By post £3.50 except * £6.00 or Equivalent in $
Forthcoming:
Confronting Racism in Ireland
The 5th Annual Frank Cahill Memorial Lecture, organised by the West Belfast Economic Forum as part of its contribution to Féile an Phobail, was this year presented jointly by Catherine Joyce and Brid O'Brien. Catherine Joyce, a member of the Travelling community, is Development Worker for Blanchardstown Area Partnership and previously worked with Pavee Point as a Community Youth Worker. Brid O'Brien is a Community Worker with the Traveller Economy Programme in Pavee Point.
Bríd O'Brien, Catherine Joyce, 1997. The Fifth Annual Frank Cahill Memorial Lecture.
A key theme of this year's Féile an Phobail was Celebrating our Diverse Cultures and Working against Racism. It was fitting, therefore, that this year's speakers for the Frank Cahill Memorial Lecture, in this, the European Year Against Racism, addressed some of the issues and problems faced by the Travelling community in Ireland.
Racial discrimination, exclusion and marginalisation are everyday experiences for the 5,200 Traveller families in Ireland. A community development approach to work with and among the Travelling community must give positive recognition to the distinct ethnicity of Travellers and fundamentally challenge the assimilationist and sexist views which permeate Irish society. Community development practice carried out in a framework of an anti-racist perspective is essential to ensure that Travellers can achieve meaningful participation in all local and national developments.
The publication will be available in December 1997.
Out of our mouths, not out of our heads
A report on drugs and drug use in West Belfast compiled by and for young people, August 1996
Urban Regeneration and the Struggle for Civil
Rights - an African-American Perspective
Congressman Donald Payne 1996
No Selfish Strategic or Economic Interest?
The Path to an All-Island Economy?
Dr Martin Mansergh, 1995.
The International Fund for Ireland:Some Findings
on its Patterns of Expenditure
Dr Maura Sheehan, 1995.
Economic Development and the Irish Language
Community.*
Report of a conference held in West Belfast May 28, 1994.
25 Years On: The Costs of War and the Dividends
of Peace.
Mike Tomlinson, 1994.
Invisible Work, Invisible Workers: Informal
Work in Ballymurphy.
Dr. Madeleine Leonard, 1993.(Out of print, photocopy only)
World Order and Its Rules: Variations on Some
Themes.
Noam Chomsky, 1993.
Prescription for Disaster: The Impact of Health
Service Cuts on West Belfast.
Ruth Taillon, 1993.
ISSN 1353-1905
The Economic Bulletin has continued to attract both a large readership and contributions from a wide range of community, voluntary and statutory organisations. The aim of the Economic Bulletin is to provide a forum for discussion on a wide range of economic policy issues. It is also a valuable source of news and information about the work of the West Belfast Economic Forum and economic development activities in West Belfast in general. Regular features include a ward by ward breakdown of unemployment in West Belfast and a round-up of news items related to the economy. Past issues of the Economic Bulletin have included :
Volume 5 Number 1 September 1997
Volume 4 Number 4 May 1997
Volume 4 Number 3 January 1997
Volume 4 Number 2 October 1996
Volume 4 Number 1 July 1996
Volume 3 Number 4 March 1996
Volume 3 Number 3 December 1995
Volume 3 No. 1 February 1995
Special Issue on Partnerships
Volume 2 No 3 October 1994
Volume 2, No. 2 July 1994
Volume 2, No. 1 March 1994
Subscribe to the Ecomonic Bulletin, 4 issues per year. Price: £8 for statutory and funded voluntary organisations and overseas, £5 for individuals or community groups. Payment is by cheque in pounds sterling or equivalent in US dollars, and can be sent to:
The West Belfast Economic Forum,Price: £1.50
The West Belfast Economic Forum has made a number of submissions to statutory and other bodies, and some of these have been published as Briefing Papers.
No. 11:
The EU Peace Programme: Comments on the Mid-Term Review
by Ruth Taillon
This Briefing Paper is based on the submission by the West Belfast Economic Forum to the Monitoring Committee of the Peace Programme. Ruth Taillon, WBEF Director and author of the report is a member of the Programme Consultative Forum.
The EU Special Support Programme for Peace and Reconciliation (the Peace Programme) is probably the most significant initiative impacting positively on areas of disadvantage in the North of Ireland and the border counties in recent years and is probably one of the most important initiatives yet taken to address the social and economic problems at the root of the conflict. Its operation is currently under review and European decisions on additional monies for the Programme, proposals for refocusing Programme priorities and changes to the delivery mechanisms will be based on the outcome of this review. The WBEF has studied the Mid-Term Review of the Programme and other documents available which assess the impact and implementation of the programme to date. These have formed the basis of the WBEF submission to the Monitoring Committee.
In the submission Ruth Taillon calls on the European Commission to approve the 'second tranche' of money without delay, adding that the "additional peace programme funds are vital to ensure that the long-term benefits of the work now being done are consolidated and maximised. The two governments, however, must take responsibility to ensure that the positive work being funded through the Peace Programme is sustainable in the long-term. Equally important - peace funds must not be used to replace central government funds which are being cut from both mainstream budgets and community sector funding."
No. 10:
The Training and Employment Agency's long term unemployment consultation document - A response by WBEF
In May of this year the West Belfast Economic Forum responded to the Training
and Employment Agency's Long Term Unemployment Consultation Document. The
document was "intended to stimulate public debate on how best the Agency can
target its resources to assist the long term unemployed and achieve best value
for money." This Briefing Paper is based on our submission to the Training and
Employment Agency and makes many references to the consultation document.
Readers will need a copy of this to make proper sense of all the points raised.
No. 9:
Policy Appraisal and Fair Treatment (PAFT): Securing Equality of Treatment
In 1996 the Standing Advisory Commission on Human Rights (SACHR), the health
workers union Unison, and the Committee on the Administration of Justice (CAJ)
initiated a public debate around the success or otherwise of the The Policy
Appraisal and Fair Treatment (PAFT) guidelines. This resulted in the publication
of Christopher McCrudden's discussion paper Mainstreaming Fairness?,
commissioned by Unison and circulated by CAJ.
The West Belfast Economic Forum (WBEF) warmly welcomes Professor McCruddens discussion document and the opportunity to contribute to the debate which it has opened up. The West Belfast Economic Forum along with many other community groups, voluntary bodies business figures and academics were involved in the process of consultation.
This Briefing Paper is based on our submission to the Committee for the Administration of Justice (CAJ).
No. 7:
WBEF Submission on Proposed Race Relations in Northern Ireland
This briefing paper is the submission made by the WBEF to the Department of Economic Development on the proposed Race Relations Legislation for Northern Ireland. The Paper outlines the various issues and concerns within which the WBEF's response to the proposed legislation takes place and our specific response to the legislation itself.
No. 8:
JobSeekers Allowance: Undermining the Welfare State
The Jobseekers Allowance was introduced in the North of Ireland on 7 October 1996. This Briefing Paper examines the details of the new scheme and outlines its impact. The WBEF is opposed to the JSA both in ethos and practice. We believe it is a discriminatory piece of legislation which will increase poverty and hardship among those sections of the community which already suffer disproportionate levels of economic and political injustice and exclusion.
No 6.
West Belfast Partnership Proposals
Report From Clár Nua Mini Conference 7th December 1995
This Briefing Paper contains Clár Nua's presentations to the mini-conference which discussed Making Belfast Work's proposals for partnerships in West Belfast. Clár Nua is concerned to ensure that any partnership which is established in West Belfast is an effective vehicle for social and economic regeneration in our community. The Conference was organised to ensure the maximum democratic participation in determining the shape of any partnership structure as well as the operation of the partnership in the future.
No. 5:
Submission to the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation
West Belfast Economic Forum.
This Briefing Paper formed the basis of our submission to the Forum for Peace and Reconciliation and was published as part of our commitment to informing discussion around the broader economic, social and political issues affecting the island of Ireland. The West Belfast Economic Forum argues that the developments in the peace process should provide for an opportunity a democratisation of Irish political and economic life.
No. 4:
The Irish Peace Dividend:
Press cuttings, Aug-Nov 1994.
The WBEF published a compilation of press cuttings written about the Irish "Peace Dividend", as a result of numerous requests received from community organisations and other members of the public for information on the economic dividends of peace.
No. 3:
Government Measures to Tackle Discrimination Against Disabled People:
Inadequate, Piece-Meal and Second Best
By Kevin McLaughlin.
This paper was written as a response to a British Government consultation document and published as part of our continuing commitment to inform discussion around disability issues.
No. 2:
Making Belfast Work Strategy Consultation: responses from the West Belfast
Community Sector.
This Briefing paper contains submissions made by the WBEF and other community-based organisations working in West Belfast in response to the British Government's Making Belfast Work Strategy Proposals 1994/97.
No. 1
The 1991 Census Results
An analysis of the 1991 Census data for all West Belfast wards giving
detailed breakdowns on economic and social indicators such as employment
and knowledge of Irish language.