Sit-down protest outside GPO as 500 attend cost of living demonstration in Cork
Participants make a 5-minute sit-down protest on Oliver Plunkett St at the GPO. Picture: Larry Cummins
A crowd of up to 500 people attended a cost of living demonstration in Cork city on Saturday, which included a sit-down protest on Oliver Plunkett St.
The protest was one of 23 due to take place around the country as households battle against rising energy prices and food prices.
The protests in Cork began at 2pm on Grand Parade before moving onto Patrick St, swinging onto Winthrop St and then onto Oliver Plunkett St, where those taking part in the demonstration staged a sit-down protest.
The march then resumed, moving onto South Mall before crossing Parnell Bridge and finishing outside the local authority offices on Anglesea St.
The protest took two hours and one of those who addressed the crowd, People Before Profit/Solidarity TD Mick Barry, said there needed to be a "stop to profiteering".
Referring to recent measures by the Government to introduce minimum pricing on alcohol, he said: "Why do they not now bring in maximum pricing for gas, electricity, for water and for milk?"
The Cork North Central TD was one of a number of speakers at the demonstration, with others including Don O'Leary of the Cork Life Centre and Caitríona Twomey of Cork Penny Dinners.
Ms Twomey told the crowd that the charity had fed 1,000 people on Saturday.
Afterwards, Mr Barry said: "The essential point here is money that goes into people's pocket is going straight back out into the profits of the energy companies and supermarkets and the landlords.
"We feel that the Budget did not go far enough but we also feel Government has taken no serious steps towards tackling the profiteering we see all around us."
Earlier, Taoiseach Micheal Martin said the Government was cognisant of the struggles people were facing and were acting to help them through the current crisis.
"We have intervened with an unprecedented budget and an unprecedented cost of living package of over €11bn," he said.
"That is if you combine the budget with the cost of living package — these are very substantial interventions on top of the interventions that were made earlier in the year.
"There has also been a range of payments now that have been issued to people in terms of social protection and energy credits.
"There was also a reduction of costs in the budget in terms of medical costs, school costs, education costs, third level fees being dramatically reduced.
"If you add it all up, cumulatively it is a very significant intervention by Government to contribute to alleviating the pressures on people during what is a very difficult wartime situation where we have an escalating energy crisis, cost of living increases across the board have been acknowledged."
He said that having just returned from the British Irish Council he did not believe that his UK counterparts had been able to intervene to the same degree that Ireland has.
"That said, I acknowledge that people will be under pressure over the winter period but I do believe the interventions will make a telling difference," he said.
"We are listening to people on the ground — we continue to listen and engage with people and we will continue to do that.
"But the interventions have been significant and we have to balance everything in terms of protecting jobs as well."
The Taoiseach said there was "always a balance in terms of not adding to the inflationary cycle."
"I think we got the balance right in the budget in September and also the cost of living package," he said.
"It is a very wide-ranging package that supports many, many sectors in our economy in terms of tax reductions, in terms of the pay increases that happen through the public service pa agreement and the pay increases in the private sector in many areas."
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