Speaking at the launch today of Labour’s Dublin Manifesto ahead of the local elections, Deputy Joan Burton said that Dublin can be the engine of Ireland’s economic recovery.

“Our capital city is the main engine of economic growth in Ireland – it must also be an engine of recovery. Dublin has competed successfully with other cities across the globe for foreign investment and talent, attracting companies large companies like eBay and Google. However, we know from talking to business people, to visitors to the city, and to Dubliners themselves, that we could do better.

“Labour’s Manifesto for Dublin sets out steps we can take to enhance our capital’s natural advantages, such as its green spaces and easy access to the sea and the mountains; its cultural creativity; and its energy efficiency.

“Twelve years of Fianna Fáil’s developer-led planning shows in inadequate public transport provision, not enough public space, and a city that is not family friendly.

“A Labour majority in Dublin’s local authorities will be good news for anyone who lives, works or plays in the Dublin region. From a Dublin Loyalty Card to stimulate consumer demand, to keeping colleges of further education open during the summer months to train the unemployed, to a new cultural quarter at the top of O’Connell Street, together we have the ideas that can get Dublin working again.