A return of the Fine Gael-Labour coalition will further damage traditional values, writes David Quinn The social liberalism of the outgoing Government cannot be exaggerated. The same is likely to be true of the incoming Government, unless it is a Fine Gael/Fianna Fáil coalition, and even then it will be only somewhat less liberal. When…

“We should not forget the quiet but vibrant faith which still remains”, writes Andrew O’Connell Three simple stories taught me something of the mission of people of faith in Ireland today. Firstly, I was walking past a church in Dublin last week and, instinctively, blessed myself. A young woman walking against me noticed and, looking mildly…

Dr Ruth Cullen Many issues are troubling voters, but ultimately no issue is more important than protecting life. We cannot talk about care, compassion and respect for life and then in the same breath single out a particular category of human beings and say they are unworthy of any legal protection. Each human being regardless…

The long term integration challenge for a new Government is to build on goodwill, writes Eugene Quinn Ireland has long cherished itself as the ‘land of the thousand welcomes’. Yet the arrival of thousands of asylum seekers, refugees and forced migrant tests that principle in practice. In 2015 more than 3,000 people sought asylum in…

Fr Seán Healy General Election 2016 comes at a critical moment for Ireland. Decisions made in the next Dáil will have major impacts on Irish people and shape the future for a considerable time to come. Whether or not the decisions of the next Government produce a just and sustainable future depends on those elected…

The public should make prostitution and sex trafficking ‘doorstep issues’ in the upcoming election, writes Sarah Benson Since its foundation, Ruhama has supported thousands of women affected by prostitution and sex trafficking in Ireland. Every day in our work we see first-hand the harm that sexual exploitation does to women and girls. We support women…

Fr Donal Dorr Pope Francis, in his encyclical letter on the environment, Laudato Si’, makes a passionate appeal to us to protect the fragile Earth and the poorest of people. He warns us that our call to be protectors of God’s creation “is not an optional or a secondary aspect of Christian faith”. He says…

Dr Tom Finegan Catholic social and moral teaching affirms the central importance of marriage for both individual persons and wider society as the bedrock upon which society is built. Catholic social and moral teaching further affirms the duty of governments to protect and promote marriage and family life through law and policy. A general election…

The next Government should commit to ending family homelessness, writes Sr Stan Kennedy The housing and homeless crisis is one of the greatest social and economic challenges faced by our society and that the next Government will responsible for tackling. Focus Ireland wants to say loud and clear to every candidate standing in this General…

Election candidates should be committed to increasing aid, writes Eamonn Meehan It is important that Ireland’s new Government does what it can to protect the poorest and most vulnerable people in the developing world. As Ireland rebuilds itself after our economic crash we must ask what type of a society we want. I would hope…