14 minute read
Paul Hopkins
The Fact OfThe Matter
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PAUL HOPKINS Christmas not about the presents, but the presence
e build-up to Christmas, despite its joy and celebration, can be an expensive time as banking gures annually show. Despite it leaving large holes in many pockets, we yearly throw caution to the wind with the quip, Sure feck it, it’s Christmas! And nowhere more so than the fact that this Christmas is the rst we get to celebrate in a normal fashion following two Christmases in lockdown. e norm has been one in eight people saying Christmas will leave them in debt as they typically pay their way through loans and credit cards, with one in four confessing that their festive spending causes endless worry.
Consumers are expected to spend an average of €1,200 on Christmas this year, a 20 per cent increase on 2021, says the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC). is year, too, will be a new and di erent worry for so many, with in ation and surging energy costs.
A staggering almost 900,000 people have been forced to go without basic necessities this year, of whom 250,000 are children, according to gures from the Central Statistics O ce (CSO). One in six of us has experienced “enforced deprivation”, with 876,125 people a ected — an increase of 184,538 on 2021.
A damning indictment of our State e Income and Living Conditions Deprivation Rate 2022 survey reveals 249,696 children in Ireland are experiencing deprivation — an increase of almost 45,000 since 2021
Social Justice Ireland’s research and policy analyst Susanne Rogers says the gures show that so many people still struggle to achieve a basic standard of living. And then there’s the 11,300 plus and rising homeless.
St Vincent de Paul’s Rose McGowan says this is the “worst year” she has witnessed for hard-hit families going without food and heat to cut down on costs. e charity is receiving up to 1,200 requests for help every day and this gure will continue to increase in the run-up to Christmas.
“It’s at that stage where we nd people start to panic. Even though it’s Christmas, everyday stu still goes on. Food, energy and rent all still has to be paid for and now we have the stress of Christmas on top of that,” she says.
“People are cutting back on food and certainly parents are going without food in order to make sure their children are fed,” she says. “It’s a ecting their health and mental health. Every call is either for food or energy and, in a lot of cases, for rent.”
And this is not just about social welfare recipients. People on low income, people on disability, single parents, it’s everybody. ere’s no spare cash for any crisis in people’s lives. e Credit Union says rampant in ation will knock as much as €3,000 from the average household’s spending power this year, making for a leaner Christmas. eir Consumer Sentiment Index, published the other day, shows that 61% of people will have less money to splash out this festive season, with just 5% reckoning they will have more. is marks a substantial deterioration compared with last year’s results, according to economist Austin Hughes, and is even worse than in 2020, when Covid was a ecting the income and outlays of many households.
As Rose McGowan puts it: “Parents will always go without to make sure their children are fed. However, children shouldn’t have to bear that.”
When I was boy, money for most families in Ireland was tight. My parents fervently looked after the pennies, in the hope-to-God the pounds would look after themselves. I know this from personal experience.
In recent years, for many the family income is not what it used to be, and many parents worry about not having enough money for Christmas. Down the decades, an increasingly consumerist society has had us all believe that the more presents under the tree, the happier the festivities will be, and the bigger they are makes it that much more signi cant. is is utter nonsense.
Christmas should not be about how much money gets spent on presents, but about cherishing the few days spent with family and friends. It should not be about the number of gifts given or received but rather the meaning behind the gift itself. We remember this time of the year for the gathering around the table, playing games, the wide-eyed joy of a child on Christmas morning after Santa has visited.
Let’s be kind to ourselves and remember: Christmas is not about the presents — it’s about the presence... of you and your loved ones.
Sing out, rock out, this christmas! with Music Generation Kilkenny with Music Generation Kilkenny
e festive season is in full swing at Music Generation Kilkenny HQ as young musicians prepare for two upcoming Christmas performances in Kilkenny. SING OUT and JINGLE BELL ROCKOUT will showcase the musical talent of children and young people participating both in primary schools and after-school music hubs established by Music Generation Kilkenny. First up is ‘SING OUT’ - a concert in St. Canice’s Cathedral for the whole family to enjoy. e SING OUT concert has already sold out and with over 200 children from local primary schools and several students from Music Generation Kilkenny’s after school programme all coming together in St. Canice’s Cathedral, this promises to be a highlight of the year on the Music Generation Kilkenny calendar. Sing Out will feature Christmas choral music from St John of God Primary School, Gaelscoil Osraí and CBS Primary School plus a string ensemble performance from Kilkenny School Project and vocal performances from Creative Music Space voices. Music Generation Kilkenny is delighted to partner with St. Canice’s Cathedral for this wonderful initiative. Speaking about the upcoming concert Sinéad Blanch eld, development of cer with Music Generation Kilkenny said, “Partnership is the cornerstone of Music Generation Kilkenny. Partnership has opened the door to untold musical possibilities for children and young people in the city and county and it is still yet early days for the programme in Kilkenny. I am thrilled to have the support of the people of Kilkenny behind our children and young people with a sold-out concert in the magni cent St. Canice’s Cathedral. is promises to be a highlight of the year in the Music Generation Kilkenny calendar for sure”.
‘Jingle Bell Rockout’ - Join in the magic of Christmas, raise your voice in song and support Kilkenny’s rising young stars performing Christmas Classics! A free open air concert taking place on ursday 22nd December at 3pm, young musicians from the Creative Music Space will showcase their singing, guitar, and drumming skills with some familiar Christmas tunes at the Yulefest Bandstand on the parade. e Creative Music Space is an after-school music hub in Kilkenny city run in partnership with Foróige for young people who want to learn an instrument or explore their singing skills in a group setting, with experienced musician educators. Children and young people meet weekly from September to June for small group lessons in Ukulele, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, drums and singing. Instruments can be rented for a small fee. ere are limited spaces available, and a new intake will open in January 2023.
More information on our programmes is available by emailing musicgenerationkilkenny@kcetb.ie, by Facebook message: musicgenerationkilkenny, or by phone: 087 1765493.
Music Generation Kilkenny is part of Ireland’s national music education programme, initiated by Music Network and co-funded by U2, e Ireland Funds, the Department of Education and Skills and Local Music Education Partnerships. e programme seeks to transform the lives of children and young people ages 0-18 by creating access to high quality, a ordable music tuition in their localities. Locally, the programme is led by Kilkenny and Carlow Education and Training Board in partnership with Kilkenny County Council.
Cheque mate? Yes please, say 4.5 million of us
New gures from Banking and Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI) show the number of cheques being written has fallen to its lowest level since the banking representative group started recording consumer payment transactions.
But there were still 4.5 million cheques written in the July to September period, according to the gures.
In the last year, 19 million cheques were written despite advances in electronic banking.
It is one of the most expensive ways to pay for something as the Exchequer charges 50c in stamp duty for every cheque written.
Such reliance on cheques means the likelihood of Ireland becoming a cashless society are some way o .
Banks are desperate to move people away from using cheques, and encourage them to use electronic banking.
It costs 39c to lodge a cheque into an AIB account. ere is an additional cost of paying a bill using a cheque if it is posted, as a standard stamp is now costing €1.25. e use of cheques means there is still a need for bank branches, experts said. Ireland has one of the higher usage rates for cheques in the eurozone.
BPFI gures show that cheque volumes dropped to their lowest quarterly level since the data series began in 2008.
Cheque payments fell by 7.3pc year on year, but there were still 4.5 million cheque payments in the third quarter of this year. e banking lobby group gures show that in the year to September there were 19.2 million cheques written.
Despite the high use of cheques, people continue to use their contactless cards in greater numbers to tap and pay. Nearly €4.8bn worth of contactless payments were made in the three months to September. e value of contactless payments rose by 26pc year on year to almost €4.8bn. is works out at €52m a day being spent by people tapping and paying on their contactless cards.
€20m. for next phase of plan to make our schools safer
On the ball: Mikey Butler, Sinead Brennan and Aidan Fogarty PHOTO: Dylan Vaughan
ree Kilkenny schools and three in Carlow Carlow are among over 108 nation-wide to bene t from investment to make them safer for all, Fine Gael TD John Paul Phelan has con rmed.
Minister of State at the Department of Transport, Hildegarde Naughton TD, alongside the National Transport Authority, has announced that 108 schools will be included in the Safe Routes to School Programme.
In Kilkenny, the three schools in Graiguenamanagh bene t. ese include Duiske College, the boy’s national school and Scoil Mhuire Gan Smal.
In Carlow, the schools include Holy Family Boys National School Askea Tullow Road and the girls national school at the same address. St Leo’s College on the Dublin Road also receives investment e Safe Routes to School Programme aims to create safer walking and cycling routes within communities, alleviate congestion at the school gates and increase the number of students who walk or cycle to school by providing improvements to walking and cycling facilities. e launch of the second round of the programme will see more than 37,000 students across Ireland bene t from safer infrastructure and encourage them to cycle, walk and wheel to school.
Minister Naughton said: “I am delighted to be able to bring some festive cheer to schools nationwide by con rming that thousands of more children nationwide will soon bene t from safer infrastructure which will allow them to walk, cycle and scoot to school every day. “In recent months I have had the privilege of visiting schools across the country and have seen rst-hand the positive impact that Safe Routes to School projects are having on our children’s daily lives. During these visits the message was loud and clear that there is a huge appetite for the continued rollout of the Safe Routes to School Programme in our villages, towns, and cities across the country. "My ambition is that every child in Ireland will have the option to make their daily commute to the classroom by foot, bicycle or scooter in a way that they are safe and protected.” e CEO of the National Transport Authority, Anne Graham, said: “ e National Transport Authority is responsible for ensuring the successful delivery of Safe Routes to School projects right across the country. Our Active Travel team is already working closely with local authorities on the rollout of the Round 1 schemes, and it has been encouraging to see more young people cycling, walking/ scooting to school as a result."
A total of €20m has been allocated for projects included in Round 2 with the funds coming from each local authority’s annual allocation for Active Travel works.
Newpark bringing the good game, and aid, to Uganda
e 4-star Newpark Hotel in Kilkenny has launched a fundraising campaign with All-Star County players Mikey Butler and Aidan Fogarty to help a edgling GAA club in a hugely underprivileged area of Uganda that put a call out for GAA equipment. e Newpark Kilkenny to Kampala fundraiser aims to raise at least €20,000 to ensure that Uganda GAA can continue to provide equipment and dinner for each child after training, with proceeds also going towards securing nal payment for three acres of land for a GAA training pitch and clubhouse on the outskirts of Kampala.
Upon completion, this pitch will hold two records before a ball is kicked; it will be the rst full-size GAA pitch on the African content and the highest altitude GAA pitch in the world, constructed on the banks of Lake Victoria. e club’s long-term goal is to incorporate the great community spirit that runs through every GAA club, thereby establishing a sustainable Ugandan GAA Club that will nurture a love of Gaelic games and provide a safe and healthy environment for thousands of Ugandan children long into the future.
A signi cant part of the clubhouse will be a kitchen where meals will be cooked for every training session, thereby taking pressure from parents who struggle to meet school fees and putting food on the table by allowing their children time to be a child and have fun playing sports.
In addition, Newpark Hotel is sponsoring retired Kilkenny GAA All-Star and Dancing with the Stars legend Aidan Fogarty and Assistant Manager at Newpark Hotel’s Escape Health Club Sinead Brennan (an avid Gaelic Football player and Irish dancer) to go to Uganda for a training blitz with the kids ahead of St Patrick’s Day and to coincide with the All-Uganda GAA Championships in March 2023.
Promoting gender parity in Uganda’s GAA club is a cornerstone of the club, and having Sinead lead several training sessions, will instil con dence in the little girls that are still too shy to train with the boys.
Aidan Fogarty said: “We’re looking forward to working with this new Ugandan GAA Club to show the young players new skills, how to use the equipment accurately, and also to give them a con dence boost.”
Mikey Butler said: “ is is a fantastic initiative. I would encourage as many people as possible to make a donation towards the new pitch, clubhouse and kitchen.” e Newpark team have set a goal of raising €20,000 through ra es, fundraisers and sponsorship.
before a ball is kicked; it will to meet school fees and training sessions, will instil
To donate see www.newparkhotelkilkenny.com.
Renewal of the arts sector in 2022 welcomed
Improving water quality Celebrating its 70th year supporting the arts in Ireland, the Arts Council has New soil sensor technology welcomed the renewal of developed at Tyndall Insti- the arts sector in 2022 and tute, UCC could help reduce paid tribute to the creativity the use of chemical fertilis- and resourcefulness of the ers on farms in the short and sector over the di cult panmedium terms and improve demic years. water quality in Ireland’s rivers In a year marked by sigand estuaries. ni cant recovery in the arts
Buried in the ground at a as the country emerged depth of 20cm, the tiny sensors from the pandemic, the
– which measure around half the diameter of a human hair and are in packaging about 1cm across – communicate data about nitrates in soil wirelessly and in real time.
Tiny though the sensors are, initial results indicate that, per hectare of land, only a small number will be required. Arts Council continued to support artists and helped rejuvenate audience interest through signi cant partnerships and investment in local authority arts o ces, arts centres, and festivals over the last 12 months. e council’s concerted programme of support in 2022 included the launch of numerous initiatives, campaigns and policies that have helped re-ignite the arts sector, and encourage audiences to embrace the joy of live events once again. is campaign has also helped artistic organisations and arts workers that are the lifeblood of the sector, to harness their funding over the year to showcase the very best of the arts in Ireland.
Director of the Arts Council Maureen Kennelly said: ‘In the last 12 months, the council’s activity has enabled artists, arts workers and communities re-explore the essence of the arts in Ireland and the sheer joy of live performance after the extremely challenging pandemic period. I very much look forward to 2023 and further renewal."
