Friday 4 February 2011

Tynan alams ESB as "callous and uncaring" on disconnections


Cork North Central Workers’ Party candidate, Cllr. Ted Tynan has said that his canvassing team is coming across a significant number of family homes which have been disconnected by the ESB recently and he has described the electricity supplier’s actions as “callous and uncaring commerciality”.

Cllr. Tynan was speaking this morning (Sunday) after a meeting of Workers’ Party canvassers in Gurranabraher.  He said that several of his team had reported coming across families whose electricity supply had been cut off because of problems paying off large bills that had been accumulated during the recent and ongoing cold weather.

“People do not risk having their electricity supply disconnected unless they are in dire trouble with their family finances”, said Cllr. Tynan.  “As the ESB is being prepared by the government for eventual privatisation, the company is becoming more and more uncaring and purely commercial decisions are being taken with little consideration for the consequences these will have on families who will go without heat, light and cooking as a result”, he said.

Cllr. Tynan said that the ESB’s decision to spend €8 million this year on changing its name to ‘Electric Ireland” should be scrapped and the money allocated instead to a hardship fund for customers who are genuinely in trouble with their accounts.

Candidates should unite behind Mercy & Orthopaedic Hospitals


Cork North Central Workers’ Party candidate, Councillor Ted Tynan, has said that election candidates in the constituency should fight for the retention and development of the existing Mercy & Orthopaedic Hospitals instead of rowing over a hospital that may never be built.

Cllr. Tynan said that the spat between Labour and Fine Gael candidates over the location of a possible new hospital was academic as there are two hospitals of long standing in the city which are under threat.  He said that candidates were debating the merits of two sites which may never be developed instead of fighting to keep the Mercy & Orthopaedic hospitals fully open.

“The people of Cork, and of Cork North Central in particular, want to keep the hospital services that they have and which have served them well over many, many years.    They want to see those hospitals being modernised and improved and are not interested in a political circus over what might happen when the current recession is over, which is likely to be a very long time.  There is plenty of room to build on the Orthopaedic site but it will be lost to developers if people don’t stand together now and fight for it”, said Cllr. Tynan.

Tuesday 1 February 2011

Pharmacies profiteering on coeliac sufferers says Tynan

Cork North Central Workers’ Party candidate, Councillor Ted Tynan, has accused chemists of blatant profiteering on the sale of special food products for coeliacs and others.

Cllr. Tynan was responding to comments from the Irish Pharmacists Union which had said it had no control over its members charging high prices for gluten-free foods sold in pharmacies around the country.
The Workers’ Party candidate has said that with some chemists charging up to €7.50 for a packet of gluten-free pasta and similarly high prices for gluten-free bread products it was time for the government to put a price control on such products.

“Gluten Free foods are not a luxury for coeliacs.  If they eat bread and other foods that contain gluten then they become ill. It is items such as this and others which are essential for  those who are affected that profiteering takes place.   Given the response of the Irish Pharmacists Union and individual pharmacists there is a strong case for the introduction of a maximum price order for such products”, said Cllr. Tynan.