Episodes

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic episode Rory is joined by guest co-host and Head of Social Justice and Policy at SVP, Louise Bayliss, for a discussion about the latest developments (or disappointments) in our politics, the widening poverty gap, the impact of the housing crisis on other parts of our society and then they answer some of our tortoise shack member questions. The Shed-Sits or Small Homes Reboot is out now here:https://www.patreon.com/posts/patron-e...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic pod Rory is joined by producer Tony to discuss the latest Dáil shenanigans, the government’s continued backpedaling on pre-election promises and to answer your (excellent) questions. We will try to do a Question Time segment regularly, so please do send us in yours as well as any ideas, suggestions or feedback on the patreon feed. Thank you. The latest Reboot with the wonderful Lousie Bayliss is out now here:https://www.patreon....

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic (Reboot) Rory chats with producer Tony about his first few weeks in the Dáil, the new government's attempts at stroke politics, the government misleading the public with phantom new homes, the opportunity for cooperation on the opposition benches and then he answers some of your questions.

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic, Rory discusses the new (at least new to Ireland) affordable rental housing model: cost rental housing. He talks with authors of the new report, The Impact of Cost Rental Housing: Security, Affordability and Place, Dr Michael Byrne, Dr Cian O Callaghan and Rosemary Hennigan of Tuath Housing and Aengus Hennessy a resident in new cost rental housing. Cost rental housing is public housing for those earning incomes above social hous...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Podcast Rory and Tony talk with Sally Hayden, Irish journalist and award winning author of My Fourth Time, We Drowned, about the reality of the Israeli invasion and attacks on Lebanon. Sally has been living in Beirut since January and describes what she has seen and the experiences of people on the ground, as she has written about in her regular Irish Times articles. We talk about Israel's psychological war, the ill state of international human...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic we talk once more to award winning journalist and podcaster with the Guardian, John Harris about the tensions, achievements and neoliberal technocracy of the new Labour Government in the UK. We dig into the disconnect between the big parties and ordinary people. We also talk about autism, disability and the waste of energy that are the culture wars. Finally John tells us about his new book that'll be out early in 2025. The GE 20...

Please join us at patreon.com/toroiseshack In this Reboot Republic podcast, Rory discusses a new approach to addressing both climate and inequality - in changing the narrative and moving towards transformative changes, such as public investment in warmer green homes for everyone, with Dr Ciaran O'Caroll, Lecturer in TU Dublin and climate analyst. We also discuss the Budget, data centres, and a green social justice approach to the climate transition. The General Election Starting Gun podcast:http...

Please join us on patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic, Rory dissects Budget 2025 with Michael Taft, economist , and Susanne Rogers of Social Justice Ireland and they find more tokenism than transformation, We discuss how the Budget was actually regressive - those on higher incomes gained more - it failed to take transformative action on housing, health or child poverty. Michael points to a broad public retrofitting scheme as one measure that would have used the billions for transfo...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic podcast Rory discusses the crisis in childcare and how a public system of Early Childhood Education and Care would work, with Orla O Connor and Eilish Balfe of the National Women's Council of Ireland, and Lynette Monk, manager of a Community Childcare and Afterschool Service, who was also involved with SIPTU's Big Start Campaign. The childcare and early years education sector is in a crisis -from lack of places, unaffordable fee...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack n this Reboot Republic, Rory alongside Adam Boyle, Solicitor with the Mercy Law Centre, factcheck Taoiseach Simon Harris' claims that "homelessness numbers are heavily impacted by the fact we are seeing many people seek protection in our country, seek asylum in our country". We highlight how asylum seekers are not included in the homeless numbers the Taoiseach references, how the majority of people presenting as homeless are doing so due to evictions f...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this podcast Rory discusess the issues of rising deprivation and homelessness amongst Ireland's children, with Tanya Ward, Director of the Children's Rights Alliance. The number in children experiencing enforced deprivation has increased from 200,000 to 257000 between 2021 and 2023, while the number of children homeless with their families has increased by 87% since 2021, yet we have billions in Budget Surplus. We discuss how the lifting of the evic...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this podcast Rory talks to Dr Tom McDonnell, Director of the Nevin Economics Research Institute, about the state of the Irish economy, and the upcoming Budget, why it is wrong to frame it as a 'give-away' budget, how we have record economic growth and yet deprivation has increased to 17%, why the Budget should invest in a wellbeing economy - in housing, a public construction company, public childcare, universal healthcare and climate transition. We ...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic, Rory talks with Louise Bayliss, Advocacy and Campaigns Coordinator with Focus Ireland. The latest homelessness figures show that we have the highest recorded homeless in Ireland, with the number of children homeless with their families at 4,401 children, an 87% increase since the Governments plan Housing For All in 2021. We discuss the traumatic impact of homelessness on children and families, and what are the solutions: includ...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic, Rory talks with Anne Marie Quilligan, a qualified social worker and Traveller activist about her experiences growing up in Limerick, community, discrimination, Traveller homelessness and the Carrickmines tragedy, the parallels between anti-asylum seeker and anti-Traveller racism, and what a trauma informed approach to exclusion and solidarity means, we discuss the need to build cross society connections to challenge the rise in...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic, Rory chats with Tony about the latest data that rips up the long running “landlords are fleeing the market” narrative and shows how the lifting of the no-fault eviction ban is having such a devastating impact in terms of homelessness. They also discuss Rory’s decision to try and retain the Soc Dem seat currently held by the soon-to-retire Roisin Shortall. Tickets for our Live Show:https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/the-tortoise-shack-...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic podcast, Rory speaks with a brilliant panel of Ber Grogan of Mental Health Reform, Charles O’Mahony NUIG lecturer and Mental health, human rights & disability law & policy researcher and Ciara Glynn, mental health peer, activist and of the wonderful team at Solace Cafe, to discuss the issues facing people in need of mental health services and those who are struggling to deliver in this unequal and unfair financially driven socie...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic, Rory chats with Professors Kate Pickett and Richard Wilkinson, authors of several ground breaking and massively influential research on inequality including the Spirit Level (2009), the Inner Level (2015), and Act Now ( 2024, multi-author). We discuss how and why more unequal societies do worse in terms of trust, health, wellbeing, and environment, and what can be done to achieve more equal societies. A must-listen for anyone i...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic episode Rory talks tackling Ireland's blight of dereliction and solutions, with Jude Sherry and Frank O Connor of Anois. Four years on from Jude and Frank's first Derelict Ireland tweets, we look back and see the cultural change in attitudes, as the public has demanded action on Ireland's scandal of huge numbers of derelict buildings while a generation are locked out of a home. This is a podcast of hope and solutions. The Gaza A...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic, Rory is joined by Tony Groves to discuss the big issues of recent weeks including , the anti-immigrant protests, Sinn Fein's statement, rising inequality and the Government, and a history of NAMA and how its land should be immediately transferred to a public home building agency. Derelict Ireland Podcast here:https://www.patreon.com/posts/patron-exclusive-108852398 Gaza Appeal here:https://www.patreon.com/posts/look-what-you-us...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this reboot republic podcast, Rory chats with Saoirse Exton, climate activist and youth advisor to the UN Secretary General, and Professor Mary Murphy, author of Creating an Ecosocial Welfare Future. We discuss the recent elections and analyse why the Green vote declined in the failure to put social justice and cost of living issues central to green politics. We discuss the ideas presented at the Rethinking Growth Conference, and new ideas for clima...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack This is not the Community of Coolock: After the Protest Finding Positive Ways Forward In this Reboot Republic, Rory discusses the fallout from the protests in Coolock and finding positive ways forward for communities with Cllr John Lyons, Cllr Daniel Ennis and Niamh McDonald of the Hope and Courage Collective. We discuss the strategy of the far-right and leaders spreading hate, the fact that the protests and violence does not represent the majority of ...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot podcast Rory talks to Rosie Lynch of Workhouse Union about what is happening to community led affordable housing initiatives in Ireland. We ask why is the Government not supporting community led affordable housing? It appears once more the market is king in housing policy as investor funds like Bartra get funding to build social and affordable housing but the Government wont fund affordable housing providers like O Cualann. Community led...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic, Rory talks with Dwayne Woods, artist manager, music publicist and mental health advocate, who just last week was made homeless by repeated state failures to support him from avoiding becoming homeless. He tells his story which challenges the Government spin that describes homelessness as having complex causes, and shows its state failure - housing failure, that is causing homelessness. Dwayne's story is powerful and heartbreaki...

Please join us at patreon.com/tortoiseshack In this Reboot Republic, Rory talks to Jenny Roche, who, with her family, is facing eviction from their home in Galway. Jenny is a lecturer in film in NUI Galway and has been living in her rental home for 19 years. She tells her housing story of living in fear, anxiety, the impact on her child, and how she is overholding because there is no where to go and she refuses to be evicted into hidden homelessness. This is the tsunami of evictions we've warned...