Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign

Lobbying Organisation Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign

Date published 10 Jan, 2017

Relevant Matter Public policy or programme

Public Policy Area Banking and Financial Institutions

Period 1 Sep, 2016 to 31 Dec, 2016

Specific Details Informed public representaives of the Bank of Ireland closure of IPSC bank accounts

Intended results To secure backing from public represenatives to have our accounts reinstated by the BOI

Name of person primarily responsible for lobbying on this activity Fatin al Tamimi, Kevin Squires

Did any Designated Public Official(DPO) or former Designated Public Official(DPO) carry out lobbying activities on your behalf in relation to this return? You must include yourself, and answer Yes, if you are a current DPO or a DPO at any time in the past. (What is a Designated Public Official?) No

Did you manage or direct a grassroots campaign? No

Was this lobbying done on behalf of a client? No

Mass communications

Email All Oireachtas Members Informed public reps that our accounts had been unwarrantedly and unilatyerlaly closed by the Bank of Ireland. Asked public reps, as supporters of human and civil rights, to back our request to Bank of Ireland (BOI) to re-open our bank accounts - from making a public statement through to raising queries directly with the Bank of Ireland. Provided a link to IPSC statement on the issue: http://bit.ly/2dC8kRO

Email All MEPs Informed public reps that our accounts had been unwarrantedly and unilatyerlaly closed by the Bank of Ireland. Asked public reps, as supporters of human and civil rights, to back our request to Bank of Ireland (BOI) to re-open our bank accounts - from making a public statement through to raising queries directly with the Bank of Ireland. Provided a link to IPSC statement on the issue: http://bit.ly/2dC8kRO

Lobbying activity

The following activities occurred for this specific Subject Matter Area.

Email (2-5)

Responding to our initial email, Padraig MacLochlainn informed us that Oireachtas Friends of Palestine of which he is Secretary wrote twice to Bank of Ireland querying the closure, and informed us of this.

Email (2-5)

Responding to our initial email, Clare Daly TD informed us that she had written to the bank and submitted a question to the Minister of Finance on the matter.

Email (2-5)

Responding to our initial email, Gino Kenny TD informed us that People Before Profit had issued a statement on the matter.

Email (2-5)

Responding to our initial email, Mick Barry TD and Ruth Coppinger TD informed us of Anti-Austerity Alliance's support in the matter, and that they wouidl be issuing a statement and submitting a question to the Minister of Finance,

Email (2-5)

Responding to our initial email, Mary Lou McDonald TD informed us that she had issued a statement on the matter.

Email (2-5)

Responding to our initial email, John Lahart TD informed us that he had written to the bank on the matter.

Email (2-5)

Responding to our initial email, Sen. Paul Gavan informed us that he had made a statement on the matter in the Seanad

Email (11-20)

Responding to our initial email, Sen. David Norris informed us that he had written to the bank on the matter, and later informed us that he was submitting a motion to the Seanad on the matter, and asked if we had any further comment or information which we duly supplied.

Phone call (1)

After passage of an amended version of the motion, Sen David Norris' office informed us he had written to the Finance Committee requesting that they write to the bank on the matter.

Email (2-5)

Responding to our initial email, Paul Murphy TD informed us that the Finance Committee had written to the Bank of Ireland on matter.

Letter (1)

Responding to our initial email, Bernard Durkan TD informed us that he had made inquiries to the bank on the matter.

Email (1)

Emailed John McGuinness TD, chair of the Oireachtas Finance Committee asking the Ctte to debate the Bank of Ireland issue.

Email (6-10)

Responding to our initial email, Sean Crowe TD's office informed us of Sinn Fein's support in the matter and that he had submitted questions on the matter to the Ministers for Foreign Affairs and Finance.

Email (2-5)

Responding to our initial email, Finian McGrath TD informed us he had written to the Minister for Finance on the matter.

Designated public officials lobbied

The following DPOs were lobbied during this return period on this specific Subject Matter Area. These DPOs were involved in at least one of the Lobbying Activities listed above, but not necessarily all of them. As returns are specific to a Subject Matter Area the above Lobbying Activities may be associated with multiple returns.

David Norris Senator (Seanad)

Seán Crowe TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn Senator (Seanad)

Ruth Coppinger TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

Mick Barry TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

Mary Lou McDonald TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

Gino Kenny TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

John Lahart TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

Paul Gavan Senator (Seanad)

John McGuinness TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

Bernard Durkan TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

Paul Murphy TD (Dáil Éireann, the Oireachtas)

Finian McGrath Minister of State (Department of Health)