cancer Patients
Date & Time: Wednesday, 15 September, 12.15 to 3.30pm
Venue: European Parliament, Paul-Henri Spaak Building, Room P1A002
On Wednesday, EU Health & Consumer Affairs Commissioner John Dalli will address a seminar hosted by Labour MEP Nessa Childers where the needs of European cancer patients will be discussed in the context of the EU’s proposed Cross-Border Health Directive.
The second ‘Forum Against Cancer in Europe’ (FACE) which will take place in the European Parliament in Brussels will hear from patients and patients’ groups about the practical difficulties faced by cancer patients in accessing treatment and care on a cross-border basis.
EU globalisation fund must be more responsive to needs of redundant workers
Posted on September 07, 2010 by Bronwen Maher
Speaking in Strasbourg today Nessa Childers said: “The European Globalisation Fund (EGF) should be better co-ordinated and much more responsive in meeting the needs of workers who have lost their jobs as a result of large scale redundancies.
“The Report on the financing and functioning of the EGF voted on in the European Parliament today is timely and necessary. The Report seeks to have the Fund placed on a permanent footing in the future. This is to be welcomed, but lessons must also be learned as to how the mobilisation of the Fund can better meet the needs of redundant workers.
“The experiences of workers in SR Technics, Dell and Waterford Crystal and those of my colleague MEPs Alan Kelly and Proinsias de Rossa and myself, in terms of assisting in these cases, emphasises how the potential of this Fund to give redundant workers a fresh start and new opportunities to re-engage with the labour market, has been frustrated and obstructed by factors such as poor government planning, a lack of co-ordination and poor consultation with workers and their representatives at application stage.
“The Report presented to the European Parliament seeks to put the Fund on a permanent footing and I would urge the Commission, working with MEPs, to improve and streamline the way in which the Fund is mobilised.
“In future, application processes should be speeded up and more pro-active engagement with those set to lose their jobs should be carried out before any application is made.
“We should also ensure lessons are learned about how to best implement the Fund in the future following the excessive delays experienced by SR Technics workers in terms of their application and the frustrations felt by the staff at Waterford Crystal at the restrictive nature of the Fund.
“The application for SR Technics is still with the European Commission and a decision is expected to be made shortly.”
Childers disappointed at Rosslare-Waterford rail line decision
Posted on September 03, 2010 by Bronwen Maher
Nessa Childers MEP, who represents the Wexford area in the European Parliament expressed her disappointment at the decision by the National Transport Authority to support Irish Rail’s bid to suspend the Rosslare-Waterford rail link.
Ms. Childers, who has worked with the Mayor of Wexford Cllr. Joe Ryan to explore funding and upgrading avenues with the European Commission for the South-East line explained, “This decision raises serious question marks about how decisions are made in relation to public transport infrastructure in this country. Important lessons need to be learned in this regard in the future.
“For example, it is bizarre in the extreme that the NTA’s own remit permits it to consider passenger services only and disregard freight entirely when examining the viability of a rail line.
“When governments across the EU are encouraging a return to freight transport as we strive to meet the challenges of climate change, it is incomprehensible that the state body charged with examining our public transport requirements is precluded from giving full consideration to freight transport options when making key strategic decisions such as this.”
Survey on the proposed candidates from Ireland for the 'Eureopan Heritage Label'
Posted on September 03, 2010 by Bronwen Maher
Following on from my previous blog in which I spoke about the plans for a ‘European Heritage Label’ which will be made up of sights which are of cultural, social or political importance to Europe, I am interested to hear about locations you would like to see the Irish government propose for inclusion.
It could be the Monasterboice High Cross & Round Tower in Louth, the Hill of Tara in Meath, Wicklow Gaol or Kiulkenny Castle, for example. Perhaps you think Kildare's Castledermot round Tower, Crosses and Church, Aghaboe in Laois, Clonmacnoise in Offaly, Haroldstown Dolmen in Carlow or Duncannon Fort in Wexford should be included?
Let me know your views by taking a moment to fill in this quick online survey.
Mc Manus an inspiration to women in politics
Posted on September 03, 2010 by Bronwen Maher
Labour Party MEP for Ireland East, Nessa Childers has paid tribute to Deputy Liz McManus following the Wicklow TD’s announcement that she will not contest the next General Election.
Nessa Childers said: “Liz McManus has been an inspiration to me and to countless women in the Labour Party and in public life in general. She is an accomplished, compassionate and visionary politician who has served both Wicklow and the State with enormous distinction since she was first elected to public office in 1979.
“Liz is a special person to me and I owe a sincere debt of gratitude to her trademark skill, resourcefulness and organisational ability, all of which she deployed to great effect in her role as my Director of Elections in last year’s elections to the European Parliament.
“Liz has an impressive and lasting record of achievement in politics and her legacy in Wicklow, and nationally, is assured. I want to take this opportunity to wish her well in the future as a new chapter of her life opens.”
Which site in Ireland best showcases our contribution to European heritage?
Posted on September 02, 2010
Welcome back to the European Parliament- following our six week recess, my collegues and I resumed normal business in Brussels this week. This involved making preparations for the first of September's two sessions in Strasbourg next week, and meeting with our political groups and parliamentary committees.
While I spent some of the recess in Brussels tying up loose ends from my first year and preparing for the second, I was glad to find a few weeks in between to take a summer break. After twenty years working in mental health, I don't underestimate the benefits of recharging the batteries and unplugging from professional life for a little while.
Interview with CNN for a piece on cross border divorce within the EU
Posted on August 24, 2010 by Bronwen Maher
http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video/international/2010/08/23/wv.border.devorce.bk.a.cnn
Survey on environmental issues in Wicklow
Posted on July 13, 2010 by Bronwen Maher
Thank you for taking the time to complete my short survey on the environment in County Wicklow. I always welcome the views of the people I represent. Your opinions matter to me and they can help in forming policy at local, national and EU level.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SW687TK
If you wish to contact me, you can do so by calling my office at 01-2962263 or by e- emailing your thoughts to nessa.childers@votelabour.ie
Best Wishes,
Nessa Childers MEP
