Pakistanis angry over detentions in Times Sq. case Monday, May 24, 2010
ISLAMABAD – Relatives of three men detained by Pakistan for alleged links to the suspect in the attempted Times Square bombing say the men are innocent.
They
AFP - Thursday, August 6TAIPEI (AFP) - - Taiwan's Beijing-friendly government on Wednesday denied boycotting an Australian film festival amid a row over the e
BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel suffered a double blow on Thursday as a senior party ally in east German
Minister seeks closure of anti-Berlusconi websites Wednesday, December 16, 2009
ROME (AFP) - – The Italian government moved Tuesday to close down Internet sites encouraging further violence against Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who
By ELAINE KURTENBACH,AP Business Writer AP - Wednesday, March 18SHANGHAI - Asia's stock market rally seemed to be running out of steam Wednesday, despite an
My Profile
Top News
Reuters top ten news stories delivered to your inbox each day.
Subscribe
You are here:
Home
>
News
>
International
>
Article
Home
Business & Finance
News
U.S.
Politics
International
Technology
Entertainment
Sports
Lifestyle
Oddly Enough
Environment
Health
Science
Special Coverage
Video
Pictures
Your View
The Great Debate
Blogs
Weather
Reader Feedback
Do More With Reuters
RSS
Widgets
Mobile
Podcasts
Newsletters
Your View
Make Reuters My Homepage
Partner Services
CareerBuilder
Affiliate Network
Professional Products
Support (Customer Zone)
Reuters Media
Financial Products
About Thomson Reuters
Tens of thousands march against cutbacks in Ireland
Sat Feb 21, 2009 12:20pm EST
Email | Print |
Share
| Reprints | Single Page
[-]
Text
[+]
By Carmel Crimmins
DUBLIN (Reuters) - Nearly 100,000 people marched through Dublin on Saturday to protest at government cutbacks in the face of a deepening recession and bailouts for the banks.
Ireland's Prime Minister Brian Cowen is under pressure from Brussels and ratings agencies to squeeze a ballooning budget deficit, but plans to introduce a pension levy on public sector workers and freeze their pay has hammered his approval ratings and those of his party to record lows.
In a statement ahead of the march, the government said the measures were necessary to show international investors that Ireland was tackling its finances.
Even with spending cuts and tax hikes, the budget shortfall is forecast to hit 9.5 percent of gross domestic product this year, the worst breach of EU budget limits in the euro zone.
"Failure to show that credible start means that we impact directly and severely on our international reputation among investors and, in particular, on our capacity to raise funds and on the direct cost of servicing the borrowing which we are able to undertake," the government said.
But in Dublin, a crowd estimated by police to be between 85,000 and 100,000 people, accused the government of leaving teachers, nurses, civil servants and construction workers with the bill for Ireland's economic woes and letting banks and property developers off the hook.
"My family will be down 500 euros ($628.80) a month because my husband and I both work in the public sector," said Sheila O'Shea, a primary school teacher who was also protesting at education cuts that have hit classes for special needs children.
"There is absolute burning vitriol that we feel at the savage way they have hit the most vulnerable in society."
Posters reflected the sentiment with slogans such as "You made the most. Pay the most!" and "We won't pay for the greed of the super rich."
UNPRINTABLE
Pamela, a council worker, who gave only her first name, laughed when asked her opinion of the government.
"It's unprintable," she said. "The government measures are very annoying, particularly when you see how the banks are being protected."
The protest, organized by Ireland's main trade union group, comes ahead of strikes later this month and next by public sector clerical workers and bus drivers and marks a clear break in peaceful industrial relations, which had been an important contributor to the success of the "Celtic Tiger" economy.
A protracted and sharp drop in property prices, starting in March 2007, marked the beginning of Ireland's economic decline which accelerated rapidly in late 2008 and early 2009 as job losses and falling output spread beyond the construction sector.
Public anger at the government's handling of the economy has been exacerbated by taxpayer exposure to billions of euros in potential bad debts following the government's nationalization of Anglo Irish Bank, the country's No. 3 lender. Continued...
View article on single page
Share:
Del.icio.us
Digg
Mixx
My Web
Facebook
LinkedIn
Next Article:
Rwandan troops start preparations to leave Congo
Digital music services flunk college test
Slideshow
Slideshow: Festivities at the Vienna Ball
No sign of recession at pre-Oscar gift suites
More International News
Economic woes trump rights as Clinton visits China
| Video
North Korea accuses U.S. of war-mongering
Pakistani Taliban say Swat ceasefire to be reviewed
U.S. forces kill 13 Afghan civilians in air strike
Rwandan troops start preparations to leave Congo
More International News...
Editor's Choice
Slideshow
A selection of our best photos from the past 24 hours. Slideshow
Most Popular on Reuters
Articles
Video
Soros sees no bottom for world financial "collapse" | Video
Obama tells Treasury to begin cutting taxes
Sri Lanka rebels say suicide air raids successful
BofA's investment bank "fun" may be done for good | Video
Stanford surrenders passport, Antigua units seized | Video
Economic woes trump rights as Clinton visits China | Video
Paterson admits role in Kennedy withdrawal flap: report
UPDATE 6-Citi, B of A shares fall on nationalization fears
Google shareholders lose that loving feeling
Man forgets thousands of dollars in toilet
Most Popular Articles RSS Feed
Video
Roubini says crisis end distant
Inside Stanford's world
How bank nationalization would work
Clinton's tour
Bernanke testifies
Man fed manure in police initiation
Clinton China tour kicks off
Business Update: A rough week
Ups and downs in Obama's 1st month
Red wine 'could cause cancer'
Most Popular Videos RSS Feed
the great debate
Obama's foreign policy challenges
President Barack Obama’s toughest foreign-policy challenge will be in managing the sheer number of complex problems he’s inherited and their refusal to arrive in orderly fashion. Commentary
Reuters Deals
The global destination for corporate leaders, deal-makers and innovators
Knowledge to Act
Reuters.com:
Help and Contact Us |
Advertise With Us |
Mobile |
Newsletters |
RSS |
Interactive TV |
Labs |
Reuters in Second Life |
Archive |
Site Index |
Video Index
Thomson Reuters Corporate:
Copyright |
Disclaimer |
Privacy |
Professional Products |
Professional Products Support |
About Thomson Reuters |
Careers
International Editions:
Africa |
Arabic |
Argentina |
Brazil |
Canada |
China |
France |
Germany |
India |
Italy |
Japan |
Latin America |
Mexico |
Russia |
Spain |
United Kingdom |
United States
Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.
NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.