Noteworthy

DOUBLE DIGITS: Which politicians and public servants get multiple pensions?

Open

Dublin

The public service sector has the highest pension coverage, with many on the upper rungs of the Oireachtas ladder getting two generous State pensions.

4 Backers raised €100 of €1730

BALANCING THE BOOKS: Are publishers profiting from new school book editions?

Open

Ireland

Despite the Government introducing free school books for primary school pupils from September 2023, they continue to be one of the most costly expenses for parents of secondary school students.

8 Backers raised €145 of €1730

PEOPLE POWER: Is Ireland playing its part in overseas election observation?

Open

Ireland

An average of almost 60 election observers were deployed from Ireland annually between 2013 and 2019, nominated from an overseas election roster. However, during the pandemic this work was suspended with Ireland not nominating observers for 18 months.

8 Backers raised €450 of €1940

COURSE OF INACTION: Is animal welfare protected in the coursing industry?

Open

Ireland

The hare is protected under national and EU law. Yet, 60,000 hares were legally captured between 2009 and 2021 for use in the coursing industry where they are chased by trained greyhounds.

66 Backers raised €1580 of €3850

THE UNPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM: Are we taking women’s sexual and reproductive health seriously in Ireland?

Open

Ireland

Endometriosis is a condition that affects 10% of Irish women and can cause significant pain and disability and yet the first endometriosis clinic in Ireland was only set up in 2021.

9 Backers raised €215 of €2970

CLASSROOM TO IMPROVE: Why are our children still educated in prefabs?

Open

Ireland

Most students who have come through the Irish primary and secondary school system over the past number of decades will almost certainly have experienced classes in prefabricated buildings.

3 Backers raised €50 of €2035

ECONOMY CLASS: Why do schools still rely on parents to pay for essentials?

Open

Ireland

Children in Ireland are entitled to free education yet schools continue to rely on parents to help pay for essentials such as heating, lighting, insurance and classroom equipment. This is due to the ongoing funding gap between running costs and State grants.

5 Backers raised €60 of €2770

SOIL INVADERS: Are invasive plants spreading out of control in Ireland?

Open

Ireland

Invasive alien species represent one of the main threats to biodiversity and related ecosystem services - especially on islands, according to the European Commission.

23 Backers raised €432 of €2940

VANISHING PAST: Is Ireland's archaeological heritage at risk of disappearing?

Open

Ireland

Protections for newly discovered national monuments have been radically reduced in the past decade and a half, since a 2004 amendment to the National Monuments Act. This change gave extra power to the State to remove them if they were in the way of certain projects such as motorways.

9 Backers raised €296 of €3420

COVID CONTRACTS: In crisis mode, does the tendering process go out the window?

Open

Ireland

Since the start of the pandemic, there have been issues with contracts and delivery of equipment such as ventilators across the world.

4 Backers raised €50 of €2890

BEATHA TEANGA: An bhfuil coinníollacha pleanála agus deonuithe á chur i bhfeidhm chun cinntiú go bhfásann ceantracha Gaeltachta?

Completed

Ireland

Tá líon na ndaoine a labhrann Gaeilge i gceantracha Gaeltachta ag titm, le níos lú ná aon cheathrú de mhuintir na háite ag labhairt Gaeilge go laethúil, dar leis an daonáireamh deirneach.

0 Backers raised €0 of €0

LIGHTS OUT: Why are we facing an Irish electricity crisis?

Funded

Ireland

As we face the climate crisis, a key strand of the State’s strategy to reduce our emissions is to electrify our energy, heat and transport systems using renewables such as wind and solar.

302 Backers raised €3125 of €2830

BUILDING BLOCKED: Where has Ireland fallen down on social housing policy?

Open

Ireland

Ireland has become a country where the idea of social and affordable housing has gone from a near certainty to a vague aspiration for many generations of would-be homeowners in the space of a few decades.

14 Backers raised €285 of €4035

WAITING ROOM: Why is it difficult for many to get access to a local GP?

Open

Ireland

General practitioner services have been under severe pressure since the pandemic resulting in longer appointment waiting times and leaving many struggling to find a GP in their area.

6 Backers raised €240 of €3190

CROSSING FOR CARE: Is Ireland using a cross border scheme to export its healthcare issues?

Open

Ireland

Irish patients continue to travel abroad for appointments with consultants and for much-needed surgeries in order to avoid long waiting lists here.

2 Backers raised €40 of €2715

REHAB WAIT: Why are people waiting up to two years for a drug detox bed?

Open

Dublin

A rising demand for drug treatment is recognised in the current Government drug strategy, yet thousands continue to wait for months, and sometimes years, to be admitted to a detox bed.

8 Backers raised €430 of €2230

BREAKING THE BANKS: Are Irish riverside habitats under threat from over-maintenance?

Completed

Ireland

Clearing of vegetation from waterways is a regular occurrence across the country as part of the mandated maintenance of over 11,500km of channels and 800km of embankments.

82 Backers raised €3130 of €3100

CITIZENS BE AWARE: Why did the State move away from the grassroots model of local community advice services?

Open

Ireland

Voluntary community information centres began popping up in Ireland from the late 1960s to offer citizens information on a broad range of public services, including housing, social welfare and financial advice.

6 Backers raised €105 of €2080

GENERATION REGENERATION: Will Limerick city ever get the chance it was promised to eliminate deprivation?

Open

Limerick

Cuts, revisions and delays have resulted in under delivery of housing and controversy over the regeneration of Limerick, over a decade after a plan was launched to transform the city.

13 Backers raised €385 of €3320

ACROSS THE BOARD: Are rural grants being distributed equally under the LEADER scheme?

Funded

Ireland

Since 2014, €220 million worth of rural projects have been funded through the LEADER programme which are administered by Local Action Groups (LAGs).

19 Backers raised €3124 of €3120

SYSTEM OVERLOAD: The public health system was creaking before the pandemic - has Covid-19 broken it?

Ireland

At the start of 2021, Ireland had a backlog of thousands of positive Covid-19 tests awaiting validation.

52 Backers raised €1840 of €1840

FOUL PLAY: Why does dog faeces continue to litter our streets and parks?

Open

Ireland

The problem of dog fouling in Dublin grew so bad that local authorities launched a hotline in 2013 to report cases in a bid to get people to clean up after their animals.

9 Backers raised €180 of €1510

IN A FIX - Why are people still being exposed to mould, sewage and pests in local authority housing?

Open

Ireland

Social housing in Ireland was found in violation of human rights in 2017 by the European Committee of Social Rights due to the presence of sewage, contaminated water, dampness and persistent mould.

2 Backers raised €70 of €2390

IN LIMBO: Why are people left in hospitals and nursing homes instead of rehab?

Open

Ireland

Though the National Rehabilitation Hospital (NRH) recently moved into a new building, spinal cord and brain injury survivors remain on long waiting lists for specialist rehabilitation.

5 Backers raised €160 of €1730

REVOLVING DOOR: What influence do former politicians have in Leinster House?

Completed

National

In recent years, several former ministers and other politicians have also ended up working as lobbyists across a range of business interests.

57 Backers raised €1605 of €1605

HOLY LAND: How much money are religious orders pocketing from lucrative property sales?

Completed

Ireland

Properties worth millions - and offered by religious congregations for redress in institutional child abuse cases - have yet to be handed over to fulfil that promise.

43 Backers raised €1640 of €1640

SILENT TREATMENT: Are people with eating disorders being failed by the public health system?

Completed

Ireland

The HSE is currently implementing a national clinical programme for eating disorders but there have been significant issues with its roll-out, with just a small fraction of money allocated to improve supports and treatment actually spent on this since 2018.

34 Backers raised €1065 of €1065

BIRTH PLACE: Why does the Irish health service offer so little choice for expectant mothers?

Nearly Funded

Ireland

In 2015, the National Maternity Strategy said “there is a lack of choice for expectant mothers” by international standards. It proposed a model of care that “represents a fundamental overhaul of services” which are currently “largely consultant-led and hospital-based”.

52 Backers raised €1638 of €2030

FUELLING RETIREMENT: Are Irish pensions contributing to the climate crisis?

Funded

Ireland

In 2019, Ireland became one of the first countries in the world to divest its investment fund away from companies that make substantial profit from fossil fuels. However, the majority of private Irish pension funds still include companies involved in oil and gas exploration, extraction and refinement.

46 Backers raised €1240 of €1240

FUNDING FERTILITY: Has the delay in publicly funding IVF destroyed people’s chance to have children?

Completed

Ireland

Around one in six couples in Ireland experience difficulty when trying to have children and will face thousands of euro in costs if they seek fertility treatment.

28 Backers raised €950 of €950

ACADEMIC UNCERTAINTY: How are universities and institutes of technology allowed to employ so many researchers and lecturers on precarious contracts?

Completed

Ireland

In Ireland, we hold academics in high esteem but are they being treated properly by their employers and the Government?

44 Backers raised €1300 of €1300

WATER UNDER THE BRIDGE: How much did a controversial road scheme in Kilkenny City actually cost and has it delivered what it was supposed to?

Completed

Kilkenny

It was one of the most controversial road developments of recent years in Ireland, a plan to build a new bridge across the River Nore in Kilkenny.

46 Backers raised €1371 of €1350

THE CONSTRUCTION NETWORK: Connecting the dots between the government and lobbyists for developers and the construction industry

Completed

Ireland

From the nearly 1,900 lobbyists registered in Ireland, many lobby on behalf of the construction industry and property development companies keen to see the Irish property market expand.

128 Backers raised €3200 of €3200

LYING IDLE: How many state properties are lying vacant around the country.

Completed

Ireland

The Office of Public Works manages over 2,500 properties around Ireland on behalf of the state.

9 Backers raised €360 of €350

CUT DOWN TO SIZE: Why are Ireland's local authorities so keen to chop down trees?

Completed

Ireland

Across Ireland, locals have been dismayed to see trees and bushes chopped down by public bodies.

47 Backers raised €1100 of €1100

POLITICAL PENSIONS: How much is paid out each year in political and ministerial pensions?

Completed

National

Until last year, the Department of Finance published details of how much it paid in pensions to former ministers, taoisigh, presidents, judges, and other ex-officeholders.

2 Backers raised €110 of €100

COMPO CLAIMS: Does Ireland really have a ‘compensation culture’?

Completed

National

The government minister responsible for the insurance industry has said there are 'clusters' for compensation claims in Ireland.

8 Backers raised €1260 of €1250