Longford Leader columnist Mattie Fox: How seriously does Government take charter from first Dáil?

“It shall be the first duty of the Government of the Republic to make provision for the physical, mental and spiritual well-being of the children, to secure that no child shall suffer hunger or cold from lack of food, clothing, or shelter, but that all shall be provided with the means and facilities requisite for their proper education and training as Citizens of a Free and Gaelic Ireland.”

This was the first citizens charter drawn up by the first democratically elected Irish Parliament who declared a republic, and defined what it meant, on January 21, 1919.

The statement produced by that first parliament seems to suggest that no child should be hungry, no child should be homeless, no child should be blocked from having an education, and no child should be excluded from society.

How seriously does the present Government take the first charter, from the very first Dail?

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