The Ideas Campaign - sample of ideas received since campaign launch
Here is a selection of the ideas that have been pouring into the Ideas Campaign website. Please note that some have been edited, for space or clarity. An idea’s inclusion on the website does not indicate it will be included in our final action plan for the Government.
Agriculture and food
Every town in the country should start a community garden whereby a piece of land is given by the county council to a community group who will develop the land and grow fruit and veg and subsequently have a low cost weekly market.
There is a lot of land lying idle at the moment which, if worked, could yield good food. We would be a happier nation out working in the garden in tune with one another and with nature. A community cafe could be built on the land - a simple ‘Seomra House’ where everyone could congregate for soup and eat produce from the community.
Agriculture and Food
Mine is a quick, simple idea. I live in the village of Paulstown, Co. Kilkenny. There are lots of large homes all over Ireland, be it stately, palatial or just homes or farms with a few acres of land surrounding them.
Here in Paulstown, the owner of a large house was looking to generate a small income. He offered to rent a few acres of land to the local community for people to grow fruit and vegetables.
This has proved a great success and with over 20 members enrolled at the first meeting, I feel it will definitely expand. Everyone’s a winner: he generates a small income, and we all get to grow cheap and fresh food. Some people are already talking of selling their produce in the country markets, generating them a small income.
Constuction
All over the country, in new housing developments, there are unfinished units that are now abandoned in various stages of completion. If left in their present unfinished condition, most of these will have to be demolished. This is a huge wasting asset.
An immediate campaign to finish these houses would rescue these potentially valuable assets. Obviously some capital would have to be supplied to start the project but the added on value and cost benefit of the work would, without doubt, outweigh the initial financial layout.
The unfinished units could be bought at a very low cost as their value to their developers reduces daily. Local craftsmen can be employed for the work thus reducing dole payments and giving business to the various building suppliers.
Construction
We need to build something symbolic like the Hoover dam, a construction project that the country can have pride in and that will be world famous. The Government could put up some of the money but they could also invite consortiums in to fund and build it.
Something like an undersea tunnel to the UK would be the type of thing I’m talking about. There would be plenty of parties interested in building, maintaining and running such a venture.
Construction
I am a 25 year old living in my parents’ home on the northside of Dublin. All around my area there are literally thousands of vacant apartments and houses, most of which are completely finished but the developer is unable to shift them.
I have noticed that all these vacant homes are starting to fall into disrepair. Double-glazed windows on the ground floor are being smashed in, fixtures and fittings are being stolen.
The majority of my friends are living at home. They are in their mid-twenties and would love to be able to move out of their parents’ home. I heard a story about a small property developer who built 40 houses and couldn’t sell the last 15, so he rented the remaining 15 to people who plan to buy them but cannot get mortgage approval.
When they can get mortgage approval in the future, the builder will take the rent they have paid to date off the asking price. His houses are occupied and at least he is getting an income each month
Surely such a scheme could be set up nationally. Everyone - builders, young buyers, furniture shops, DIY stores, tradesmen, and communities would start to benefit again.
Education
My idea is for Fusion Centres around Ireland to promote Lifelong Learning for older people/middle aged people e.g. Art, Design, Crafts, Music, Computer Classes, Literary Classes/Book Clubs, Choirs. Drama Clubs, Dance Classes, Fitness Classes etc. There was a model of this idea in Ballykeale in Limerick.
Use could be made of premises left vacant because of the downturn. People could get the opportunity to submit for FETAC awards as a result of these courses. These Centres could also have Cafe Bars and shops and medical and legal advice centres, mediation and counselling could also be available.
Education
My idea is based on my frustration with the whinging about PCs in schools at all levels. In my opinion we need to change the paradigm here. Why are schools not utilising current infrastrucure by moving to web-hosted software.
Netbooks are one of the fastest growing markets yet no mention has been made of them in terms of education.
Not everything needs to be done locally on a PC. Why not use platforms like Google Apps (and indeed Microsoft Office Online when available). These are free and can form the basis for learning skills that are now virtually a sine qua non when entering the workforce.
Resources for teachers are also available for free. Why can’t material be developed through Moodle (http://www.moodle.org/) or other online systems and used to add variety to the education process?
Microsoft and other companies offer slimmed down versions of their software which would provide a cost-effective basis on which to develop student skills, e.g. Express editions of Visual Studio products Also, I think many IT professionals would be happy to donate time to assist schools in fixing issues with hardware and software.
Please note that I am neither a Microsoft or Open Source devotee. To summarise my idea, we need our schools to look at technology that is freely available and can be harnessed to its maximum potential. While the above may only provide 80% of what’s needed, let’s start on that basis and develop from there.
Education
My Idea is to open a sewing school. I have worked in the clothing trade for 30 years in all aspect of design and garment construction, and in the last 10 years I worked in retail and retail management. This was due to the collapse of the clothing trade.
Now in my 50th year, my husband was made unemployed and I have decided to develop my first love which is design and sewing. In 2008 I decided to start teaching this skill, and realised there is a market. I teach children from the age of 7 to hand sew, use a sewing machine, and make their own patterns, The same I teach to Teens and Adults. I am also teaching Fetac courses in design skills and sewing skills.
I have also devised a programme to teach teen boys, where they will use their mechanical drawing, woodwork skills, and show them how to sew without it been sissy to them. I tried this on Transition Year boys and it went down a treat. I have lots of Ideas on how to develop this idea. I am really excited about the future at the moment and scared at the same time.
I am working alone at the moment but would love to have someone to bounce my ideas off and get instant feedback. I would really love to talk with someone about my plans. Some people just laugh at me, my family are sick of me going on and on. But I can see how my ideas can help give people back some hope, I am not great with business and don’t always go the right way about things. That is where I need help.
Education
I really think it would help individuals greatly if they were taught ways of developing personal wealth in school. The way the relationship with money is taught, is “learn hard, get a job, earn good money and spend it”.
This works great while jobs are plentiful and income is flowing, but does nothing to build future financial self-reliance. What could be taught is that money can be invested responsibly in income-generating assets such as shares, funds, etc.
When I grew up in Germany, my school ran a project in conjunction with the local bank where we had a DM 50,000 pot and we simulated trading shares. The best team won a weekend away, and what I learned then, has stayed with me for life. I now trade shares actively (after receiving more up-to-date training) and the recession doesn’t bother me one bit.
Environment
My idea is a media campaign called ‘STOP THE WASTE’ to run across all sectors of society - industry, public sector and private sectors, right down to people’s homes. We could all list off examples of wanton waste everywhere. As I write this I see a beautifully landscaped IDA site in my town that’s been waiting for the last 10 years for a budding entrepreneur.
Every single night the fabulous lighting comes on and stays on. I like to be positive, but I don’t think an entrepreneur is going to ride into town at 3am! Turn off the lights and save the money. I don’t have the figures, but I am assured that there are plenty of more sites like this across the country.
What about the unused wheelchairs, crutches etc lying in every hospital in the country. Is there a business opportunity here for someone to recycle these medical aids, and get them back into the system to be used again? We should empower people in their own organisations to brainstorm and come up with ideas to STOP THE WASTE. Individuals at grassroots level best know what can be done.
Environment
I am a graduate landscape architect. I was laid off over a month ago, and there is very little need for my services in this country. I have realised that there is a pool of talent from every area of construction. There is also pool of land which essentially belongs to no one.
For example, there are a number of bogs in my own home town which are inaccessible. I would relish developing areas like these if I could continue to receive my social welfare payments. There is a €12.5million fund available for such schemes, and this is where funding could be obtained for materials.
We need to identify land banks around the country which could be developed in a cost effective way, and provide value for money and benefit our tourism industry in the long run.
Green Business
We can achieve 70% savings on water usage as well as energy savings by installing water-saving showerheads and taps in hotels, schools, hospitals, nursing homes, army barracks, domestic homes, fitness centres, and anywhere else that uses water.
There are already a growing number of hotels changing over and saving tens of thousands of euro as a result.
Green Business
The seaweed and wrack around our shore is a huge resource that is barely being used. Bulk harvesting of kelp can provide a completely natural fertiliser, but the real opportunity is in the smaller seaweeds. Dulse and Carrigeen Moss have been eaten traditionally.
There are many more edible seaweeds, some are like Carrigeen in having outstanding health-promoting properties. The wonder-foods on our seashores are harvested and sold, but mostly on a small, local scale. By establishing a brand for Irish seaweed wonder-food and promoting it strongly internationally, the market can be grown greatly and made into a long-term earner for coastal communities.
Innovation
I am working as an operations manager in a struggling wholesale furniture business in a huge industrial estate with dozens of businesses, big and small, that have been badly hit by this recession.
My idea for industrial estates like this is that a company (any company) lends staff to act as sales people to visit each and every business in that area, gather information on the companies products and services including prices and then match the businesses to each other.
For example, if there is a printing firm in the estate, encourage all companies to use that company for all their printing needs. The incentive for companies to do this is they will get the same type of support from all the other companies in the estate. I believe this type of networking will be a help to all who get involved and will give small to medium-sized businesses some confidence again.
Pharmaceutical / biopharmaceutical / medical devices
Idea: The idea is a competition aimed at science and engineering research postgraduates. Objective: The objective of the competition is to promote the development of professional communication skills among the above cohort.
For years we have invested billions into academic research to generate more and more knowledge which is locked up in peer-review journal publications. The first step towards converting that knowledge back into money (i.e. innovation) is to translate it into a format that professionals from other disciplines can understand and start to harness.
The objective of this competition is to instill the skills needed in our graduates to begin this knowledge translation. This idea should not cost much but would probably benefit strongly by having an appropriate high profile sponsor.
* (This idea is very long and detailed and has had to be edited for space reasons).
Policy
During World War Two, people in the US and UK were encouraged to ‘buy war bonds’, to help the government. The money was redeemable and you got a little extra back at the end of the term.
My idea is to do the same in 2009. Instead if increasing taxes the government should be out there looking for us to buy their savings bonds. In the short-term the money can go where it’s needed and in the long-term, when the economy is back to full strength, they can pay out the bonds to the people again. Personally I’d rather save in Ireland and save Ireland at the same time.
Policy
The insertion of stair lifts for people who wish to stay in their own home has been grant aided by county councils. When the user dies, the stair lifts are redundant and can not be reused or sold on even though they cost approximately €5000 and are grant-aided to a sum of €4,300 each.
My mother used one for 10 months and now we are left trying to get rid of same. Why can’t these stair lifts be taken back and reused?
I work in the HSE and am disgusted with the waste and lack of innovation in recyling. The suppliers don’t want to know as they know the local authority fund approx 75% of the cost of a new lift. Please bring to the attention of the relevant authorities as I am at a loss as to how to get this on any agenda.
Policy
The large land banks on the outskirts of towns and villages that have become the subject of ‘toxic-debts’ should be legally taken into state ownership - in the case of some banks, the taxpayer is now the owner of such tracts of lands and steps should be taken without delay to change the ownership of the land from the defaulting developers and speculators into the names of the respective Local Authorities who should be authorised to develop them into allotments, at least for the duration of this recession/depression.
Policy
Let’s scrap the whole Metro idea. Why not invest all of this €2.4 billion in renewable energy. Model ourselves on the Danish who export over one third of the world’s wind turbines (employing in excess of 18,000 in production alone).
We should also seek to bring our wind resource up to levels similar to Denmark, a country with a population not significantly greater than ours. Denmark now expects to have 50% of its energy produced by the wind by 2025. This is a figure which is actually realistic when we look at their current levels and their current growth levels.
Our green island should be as green as it’s made out to be. And people can no longer complain about the sight of wind turbines either onshore or offshore if it means they have a secure job. We can use this recession to source, supply and install cheaper than ever before and when oil shoots back up to $70 a barrel or more we won’t be the suckers paying over the odds to power our country.
Ireland has one of, if not the most rich wave energy resource in the world and this technology is just about to be brought into full scale use. Maybe the Danes beat us in the wind race but let’s not be beaten the in the Tidal war which is to come.
* (This idea is very long and detailed and has had to be edited for space reasons).
Policy
The state should arrange with the banks to buy 20,000 of the unsold houses in the state for social and affordable housing. They should pay no more for each unit than would be necessary to cover the developers’ borrowing on it, i.e. no profit. Although this might be seen as bailing out the developers, the benefits far outweigh these concerns. The benefits are:
- reducing the housing overhang thereby supporting house prices
- reducing the banks’ bad debt exposure, thereby reducing the need for a further capital injection
- providing for the state’s social housing needs
- providing the liquidity to get lending moving again
Policy
Instead of chasing tax exiles out of the country, why don’t we encourage them to return here to live! There are hundreds of tax exiles paying tax in other countries, but also paying a big personal price in terms of their restricted movements. What is the level of income that these exiles are ok about paying income tax on? Is it €500k or €1m?
Bring in a new tax band for the tax exiles that will tax them at 41% on their first €500k or €1m and then 10% — or whatever is just below the level they are currently paying in Malta, Monaco etc - on all income over that. As a nation we would reap great benefits:
- A tax windfall
- An impressive message to the rest of the world
- More HQ’s etc and jobs here
- A valuable ‘knowledge bank’
- No one could claim it was not a fair tax.
Policy
You need to read this to the end to understand that the idea is unique. Everyone currently in a job should cut back his or her hours by 20%, i.e. go on a four day week. Then for every 4 people employed [in certain types of job obviously] a fifth unemployed person could make up the time.
The person reducing his or her earnings by 20% would get one day’s unemployment benefit to make up some of the difference (the fifth day is often for the taxman anyway).
For example, take a bus driver earning €500 per week. He would cut back to €400. Social welfare would make up the difference between what his take home pay was, say maybe €450.
The cost to the state for 4 people would 4 x €50 i.e. €200. That would be less than the one unemployed individual would have received from social welfare and the country would have five people spending and paying tax. There is the added social benefit of people having extra time for the family, hobbies, charity work etc.
Policy
Fast Track Planning Permission in all counties for one-off housing, housing developments, roads, schools and infrastructure projects currently held up in red tape. Co-ordinate financing to support same, and relax planning policy for the above term.
This idea will immediately help the construction industry and supply companies. Putting people back to work and creating wages that will help the communities and local businesses.
Policy
To promote employment we could offer an incentive for employers to take on people from the dole. This would be done by giving the employer a payment equal to a person’s dole for the first 3 months of employment making it far cheaper to pay someone while adjusting to the new job.
John is on the dole getting €250 a week. Pat needs a worker but is a little tight on money and is not sure if he can afford €500 a week. If he employs John, the Government will give him John’s dole payment for 3 months so his cost is €250 and Pat gets an employee for €250 a week for 3 months. John gets a job and €500 a week.
The Government pays €250 a week for 3 months which it would be doing anyway if John had no job and at the end of 3 months it doesn’t have to pay John’s dole. Instead he will be a taxpayer. Everybody wins.
Policy
My idea is that the Government should ban the use of automated telephone answering services in all areas of the Public Service i.e. Departments, Semi-State bodies, Local Authorities and Government Agencies of every description.
These services would then be provided by suitably trained people who would be able to handle calls from the general public in a courteous and helpful manner. The implementation of this idea would take people off the Live Register or keep them from going on it.
Such a move by Government might also encourage organisations in the private sector to follow suit.
Apart from the direct benefit of improving employment, it would also have the indirect benefit of reducing the frustration which many people currently experience in dealing with automated systems. The genesis of this idea goes back to the 1930s when men were taken off the dole to break stones on the side of the road while the stone crushers were left in the county council yards.
Policy
Allow Tax Exiles to pay flat fee for tax of €300k per annum in return for unmonitored access to Ireland.
There are approximately 5,880 tax exiles according to Prime Time so my idea would generate €1.76billion.
This could be sold on both patriotic and business grounds. We had crazy tax amnesties before so I believe this could be a runner.
Policy
How much money is on deposit in Irish Banks yielding peanuts for its owners - how much is in pension funds losing money? Why does the Government have to go to international markets to raise money and pay higher than normal interest rates to foreign sources?
Why can’t it borrow its own citizens’ money from bank deposits and pension funds and pay them the rate that they would be paying foreign sources. I would invest my money in Ireland inc. - not to do so would be like saying that this country has no future.
This country has a great future, but we must go back to doing it for ourselves and invest our own money in our own future.
I have €1,000 ready to invest in Ireland Inc. for five years and I would accept no interest, just my money back in five years. I have my €1,000 ready - who will take it and who will match it?
* (This idea is very long and detailed and has had to be edited for space reasons).
Policy
I believe that removing or seriously reducing the obligatory Sunday Supplement would create many jobs in the retail and service industries. Having to pay double time on Sundays has forced many shops, restaurants, etc. to close on Sundays.
If a good percentage of them re-opened, it would be a huge boost for employment and for GDP
Policy
Reduce the excise on alcohol for On-License sales while at the same time increasing the excise of alcohol in Off-Licenses in order to get people back into the pubs at night, which leads to an increase in employment in pubs and the spin off services.
Policy
All public sector offices are governed by the tender process, from who builds our roads to where we buy our biros.
For the smaller items, plugs, tools, stationery we should be able to source cheaper items as we require them. I have often come across cheaper products but can’t order them as we are tied into the company who won a tender. It’s ridiculous.
They may have been better value at the time of the tender, but not now. The government is too tied into paperwork. Sometimes commonsense should prevail. If we start small in every single office, the bigger things we fall into place.
Policy
We need to immediately introduce a post code system. The only reason we don’t have one despite numerous studies and reports is to preserve the monopoly of An Post. A postal code will encourage competition in the postal and parcel delivery system. A post code system will be of major benefit to companies wishing to sell online, but also to Local Authorities, Government Departments and the emergency services.
Services (local)
Florists import a huge percentage of their flowers and greenery: I wonder if polytunnels could not produce a great deal of flowers instead in Ireland. This would create employment; reduce reliance on imports and with the right products such as daffodils, which we already export I believe, result in some exports.
I used to sell some of my surplus eucalyptus to a local florist - this is how I became aware of the issue.
Tourism
Everybody overseas loves an Irish pub and is always trying to find one. I suggest a website like a dating site or like a town-twining scheme where an Irish Pub would be twinned with an overseas bar and could host exchange weekends, bring in people from abroad and let them experience a proper Irish pub.
It would be very easy to set up and simple to run and put a buzz back into our pub trade. Advertising on the site would more than pay for itself and give some back to the organisers. THANK YOU for the Ideas Campaign - it’s such a breath of fresh air.
Tourism
Chomhghairdeachas leat as an iarracht seo a dhéanamh. Here’s a simple idea that could boost tourist numbers by thousands. Why not promote Irish language holiday courses for adults across the globe?
Over 40 million Americans claim Irish ancestry and if even a percentage of them could be tempted to go on an Irish course it would give a significant boost to local economies. Irish is also studied in dozen of Universities from Russia to Australia. Many of these students would surely be tempted to visit Ireland for two or three weeks to learn Irish if the idea was marketed properly to them.
In Donegal, this interest abroad in the Irish language has been tapped in to by ‘Oideas Gael’ who’ve been organising language courses successfully for years. But I think they’ve only just scratched the surface.
What this idea needs is someone to co-ordinate Irish language schools and funding to market what they have to offer across the world. There is a huge untapped market of well-educated, well-to-do people who would gladly travel to Ireland tempted by Irish language courses while enjoying our scenery, music and food. Let’s go out and get them! Tá siad ann, ní gá dúinne ach dul amach agus an smaoineamh seo a dhíol leo!
Tourism
Move St. Patrick’s Day to mid-May or late-September and stretch out the tourism season (and get it out of Lent!)
Transport
Estimates say that £3.5billion would be enough to build a bridge from Ireland to the UK The Chinese have already build bridges longer and larger as reported on by the BBC.
A bridge to the UK opens up Ireland for tourism like never before. It will also create 1000’s of jobs in construction etc and future maintenance of same. The UK Government would pay their share and funding could be available from a European or US development fund for Ireland/Northern Ireland.
Tags: ideas, Ideas Campaign
RSS Feed