beggars in galway

Fuinseog

was out and about last night and was struck by the amount of homeless people, mostly non nationals sitting on the streets begging. this appears to be new enough to galway.

Ficheall

They're just early trick-or-treaters.

mikom

Fuinseog wrote: »

was out and about last night and was struck by the amount of homeless people

How did you know they were homeless?

Fionn MacCool

"Non nationals" lmfao is this the pathetic new PC way of saying 'foreigners'.

If you truly see nothing wrong in being foreign, you won't see anything wrong in using the word.

inisboffin

Fionn MacCool wrote: »

"Non nationals" lmfao is this the pathetic new PC way of saying 'foreigners'.

If you truly see nothing wrong in being foreign, you won't see anything wrong in using the word.

I assume once you are nationalised, you are no longer a non-national, but some old men in pubs may always call you 'the foreigener';)

Mrs OBumble

Fuinseog wrote: »

was out and about last night and was struck by the amount of homeless people, mostly non nationals sitting on the streets begging. this appears to be new enough to galway.

Apart from the Roma women, who dress distinctively, how do you know they're non-nationals?

There were a lot of Roma in town over the last day or two (they're not stupid, they know that festival = tourists = donations), but I didn't see any new faces, TBH.

was down the market today and I had to leave after 5 mins. I was approached by 4 different roma beggars within 20 feet, felt like letting a roar at them

joeKel73

I have noticed a lot more begging in recent weeks. Three different guys came up to me walking up shop street about 10pm last Friday night. What's with the guy on the wheelchair playing demo tracks on his keyboard... I'd pay him to stop it. Please, stop it. They seem to see buskers getting money so a lot of them are getting instruments and making an awful noise recently.

It's nice to see Ireland with so many nationalities.

But i think certain restrictions should be placed on first generation. Any convictions should see them serve their sentence and be deported. We have enough criminals here without having to put up with more. America deport and i'm sure plenty of others do too.

Also begging on the streets should be an immediate deportation. No means to live here then they shouldn't be here.

inisboffin

gilberto_eire wrote: »

Also begging on the streets should be an immediate deportation. No means to live here then they shouldn't be here.

Hmm, I assume by 'here' you mean Ireland.
If we follow that logic, then surely first we should deport all non-Irish EU nationals who come here just to sign on for the summer??

gaeilgegrinds1

To be honest I think spongers regardless of where they're from just drain us, we can all give something.

inisboffin

gaeilgegrinds1 wrote: »

To be honest I think spongers regardless of where they're from just drain us, we can all give something.

Very true. Unfortunately some of those who are trying to give something (or perhaps just look like they are) by all of a sudden trying to busk, are making more enemies!:rolleyes:

Mrs OBumble

gilberto_eire wrote: »

Also begging on the streets should be an immediate deportation. No means to live here then they shouldn't be here.

Does that include the lads who are begging for "support the disabled" or the Hanley centre? Deportation to Tuam just doesn't seem the same

Lads, ye signed up to join the EU. You were very happy to take the cash that came with that, upgrading Ireland from what I'll politely call 2nd world status. With that comes certain obligations to other EU citizens. Do you think that England should deport every criminal or indigent Irish person? Really???

The annoying instrument-manglers are nothing new, and they're not all foreign nationals either. I suspect that if you offer to pay them to stop, they'll be happy to take a break for a while. And IMHO they're not nearly as bad as the damn tribal drummers, many of whom are Irish. (NB I live in town: on bad days, I can hear 'em in my living room!)

gaeilgegrinds1

Technically...I wasn't old enough to vote anywhich way regarding the EU...

I'm just sick of all the stories of pickpocketing I'm hearing lately, I don't know how ye feel about it but it makes my blood boil. Galway used to be safe damn it!

dollybird2

Speaking of begging I was accosted today in my car by warty nora! Stopped at the red traffic light outside Logues, lit a cigarette, next thing Nora's head is in the window asking for a fag. She then took the one in my mouth before heading away off again!

inisboffin

dollybird2 wrote: »

Speaking of begging I was accosted today in my car by warty nora! Stopped at the red traffic light outside Logues, lit a cigarette, next thing Nora's head is in the window asking for a fag. She then took the one in my mouth before heading away off again!

LMAO!! (sorry, but from your description I got a perfect visual and could just see her doing that!)
I saw her today perusing the menu of an Asian restaurant on Mary St, fag in mouth (may have been yours!)

MyPeopleDrankTheSoup

gilberto_eire wrote: »

We have enough criminals here without having to put up with more. America deport and i'm sure plenty of others do too.

Also begging on the streets should be an immediate deportation. No means to live here then they shouldn't be here.

If they're Romanian or Bulgarian citizens, they're EU nationals and can't be deported. You can thank your overlords in Brussels.

dapto1

Does anyone know how many Roma people actually work in Ireland? Or has anyone worked with one?

gaeilgegrinds1

Interesting question...

mikemac

dollybird2 wrote: »

Speaking of begging I was accosted today in my car by warty nora! Stopped at the red traffic light outside Logues, lit a cigarette, next thing Nora's head is in the window asking for a fag. She then took the one in my mouth before heading away off again!

She still around?

I left GMIT over 5 years ago and remember her coming into pubs and annoying people. The staff would move her on

Off topic, but there was also a guy around Ballybane who was not a beggar who always shouted "howya boys" or something at me.
I used to think it was only me but it seems it did it to others also.
Ah, he's harmless

inisboffin

dapto1 wrote: »

Does anyone know how many Roma people actually work in Ireland? Or has anyone worked with one?

I thought the problem was that they cannot get work permits or cannot get state benefits (hence the high percentage of beggars from that group). Has that changed? I don't know..

mikemac

And then the question is why would you come to a country you could not work or get benefits in. Why come here unless you are travelling or a tourist?

Well the group who will support them is Pavee Point

There are no official statistics as migrants in Ireland are counted on the basis of nationality and not ethnic group, but estimates put the Roma population in Ireland at over 3,000.
The majority of Roma in Ireland are from Romania, with significant populations also from Slovakia and Czech Republic and small numbers from Poland, Hungary and Bulgaria.
The Roma community, like many migrant groups have tended to settled in cheaper suburbs and commuter towns of the major cities, as well as some smaller towns nationwide.

Roma in Ireland since January 2007

In 2006 the Irish Government took the decision to restrict access to the labour market and social supports to citizens of Romania and Bulgaria on their accession in 2007.
This in effect has created a 2 tier Europe and in practical terms has caused many further barriers and challenges to Roma from these countries in Ireland

Since the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the EU in January 2007, people who arrive from those countries do so legally; however, Romanian and Bulgarian nationals are not entitled to work in Ireland without a work permit, nor are they entitled to any welfare provision, including healthcare or emergency accommodation. Sometimes this leaves them in situations of severe hardship and distress such as the incident on the M50 roundabout at Ballymun in summer 2007, which received a lot of media attention.

Nobody should be living in a camp on a roundabout but realy, why travel thousands of kilometers here with no job?

biko

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=77ZL-DF-pGY

Amhran Nua

JustMary wrote: »

Lads, ye signed up to join the EU. You were very happy to take the cash that came with that, upgrading Ireland from what I'll politely call 2nd world status. With that comes certain obligations to other EU citizens.

As far as EU obligations go, and what is actually happening from what I gather, if an EU national is found to be unable to support themselves and does not qualify for JSA, is begging on the streets, homeless, or what have you, they are offered a free flight back to their home country. If they decline, the state has no further obligation to support them. A fair few have already left the country via that route.

gaeilgegrinds1 wrote: »

Galway used to be safe damn it!

No it didn't, as rough as it is out there these days, it was a lot worse back in the 80s.

Mrs OBumble

feelingstressed wrote: »

And then the question is why would you come to a country you could not work or get benefits in. Why come here unless you are travelling or a tourist?

But things are never as simple as they seem.

I'm an Irish citizen, and had 54 weeks of work when I paused here for the winter. But then I got into a relationship and the "pause" became rather more long-term. However in the last 2 years I've had about 4 months of full-time work work, and various odd days of temping. And I'm not currently benefit eligible (oh silly me for almost paying off a mortage at home before I went travelling!). So I actually meet your definition of "can't get work, can't get welfare".

Granted I'm a looong way from begging on the streets ... but it's good to remember that every simple statement opens several cans of worms in this sort of area.

dollybird2

Inishboffin - if it was around 6.15pm then yes it was my LAST cigarette! She's hilarious! There was a corolla behind me and they must know her as they were laughing goodo and in no rush to beep me on when the lights went green and Nora was hanging in my window!

Dr McManus

Amhran Nua wrote: »

As far as EU obligations go, and what is actually happening from what I gather, if an EU national is found to be unable to support themselves and does not qualify for JSA, is begging on the streets, homeless, or what have you, they are offered a free flight back to their home country. If they decline, the state has no further obligation to support them. A fair few have already left the country via that route.

By Aideen Sheehan
Thursday October 28 2010
MORE than 3,000 returning Irish emigrants have been refused social welfare payments because they haven't been living in Ireland for the two years before they made their claims.

The inconsistent enforcement of an 'habitual residency' requirement -- originally designed to stop welfare tourism from eastern Europe -- is causing enormous hardship.

The problem is so bad that some Irish citizens are ending up on the streets as a result, the Dail's Committee on Social Protection was told.

Emigrants who left Ireland in the 1960s and '70s are being affected, as well as some who left as recently as 18 months ago but have now returned and are being denied social welfare, said Joe O'Brien of Crosscare, the Catholic social-care agency.

The number of Irish citizens being turned down as habitual residents -- a condition for social welfare entitlements -- has doubled in the past two years, with 1,723 rejected between 2008 and 2009, and a total of 3,261 in all since the measure was introduced in 2004, Crosscare said.

The number of cases coming to Crosscare's attention in 2010 has increased five-fold already this year, said Mr O'Brien.

One of those affected is Rita Delaney.

After living and working for 17 years in Boston, Ms Delaney, who was born and raised in Pullough, Co Offaly, returned to Ireland in September, after being laid off from her job with the Massachussetts Institute of Technology.

Based in Dublin, she has been seeking work, but was shocked at the response when she went to the Department of Social Protection to see if she could claim jobseeker's allowance.

"One person there told me my best bet would be just to get on a plane back to the US," she said.

Ms Delaney, whose brother and other relatives still live in Ireland, has been turned down for habitual residency but given no explanation for that. With the aid of Crosscare, she plans to appeal the decision.

- Aideen Sheehan

Irish Independent

Amhran Nua

Dr McManus wrote: »

MORE than 3,000 returning Irish emigrants have been refused social welfare payments because they haven't been living in Ireland for the two years before they made their claims.

Yup, Lenihan and the lads have no difficulty bending EU rules into pretzels to charge VRT or hand out corporate tax loopholes, but god help you if you're a returning emigrant without a fortune in your back pocket, because nobody else will.

It wouldn't do to be of a nervous disposition leaving college in Ireland today.

GO_Bear

They are not getting my change !
Rabble Rabble

Xiney

In fairness, 17 years is a lifetime. Clearly she is not "habitually resident" in Ireland if she's been gone 17 years.

Mrs OBumble

Xiney wrote: »

In fairness, 17 years is a lifetime. Clearly she is not "habitually resident" in Ireland if she's been gone 17 years.

What the article doesn't say is that there are other ways, besides two years living here, of meeting the habitual residency.

They include being able to show that you don't own any property over there, and that you've closed your bank accounts there and transferred all your money and possessions here.