Social Justice Ireland  is an independent think tank and justice advocacy organisation that advances the lives of people and communities through providing independent social analysis and effective policy development to create a sustainable future for every member of society and for societies as a whole.  We work to build a just society through developing and delivering credible analysis and policy to improve society and the lives of people.  We identify sustainable options for the future and provide viable pathways forward.  In all of this we focus on human rights and the common good.

Analysis & Comment

Budget 2018 - modest progress but lacking strategy and ambition

11th October 2017

To download our Budget 2018 Response Document click here.

To view our Budget 2018 Response webinar click here.

Budget 2018 sees modest improvements for some but fails to get to grips with the scale of the crises needing to be addressed.Many Irish people today are facing grave and persistent challenges; over 8,000 people (3,000 of whom are children) are without a home; over 213,000 children, or nearly one in five, are at risk of poverty; over 414,000, or one in three, are experiencing deprivation, and 128,000 children, or 11.2%, are living in consistent poverty. Over 90,000 households are on the housing waiting list. Ireland’s two-tier healthcare system and the growing regional divide between those living in urban and rural areas are just two more of the challenges that Irish people are facing.

Government income tax proposals are unjust and unfair

3rd October 2017

Some tax proposals currently being considered by Government should be rejected because they would give far greater benefit to people earning higher incomes than to lower income employees according to a new study conducted by Social Justice Ireland.  This study shows that the impact of some proposals currently being considered for Budget 2018 would be profoundly unfair because they would favour only those with higher incomes.

Social Justice Ireland publication wins award

2nd October 2017

Social Justice Ireland's recent book entitled "Basic Income: Radical Utopia or Practical Solution" has received an award for original work in Irish Fiscal Policy from Ireland's Foundation for Fiscal Studies, Fiscal.ie. The award was made today (October 2nd, 2017) as part of the Fiscal.ie announcment of the Miriam Hederman O'Brien Award. Fiscal.ie said the award was being made to Social Justice Ireland "in recognition of your outstanding work". The  full text of this publication (edited by Social Justice Ireland Directors, Brigid Reynolds and Seán Healy) is available here and may be downloaded free of charge.

Universal Basic Income - an idea whose time has almost come

15th September 2017

Social Justice Ireland's work on developing a Universal Basic Income for Ireland was acknowledged by Noel Whelan in his op-ed article in The Irish Times on September 15, 2017.  In this article Noel argues that a universal basic income has the potential to transform how we organise the State’s role in our society and economy and concludes it is an idea whose time has almost come.   The full article may be accessed here.

You may view summaries of the preceding 20 posts in the sidebar of this page.

Recent publications

National Social Monitor 2017

4th September 2017

The National Social Monitor is Social Justice Ireland’s annual contribution to the public debate that is needed on Ireland’s future and how Ireland is performing in terms of promoting the wellbeing of all in society.   It examines progress in areas such as housing, healthcare, education, employment, rural development and the environment among others.

Recent podcasts/videos

Working to build a just society where human rights are respected, human dignity is protected, human development is facilitated and the environment is respected and protected.

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Thought for the day

“A hunch is creativity trying to tell you something” 

(F. Capra)

Further recent posts

You may view the 10 most recent posts on the main body of this page. The headlines and dates from the 20 posts preceding those are shown in this table. You may use the search tools on this site to find earlier posts dating back to 2009

A Right to Housing? The case for a Universal Housing Subsidy - 14/09/17
Basic Income - Radical Utopia or Practical Solution? - 14/09/17
Basic Income - International Perspectives - 14/09/17
Municipal Basic Income experiments - Netherlands - 14/09/17
Pathways to a Basic Income System - 13/09/17
Basic Income - an Irish perspective - 13/09/17
The gap between Ireland’s minimum wage and the living wage has major implications for living standards - 11/09/17
Literacy in a Digital World - 08/09/17
Government must build 90,000 social housing units or accept failure on housing policy - 04/09/17
Budget 2018 should be economically sound and socially fair - 17/07/17
Investment must take priority over tax cuts in Budget 2018 - 28/06/17
Over 250 Non-Goverment Organisations launch Alternative Vision for Europe - 20/06/17
Census study highlights worrying trends and policy challenges - 16/06/17
Social Justice Ireland calls for EU-wide Basic Income system - 07/06/17
Invitation to present to UN Expert Group - 06/06/17
Future of Healthcare - 30/05/17
Country Specific Recommendations for Ireland 2017 - 23/05/17
Despite impressive jobs growth, regional variations in employment trends show economic growth is not benefiting all parts of the country equally - 09/05/17
Ireland needs a new and radical social contract - 18/04/17
Government should review Ireland’s tax policy priorities and raise the overall tax take - 04/04/17