Business Decision Making Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Business Decision Making - Assignment Example Basically, reduced taxes on organizations are best for fresh firms. Low taxes would mean that new firms battling to the mainstream can retain most of their profits. Likewise, spending by the government assists fresh firms. The government is able to give out revenue by redistributing it to those new organizations through subsidized loan, grants, or other forms of spending which are driven towards new or small firms. The government may as well spend more funds to form a partnership with a fresh company. Such happens within the local and state government level. For instance, a Supermarket research organization may be awarded federal or state loans and grants in order to start up new stories of supermarket (Lewis 56). Normally there are usually disagreements over the monetary and fiscal policy. Some individuals and organizations assert that the government must redistribute funds from income taxes simply because people will gain in the long run from more establishments of supermarket stor es. Some are also arguing that the government ought to redistribute funds from business since these firms are already making lots of profits and it is very essential to have alternative stores departments. From a different perspective, many are not of the idea that the government must be involved. The reasoning is that if establishing a supermarket store is a good business idea, the funds from the government would not be in any need. The sole reason why these funds are required is because the business not efficient enough to maintain itself. So it is like the government is promoting unsuccessful firms while punishing those which have become successful. This is seen as an unsustainable cycle given that the performing organizations struggle as the worst performing ones acquire more funds. Eventually, the best performing firms will die off, only leaving unsustainable firms which would otherwise die off if it were not for this government (Alvarez 39). P2.3: Impact of APPLE company compe tition policy Apple Inc. is a multinational corporation in America. The company has a strong brand name which makes it to be considered as one of the most successful companies in the world that deals with electronics. According to Porter E. Michael, there are 5 main forces of competition in the computer industry. The following are some of the competitive forces for the Apple Company; the bargaining power of the suppliers, the bargaining power of the consumers, the intensity of the existing rivalry among its competing firms, threat of substitutes, and the threat of new competitors. The 2 most important competition forces for Apple Company include; the bargaining power of the suppliers, and the bargaining power of the consumers. The bargaining power of the suppliers is the ability of the Apple firm to negotiate some good terms which is largely influenced by the firms that it relies on. Apple is known to have good bargaining power among its suppliers since they are in a position to out source most of their manufacturing. They are also having the capacity to vertically integrate by producing some supplies on their own. This has allowed them to

Scrutiny of Property as an Investment Class Essay

Scrutiny of Property as an Investment Class - Essay Example Risk is a calculation of what is anticipated to occur but not what is really happening. Investment determinations nevertheless need the inference of an unidentified future return, which is known as expected return. Since there is a series of probable results there is no assurance that the estimation will be accurate, but it is the most excellent likely evaluation. The increase of allocation of anticipated returns about the entire expected mean estimation is typically calculated by the standard deviation (), or its square, the variance (2), and this is the typical risk measure. When assets are pooled in a portfolio, the anticipated return is a subjective mean of the individual asset's predictable return. The weights are the ratios of these assets accommodated in the portfolio. The portfolio risk is composite. The portfolio risk reckons not only on the weights and the individual chances but also on the correlativity between the assets. The correlation coefficient, , assesses joint moves between the two variables and how they vary jointly. The rate can differ from -1.0 to +1.0, even though for majority of the variables, the correlation coefficient lies between these two valu... The threat of the portfolio is the weighted mean of the risks of the assets in the portfolio. When the relationship is -1.0, the return are absolutely negative correlated which means that with the increase or decrease in the value of one variable the other variable will move in the opposite proportions. The correlation coefficient for assets without any correlation at all is zero (Perold, 2004). According to Hoesli, M., and MacGregor, B. D., (2000), "the first stage was to compute the expected return and risk of each individual asset and to use these to calculate the portfolio expected return and risk from all possible combination of weights, using both linear programming and investing." In reality, no two assets can ever be completely correlated as their income is impacted by diverse factors. When all of the correlations are fully correlated, the risk is constantly less than the weighted mean. In this event, some of the risk from one asset can be counterbalanced to an extent by the other asset, so that the standard deviation of the portfolio always remains lesser than the mean risk of the weighted average of the standard deviation of each item. This is the foundation of variegation and portfolio creation. The quantity by which risk is cut down reckons on the correlations among the assets. The lesser the correlation is between rent and capital gains on different assets the further away the correlation will be from +1 resulting in greater profits of variegation. Consequently, investors who hold a broadened portfolio with not completely correlated assets could get rid of the risk linked with the individual assets. According to Brown, Keith C. and Frank K. Reilly,

Policy on Social and Affordable Housing in Ireland

Policy on Social and Affordable Housing in Ireland 1.0 What is Social and Affordable Housing? 1.1 Social Housing: Definition According to the Irish Council for Social Housing (2010), Social Housing can be broadly defined as accommodation provided by a local authority or approved non-profit housing body for persons who are unable to provide accommodation form their own resources. (www.icsh.ie) 1.2 Affordable Housing: Definition As defined by Dublin City Council (2010), Affordable Housing is a scheme whereby new homes are sold at a reduced price to people who cannot afford to buy a property on their own. (www.dublincity.ie) 1.3 History of Social Housing According to Redmond and Norris (2005), the first instances of social and affordable housing can be tracked back to the mid 1800s. During this time, Europe was witnessing widespread concern about housing conditions of the low income population. This unrest led to state subsidized rental housing to the disadvantaged and low income groups. This form of housing is now known as social housing. Social housing in Ireland has traditionally been provided through two means, these are: Local Authorities and Approved Voluntary Housing Associations. 1.3.1 Local Authority Social Housing In Ireland the Housing of the Working Classes Act (1890), was the first such Act to introduce the concept of the provision for social housing by the local authorities. This act introduced little change to the housing situation at the time. It was not until 1919 when a new housing Act was introduced. This Act was The Housing Act 1919. This Act obliged the local authorities to build and to provide subsidies in areas where there was a need for housing. From the time of introduction of this Act, Ireland saw a substantial period of social housing programmes and completions. This period continued well up until the 1950s. In 1966 a new Act was introduced to modernise the countries outdated legal framework in relation to housing. This Act was The 1966 Housing Act. To date Ireland has benefited from the introduction of 330,000 homes provided by local authorities under social housing initiatives. Currently local authorities manage 108,000 homes under the bracket of social housing. 1.3.2 Approved Voluntary Housing Association Social Housing As defined by the Irish Council for Social Housing (2010), Voluntary housing associations are non-profit organisations formed for the purpose of relieving housing need and the provision and management of housing. The largest of the voluntary housing associations in Ireland at present is the Iveagh Trust. The Iveagh Trust was set up in 1890 by Sir Edward Cecil Guinness, Earl of Iveagh. The purpose of this trust was to provide housing and other amenities to the working classes in Dublin. This was one of the first schemes of its kind to provide such assistance. The introduction of The Capital Assistance Scheme (1984) has provided much needed assistance to these housing associations. Due to the assistance provided by this scheme voluntary housing associations have been able to grow and provide effective assistance in the role of providing housing to those unable to provide housing for themselves. During the mid to late 1990s voluntary housing associations struggled to provide housing due to the increasing land and building costs. According to the National Economic and Social Council (2004), during the 1990s voluntary housing associations produced their lowest output of 285 units. At this time the numbers of people in need of housing was rapidly increasing. The Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal, Mr Robert Molloy T.D., was then prompted to update and improve the schemes available to the voluntary housing agencies. This allowed them to again function effectively in their role to the communities. In 2003 the voluntary housing sector has a managed stock of over 16,000 dwellings. The National Economic Social Council (2004). The Irish Council for Social Housing has recognised the role that the voluntary housing agencies provide in Ireland and has ensured that they have been included in the following current government policy documents: National Development Plan 2007 2013 and Towards 2016. Icsh (2010). 1.4 History of Affordable Housing Affordable housing is a relatively recent initiative in Ireland with the Housing Act 1992 providing the first policies for affordable housing. This Act facilitated access to full ownership in two or more stages to those who cannot afford ownership by their own means. Under this Act the purchaser must initially purchase 40% of the property. The Affordable Housing Scheme 1999 brought forward proposals by the social partnership to provide additional affordable housing on land that is already in the possession of the State and local authorities. As defined by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (2009), the Affordable Housing Scheme 1999 comprises developments built on local authority land and in some cases purchased turnkey developments. It was not until the introduction of Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 that affordable housing could be considered an effective form of providing housing to those who cannot afford to buy a property on their own. This Act provided an obligation for developers to transfer up to a maximum of 20% of land, units, sites, an equivalent financial contribution or other land or units off site to the local authority for the use to provide social and affordable housing. According to the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (2009), in 2007 the provision set out in Part V for affordable housing, accounted for 60% of the country wide provision of affordable housing. Today it is through the three measures above that affordable housing is primarily being provided by the local authorities. Sustaining Progress 2003 2005 introduced the Affordable Housing Initiative (AHI). This initiative was responsible for providing 10,000 affordable homes on local authority and State lands. This target has been increased in the current social partnership agreement, Towards 2016, to 17,000 affordable homes. In 2005 the Irish Government decided to establish the Affordable Homes Partnership (AHP). The role of the AHP was to coordinate the delivery of affordable housing by the local authorities in the Greater Dublin Area. The role of AHP in 2007 was extended in to coordinate affordable housing at a national level. During the period of 2006 2008 the AHP actually provided affordable housing direct to the applicant. The AHP when it was created was to take the responsibility of the sites under the AHI. The AHP used this land to deliver affordable housing through land exchanges. According to the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government 2009, only two land exchanges have taken place to date through the AHP. REFERENCES: Social Partnership (2006), Towards 2016. Dublin, Social Partnership Agreement, The Stationary Office. Ireland, Planning and Development Act 2000, Part V. Dublin: Stationary Office Buckley, J. (11 May 2009). Water Services and Affordable Housing Delivery Report. Dublin, Comptroller and Auditor General Special Report, Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. Social Partnership (2003), Sustaining Progress 2003 2005. Dublin, Social Partnership Agreement, The Stationary Office. The Economic Social Council (2004) Housing in Ireland: Performance and Policy. Dublin, The National and Economic Council. The Irish Council for Social Housing (2010), Development of the Voluntary Housing Sector [online], available: http://www.icsh.ie/eng/housing_in_ireland/development_of_the_voluntary_housing_sec, [accessed 2 January 2010]. Redmond, D. and Norris, M.(2005)Setting the Scene: Recent transformations in Irish housinginHousing Contemporary Ireland: policy, society and shelter,ed(s)., Dublin,Institute of Public Administration. Irish Council for Social Housing (2010), History of Hosing Policy [online], available: http://www.icsh.ie/eng/housing_in_ireland/government_policy, [accessed 2 January 2010]. 2.0 Government Policy and Legislation 2.1 Introduction According to the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (2009), the aim of the Irish Housing Policy is to enable every household to have available an affordable dwelling of good quality, suited to its needs, in a good environment and as far as possible at the tenure of its choice. The following review provides information on the legislative background of the social and affordable housing in Ireland. It examines the acts, initiatives and reports in relation to social and affordable housing and details the circumstances that gave rise to the implementation of Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000. It also examines the government policies that affect housing affordability and analyses Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 and the amendments made in 2002. 2.2 Government Policies that Influence Home Ownership and Prices During the last two decades house prices have been increasing largely due to the demand by the young growing population that were looking to get into the property market. During this period interest rates on property and tax rates on property were particularly suited to home ownership. April 1997 saw the abolishment of the taxation of residential property. After April 1997 stamp duty was the sole tax that one had to pay when dealing with the sale or purchase of a residential property. The Government introduced mortgage interest relief as an incentive to encourage home ownership. Mortgage interest relief is available from the lender to the purchaser, once the owner can prove that the money has been solely applied for the purpose to purchase a property. The reduction in mortgage repayments is catered for by the reduction of tax that the applicant is entitled to. 2.4 Circumstances That Gave Rise to Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 The following sections of this dissertation are a review of the contributing factors that gave rise to Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000. The following sections include a review of the Bacon Reports and other important factors. 2.4.1 Bacon Report 1: An Economic Assessment of Recent House Price Developments During the lead up to the publishing of the first Bacon report, Ireland was experiencing rapid increase in house prices. During this period investors began to flex their muscles in the property market. As a result the first time buyers suffered and began to find it increasingly difficult to enter the housing market. Traditionally first time buyers bought properties towards the lower end of the property ladder. It was these properties that the investors were driven to secure with the aim to rent. The demand for these rental properties was fuelled by the increase in numbers of immigrants entering the country that were not looking to buy properties but to rent properties. This increase in demand for property led to a number of housing agencies to issue warnings that demand for housing would continue to increase and continue to inflate housing prices in the market in Ireland. The first Bacon report proposed interventions by the government to help first time buyers who were at this stage, struggling to get into the inflated property market. The report recommended that the government should strive for a more acceptable rate of house price development and suggested four main areas to focus on for a policy response. These areas are as follows; Achieve better balance between demand and supply in the short term, improve the potential supply of the housing, engage in infrastructure developments and to improve medium and long term planning of the development of the east region. The Bacon report goes on to suggest a rebalancing of existing incentives in favour of the provision of housing at the lower end of the property market. The report highlights that the revenue has overlooked the provision of incentives for providing affordable housing. The report suggests revenue incentives, as a method to increase availability and choice to first time buyers who were struggling to enter the property market. The removal of what was defined as Section 23 incentives for investors and the removal of mortgage interest relief against properties were suggested. A reduction of stamp duty on second hand homes was proposed to increase the scope of available affordable homes in the second hand market. The report suggested a review of residential densities and investment in infrastructure as necessary to help maximise housing supply. The report went on to suggest the idea of introducing an administrative control on housing prices. This idea was later discarded as it was thought that the control of house prices would have the potential to distort the property market. 2.4.2 Government Response to Bacon 1 The government responded to Bacon 1 by decreasing stamp duty rates on second hand houses and also by investing in the improvement of the infrastructure to help realise the potential of development land. The government imposed stamp duty on new houses bought by non owner occupiers. Tax relief for property investors on Section 23 properties was reviewed and the suitability of each property for relief is to be individually assessed subject to the Local Area Plan. Deductibility of interest on borrowings undertaken for investment in property was removed after April 23rd 1998. Action was also taken in the effort to bring down income limits for the shared ownership scheme to a level that was more relevant to the incomes at the time. 2.4.3 Bacon Report 2: The Housing Market, an Economic Review and Assessment The Bacon Report 2 was published after the Government responded to the first Bacon report. This report centres largely on the period directly after the first Bacon Report and observes the impact of the report by assessing the property market during this time. The Report finds that house inflation had slowed since the Governments actions following the first Bacon Report. This slow down was particularly apparent in the market for new housing. Following the first report, the Government removed the deductibility of interest on borrowings for investors while promoting liquidity in the second hand market by changing the structure of the stamp duty system. This Report found that the reduction in interest rates at the time and the easing house price inflation should have made housing more affordable, but in fact affordability remained a serious problem. The Report did warn that a reduction in housing prices may solve the issue of affordability but negative equity would be serious bye-product. The Report made it clear to the Government that they had to centre on filling the void between the price of new houses and the price that was affordable for those who could not afford to buy a new house at the normal asking price. The Report suggested again as it did in the first Bacon Report, that the issue of housing densities should be reviewed, with the possible integration of terraced housing in new developments as a method of providing housing at a lower cost to the developer. The Report did raise the issue of social isolation due to this form of housing. The Bacon Report 2 introduced a concept to develop a scheme for the provision of affordable housing by local authorities and developers. This was the first instance that laid the foundations of the affordable homes scheme. The need to strengthen the existing Planning Acts was highlighted with the objective of modernising the Governments housing policy. The concept of making housing more affordable and improving accessibility to mortgage funding would further increase demand for housing and therefore increase housing prices. As a result the Report suggested to the Minister for the Environment and Local Government to invite proposals from agencies within the voluntary sector as how they could be helped to develop and also how their resources could be applied in a more effective manner with the aim of providing extra housing for the sectors of the community most in need. 2.4.4 Government Response to Bacon 2 On the 9th of March 1999 issued a report titled, Action on the Housing Market. This report contained the Governments response to the 2nd Bacon Report. This report contained initiatives which aimed to maximise and expedite housing supply, secure house price stabilisation, address affordability issues and ensure balanced growth of the property market in the future, (Action on the Housing Market, 1999). Their actions included placing temporary sewerage facilities on land in Dublin to enable the early release of 16000 housing sites. Arrangements were made to identify infrastructural constraints in areas of growth which would reduce delay in housing provision. Draft guidelines for new housing densities were published. These included action on increasing the mix of affordable housing in new developments. An affordable housing scheme was launched shortly before the release of the government response. Through this scheme Local Authorities would provide additional new houses on land available to them which would help lower income households to purchase their own homes. It was stated that the Department of the Environment and Local Government would invite proposals from the voluntary housing sector as to how to expand on the voluntary housing programme. 2.4.5 Bacon Report 3: The Housing Market in Ireland: An Economic Evaluation of Trends Prospects The third Bacon Report was released on the 6th of June 2000. The first point of Bacon 3s executive summary stated that the rate of increase in housing prices, since the release of the first Bacon Report in 1998 had slowed down significantly. The strengthening economy at the time was blamed for the increased difficulty in securing stability in the housing market. House price completions had increased in each successive quarter in 1999. The average price of new houses was still beyond the reach of many average workers. The rate of economic growth at the time meant potential demand for additional 8.000 to 10,000 residential units per annum. The requirement for increased supply in Dublin and the Middle East regions was stressed as increasingly important to control house prices due to the predicted increase in demand in that area. 2.4.6 Government Response to Bacon3 The Government released a report detailing measures which it would take to address housing needs and requirements, as outlined in the third Bacon Report. With regard to Social and Affordable housing, the Government stated that they would increase output of local authority housing that would start at 1,000 units per annum between 2001 and 2006. The Government also proposed measures that would aim to facilitate Local Authorities and Voluntary Bodies to acquire sufficient land that they could provide social and affordable housing. 2.5 Demands for Irish Housing According to Norris and Redmond (2005), there have been significant increases in the demand for housing in Ireland during the economic boom, caused by a combination of economic, demographic and social factors. As mentioned in 2.4.1, the Governments taxation policy was favourable to property investors, particularly during the period following the 1986 Urban Renewal Act which initiated Section 23 Tax Relief. The annual housing inflation rate in 1998 was at 22.5%. At the time this rate of inflation showed no signs of slowing down. The First Bacon Report summarised in 2.4.1, estimated high levels of future demand for Irish housing. The Second Bacon Report pointed to rising rents in the private rented sector. Social rented housing output was not increasing and in 1999 the local authority assessment of housing need showed that 39,716 households were registered on local authority waiting lists, this was an increase of 43% on the previous assessment of housing need which was complied in 1996 , Brooke (2006). The first affordable housing scheme was introduced in March 1999. This scheme provided only 40 affordable houses that year. Part V of the Planning and Development Bill 1999 was structured to address these issues. The Minister for the Environment, Mr Noel Dempsey stated that Part V addressed two major issues in the Irish Housing Policy that allowed people to purchase their own homes and also of the provision of social rented housing. According Mr Noel Dempsey (2000), Part V of the Bill, introduces a major new dimension to planning legislation and contains the most radical and probably the most contentious provisions of the Bill. 2.6 Most Notable Legislation in Relation to Irish Housing Provision The following is an account of some of the Legislation that is considered most important in relation to Social and Affordable Housing. 2.6.1 Housing Act 1966 This Act modernised the legal framework for social housing in Ireland. Is also included the provision for the tenant purchase scheme which allowed local authority tenants to purchase their houses form the local authority. Section 55 of this act relates to a house building programme which each local authority must adhere to in relation to the provision of housing. 2.6.2 Housing Act 1988 This act defined how homelessness would be interpreted in relation to the provision of housing. It allowed the provision of a subsidy to eligible persons against the loans which they had obtained for the purchase or construction of their house. It required local authorities to make an estimation of housing requirements within their functional area both at the present time and over a designated period of time. 2.6.3 Housing Act 1992 This act introduced the Shared Ownership Scheme which allowed a housing authority to grant a shared ownership lease for a term of more than 20 years but not less than 100 years. 2.6.4 The Planning and Development Bill 1999 According to the House of the Oireachtas, the Planning and Development Bill 1999 is to revise and consolidate the law relating to planning and development by repealing and re-enacting with amendments the local government (planning and development) acts, 1963 to 1999; to provide, in the interests of the common good, for proper planning and sustainable development including the provision of housing. 2.6.5 Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 dealt with housing supply and it came into effect on 1 November 2000. The primary objective behind the introduction of Part V was to obtain land for housing purposes, however the legislation also aimed to improve integration between different social groups by introducing social and affordable housing into private housing estates. The legislation has been the subject of controversy since its inception. Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 was resisted by the Construction Industry Federation and the Home Builders Association. These two groups were the primary objectors of the legislation and claimed that Part V would result in a reduction in supply of new private housing, that will increase second hand prices and the buyers of new houses will subsidise the affordable and social housing being expropriated from the industry Norris, M (1999). Part V of the Act did have supporters that described the Act as a landmark step that woul d modernise the planning system in Ireland, improve housing delivery and help reduce undue social segregation in new housing developments. It represents a community and planning gain or return against the windfall profits arising from the development of land Brooke (2006). Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 requires that housing strategies be drawn up by planning authorities and integrated into their development plans. Each housing strategy should have regard to the proper planning and sustainable development of an area and should be concerned with the overall supply of housing within the planning authority. In addition, the Act makes communities needs for social and affordable housing a material planning consideration which must be taken account of in formulating development plan policies, preparing a housing strategy and deciding on planning applications or appeals. The Act places a statutory obligation on planning authorities to ensure that sufficient land is zoned for housing in their development plans to meet the projected housing requirements over the plan period and to ensure that an undue shortage will not arise, The Planning and Development Act (2000 p.1.). Most importantly the Act empowers a local authority to attach a condition on a planning permission on land zoned as residential, a requirement for developers to supply up to 20% of the land for social and affordable housing. This requirement was set down in the act with the objective to create all new residential developments that will have a proportion of social and affordable housing contained in within it. The provision of social and affordable housing under Part V only applied to developments that were over 0.1 Hectares in size and contained more than 5 units. Part V only applied to planning applications for permission on land zoned as residential use. This requirement was considered a major flaw as it allowed developers to avail of a loop hole of which they could use to avoid the social and affordable housing requirements set out in Part V. This was particularly apparent on Co. Leithrim, where the town of Carrick-On-Shannon was the only area in the county where zoning provisions where present. Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 was commenced on the 1st of November 2000. By the 31st of July 2001 all of the local authorities had amended their development plans and had completed new housing strategies that allowed for the new requirements contained in the Act. 2.6.6 The Planning and Development Amendment Act 2002 This Act allowed developers a greater choice with the provision of social and affordable housing. The Act enabled developers to provide land, sites or housing as an alternative to providing social and affordable housing in each development. The alternatives did however have to be contained within the remit of that planning authority. The developer was allowed another alternative to this requirement under the Act, the developer is allowed to pay the local authority a sum of money equivalent in value to the transfer of the land. This amendment of the Planning and Development Act 2000 is considered by many as a weakening or a cop out to the developers. One of the primary aims of the original Act was to counteract social segregation but now this responsibility is effectively left in the hands of the developer. 2.7 Government Intervention in Irish Housing Provision The following are the most important examples of Government interventions in relation to the Irish housing market. 2.7.1 Local Authority House Building Scheme The 1966 Housing Act places an obligation on local authorities to provide housing for those who cannot afford appropriate housing for themselves. Redmond, D. and Norris, M.(2005)state that 300,000 housing units have been provided to date, since the introduction of the Local Authority House Building Scheme. 2.7.2 House Purchase Loan Scheme The House Purchase Loan Scheme was introduced for those who have had an unsuccessful loan application with a building society, bank or any other lending institution to build or to buy a residential property. This scheme gave a person an alternative option as to avail of a local authority loan. To receive this loan the applicant must not exceed an income of  £40,000 as a single income household or  £100,000 as a dual income household and must have been refused a loan by a bank or building society. 2.7.3 Tenant Purchase Scheme The Tenant Purchase Scheme was introduced under Section 90 of the 1966 Housing Act. Section 90 allowed a local authority to sell on a social house to the tenant. The Act also allowed a local authority to sell a vacant house to whomever they deemed suitable, once the prospective purchaser is in need of housing. 2.7.4 1999 Affordable Housing Scheme The affordable housing scheme was introduce in March 1999. Under this scheme a person can purchase a house from a local authority at a reduced rate to the normal market price. The price of the house is subsidised by the Department of the Environment at  £50,000 per house in the Dublin local authorities and all city councils and at  £31800 for all other local authorities. 2.7.5 Affordable Housing Provided Under Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 As summarised in detail above in section 2.6.5, Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 empowers a local authority to obtain up to 20% of land zoned for residential use at a reduced rate from a developer to provide social and affordable housing. 2.7.6 Capital Assistance Scheme According to the Department of the Environment (2010), the Capital Assistance Scheme enables voluntary housing bodies to provide accommodation to meet housing needs in special areas, such as of people with disabilities, elderly, homelessness, emigrants or small families. 2.7.7 Capital Loan and Subsidy Scheme The Capital Loan and Subsidy Schemes enable voluntary bodies with the means to provide rental housing for low income families. 2.8 Conclusion Government policy has led to both a high owner occupier rate of housing in Ireland and also high house prices. The aims of the Irish Housing Policy has been greatly affected by government polices. Housing had become less affordable due to previous incentives which encouraged investment and speculation in the market. It was not until the 1990s when the issue of housing affordability arose. This led to the commission of the Bacon Reports on housing in Ireland. The issue of Social and Affordable housing provision in Ireland became more important during the property boom due to rising prices. This looked to have been on its way to rectification in the Planning and Development Act 2000 which brought about a sense of coordination in housing provision. However the potential of Part V of the Planning and Development Act 2000 as a mechanism for ensuring sustainable provision of Social and Affordable Housing without social segregation was greatly depleted with the introduction of the Amendment Act in 2002, which provided too many options for compliance by developers. In the current market downturn, affordable housing in its current guise has arguably lost importance in comparison to social housing due to values of all property falling. Therefore updated legislation in relation to Part V is necessary to rectify the current weakening housing policy. REFERENCES: Norris, M. (1999) Mixed-Tenure Housing Estates: Development, Design, Management and Outcomes. Dublin, The Housing Unit. Dempsey, N. (2000) Planning and Development Bill 2000, second stage, 2nd February, Dà ¡il Éireann, available: http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/D/0513/D.0513.200002020018.html [accessed 23 February 2010]. Brooke, S. (2006) Building for inclusion? : Housing output and part V of the Irish Planning and Development system. Dublin. Focus Ireland. Bacon, P and Mac Cabe, F. (1998) Bacon Report 1: An Economic Assessment of Recent House Price Developments. Dublin, Stationary Office, Minister for Housing and Urban Renewal. Bacon, P and Mac Cabe, F. (1999) Bacon Report 2: The Housing Market an Economic Review and Assessment. Dublin, Stationary Office, Minister fo

Breast Cancer Essay -- Health Disease Essays Papers Prevention

Breast Cancer Cancer is one of the leading causes of death in the United States. There are many different types of cancer that are affecting people all over. Breast Cancer is one of these, and is found in man and women. Over 200,000 women and 1,300 men have been diagnosed with breast cancer this year. One in eight women will detect breast cancer in their lifetime. Men are less than one percent of the cases of breast cancer that are detected. Although prevention is not yet available, early detection is the best way to handle breast cancer, which can be treated in many ways. Breast cancer is a malignant tumor found in the glandular tissue of the breast. This tumor is called a carcinoma, which causes a single abnormal cell to multiple at rapid rates. A malignant tumor damages tissue and can spread. Cancer spreads when it breaks away and gets into the bloodstream. The tumor can be removed but there is still a possibility that they will grow back. When breast cancer spreads it is called metastatic breast cancer. If it is a benign tumor it is non cancerous, will not spread, but could damage some tissue. They are also not life- threatening and can be removed, which they rarely grow back. Breasts are glands that can produce milk. There are two main types of breast cancer, ductal carcinoma and lobular carcinoma. Ductal carcinoma is cancer in the lining of milk ducts of the breast. Lobular carcinoma is cancer in the lobules where breast milk is produced. There has not been a way detected to prevent breast cancer yet. The best way to protect you against breast cancer is by getting a mammogram at age 35 and once a year after age 40. Also you should perform a self-exam of the breast each month after age 20 f... ...nemia. There is a five-year survival rate for women with breast cancer. The percentage of survival has risen from 72 to 96. If the cancer has spread to other tissue then the rate goes down to 78. The hope of recovering from the diagnosis of breast cancer is extremely high. Women are becoming a lot more optimistic about being diagnosis with breast cancer. It is highly recommended that they see a physician regularly and give them themselves self-breast examinations. Breast cancer kills about 39, 800 women a year and about 400 men. Self-examination is one way to detect breast cancer early and give you a better chance of recovering from it. Many treatments are available and can help get rid of breast cancer. Even though there is no prevention for this cancer yet, detecting symptoms early and receiving treatment is the best way to get rid of breast cancer.

ELL Families and Schools Essay

The American education system has been faced with a grave challenge of ensuring that students from minority language groups have to read and write well in the English language. Being English literate has become an important aspect for the realization of academic success in the American schools which has an impact on the accessibility to the educational and economical opportunities that are to be found within the United States. This challenge has been compounded by the fact that there has been a growth in the diversity of the ever-increasing language-minority students. This paper shall examine the interaction between the families of English Language Learners and the schools touching on the social-cultural influences and bilingualism and home language use. The paper shall further analyze the parental and community resources for English acquisition in the Seattle area. Background: The number of English Language Learners (ELLs) has been steadily increasing which has become a significant challenge to the education system in the United States. According to statistics, in 1979, the number of language minority students was estimated to be six million and by 1999, the number had shot to an estimated fourteen million. In a survey done to establish how such students fared in the county, it was observed that less than 20% could score above the standard gauge as established by the respective states. Whereas only 10 percent of those who spoke English were found to drop out of school at high school level, the scenario was even worse for language minority students whose percentage was slightly more than 30 for those who could speak English and slightly more than 50 for those who could speak English with some difficulties (August and Shanahan, 2006). For the language-minority students who have difficulties in reading and writing English in a proficient manner, they have a limited participation in the American schools, workplaces and the society in general. Such individual usually faces an uphill task in competing for the employment opportunities and accessing power. The impacts of the inadequacy in the proficiency of the English language is not only a detriment to the self through self impoverishment but also impacts negatively on the nation through reduction of the country’s potential in terms of economy, innovativeness, quality of life and increased productivity (August and Shanahan, 2006). Socio-cultural influences on ELLs: The English language Learners (ELLs) can not be regarded as a single group as they exhibit variations when critical factors are put into consideration as opposed to the common feature that they are all learners of the English language. Socio-cultural factors play an important factor in the analysis of these learners. Such factors include the prior academic schooling; literacy levels in the homes; socio-economic status of the families; and the cultural influences in regard to the native language and the country of origin (Carrigg, 2006). In prior academic schooling, there are variations in what is regarded as elementary or primary education whereby it may refer to â€Å"k-8, k-6, 1-6, or 1-5 grades† (Carrigg, 2006, para 3). The location of the schooling [whether urban or rural] is also important in the analysis on the performance of the student. Literacy in homes is a critical element in determining academic excellence in students. Vocabulary is first acquired in the homes and with educated parents; his becomes critical to the school going children. The socio-economic status of the family is also an important aspect in language acquisition. Poverty stricken homes have very little support if any to the academic language. There are also cultural barriers but their influences on language acquisition are not serious. What should however be noted id the fact that culture and the native language has a more pronounced impact on the older student compared to a younger one (Carrigg, 2006). Bilingualism and home language use: Most parents of the English language learners avoid speaking their first language believing that this would help their children in the development of proficiency in the English language. This is regarded as a generalized fallacy and that the parents who engage in this deny an important aspect to the children in their developmental process. The knowledge of the first language is crucial for the children’s maintenance of family relationships and cultural identity of the children (van Broekhuizen, 2010). The parents generally assume that learning two languages is a difficult task and could impede the development of language. They believe that the child will be unable to develop mastery of either language when exposed to the bilingualism thus would lack proficiency compared to those who learn just a single language. They also hold the belief that the two languages would confuse the child and they would have to speak the English language with an accent. This is however not true as it has been established that close to 50 percent of children around the globe can learn more than two languages becoming fluent and proficient in both languages (van Broekhuizen, 2010). In fact some studies have suggested that bilinguals in some instances have outperformed their monolingual counterparts when it comes to performance of more complex issues (Brainy-Child. com, 2010) Parental and community resources for English acquisition in the Seattle area: The Seattle Public Schools are engaged in an effort to ensure that students who graduate from the schools are ready for the colleges through the implementation of a Strategic Plan which was to be conducted in a creative and relentless manner. The plan was committed to engaging all the families in what was dubbed as School-Family Partnership Plan. The family engagement has been defined as efficient involvement of family members or any other caring adult individuals in the education of the children via academic support; advocacy; and partnership in the school system. The family engagements are implemented to ensure that students graduate when they are fully ready for either college, careers or life (Seattle Public Schools, 2010). To accomplish the mission of family engagement in the education system, various positions have been created to enhance the process. These positions include the director for family engagement, family engagement coordinators, and family engagement teams. The District parent/Family Advisory Committee has also been established to provide leadership, professional development, childcare, and transportation among other services that many be required. There are other components that have been established under the new plan to promote the engagement of parents in the education system (Seattle Public Schools, 2010). How to improve school partnerships with the ELL Families: Since the parents are the child’s primary teachers, it is important for programs that serve the English Language Learners to form a collaborative relationship between the parents and the teachers. In this regard, parents need to be provided with opportunities to participate in the child’s education. It is the duty of the teachers to â€Å"share information with parents about the standards, curriculum, and instructional methods that are used in their child’s class and help parents understand the results of various placement and achievement assessment measures that are used in the classroom† (Coltrane, 2010, para 9). It is vital for the home and school to work together to ensure that the students’ abilities are well nurtured and developed. Conclusion: The importance of the relationship between the families and school especially in English Language Learners’ schools can not be ignored. In fact such relationships are crucial in the development of language proficiency amongst the learners in a more comprehensive manner. ELL schools should therefore be encouraged to establish sound relationships with the families of learners to ensure academic success. Reference: August, D. and Shanahan, T. , (2006). Developing Literacy in Second-Language Learners: Report of the National Literacy Panel on Language-Minority Children and Youth. Retrieved on 24th July 2010 from; http://www. cal. org/projects/archive/nlpreports/executive_summary. pdf Brainy-Child. com, (2010). The Impact of Bilingualism on Overall Language Development and Academic Success. Retrieved on 24th July 2010 from; http://www. brainy-child. com/article/bilingual. shtml. Carrigg, F. , (2006). Teaching ELLs in the Content Areas. Retrieved on 24th July 2010 from; http://www. state. nj. us/education/njpep/pd/iel/powerpt/TeachingELLsin_ContentAreas. ppt. Coltrane, B. (2010). Working With Young English Language Learners: Some Considerations. Eric Digest. Retrieved on 24th July 2010 from; http://www. ericdigests. org/2004-2/young. html. Seattle Public Schools, (2010). Seattle Public Schools: School Family Partnerships District Plan 2009-2010. Retrieved on 24th July 2010 from; http://www. seattleschools. org/area/fam/documents/SFP%20District%20Pl

Gender Biologically Determined Essay

Drawing upon ethnographic examples from 2-3 societies. Gender being ‘biologically determined’ means that whether gender is inherited or passed down by genetics. If a person is a man or woman, (which is usually called ‘The Sex’), that is biologically determined because they inherit the chromosomes to be born a man, or to be born as a woman. In the early 1970’s sex was described by â€Å"biology as: anatomy, hormones, and physiology† (West and Zimmerman 1987). Apart from gender being a biological factor, there are other things which are not biologically determined; â€Å"Gender was an achieved status, which was constructed through psychological, cultural and social means† (West and Zimmerman1987). Hence the answer to the question â€Å"is gender biologically determined?†Is no, Gender is a socially constructed phenomenon. Gender refers to a set of roles people perform in their communities, which are their values and attitudes that people have toward man and woman (Bonvillain 2006). In this essay, the topics which would be discussed to support this argument are Gender Identity with examples of how men and women are expected to act, walk, talk and dress in a certain manner which is suitable in their society, Gender and Sexuality with the examples of culturally in-built norms of sexual behaviour, along with existing issues surrounding sexuality, and finally Gender and Status with an example of male dominance in Traditional Chinese society. Gender identity is defined in terms of how people (i.e. men and women) are supposed to behave in the social category. Their attitudes and the way the dress, talk and carry themselves in the public are encoded â€Å"in a set of cultural assumptions† which are based on the culture’s values and roles and people are expected to learn these as they are a part of that society (Bonvillain 2006). Each culture has certain ‘norms’ for gender and these ‘norms’ vary from culture to culture, most of these norms have a universal common pattern and people seem to dwell on these social constructs as they make a living based on these ideologies. â€Å"Cultural constructs are models of behaviour and attitudes that a particular culture transmits to its members. These constructs are shared beliefs and values that become taken for granted guiding principles† (Bonvillain 2006). There are so many ways that these socially constructed behaviours are exhibited in different communities, the messages about how each man and woman should act depends upon several factors such as language and religious beliefs. Men and Women were distinguished based on their clothing, what they were allowed to wear as a man and woman, hence publically signalling their genders, men wore pants and had other bodily arts such as tattoos while woman adorned dresses, jewellery and make up. This made up the very basic structure of Gender Identity. Apart from, the basic examples of gender identity, there are several other cases where women and men have unequal identities, one such case is the, Identity inequality of men and woman in family farms. In today’s world, Gender revolves around being the fact that women are less recognised than men, and are subjected to work which are in the shadows of confinement. That being the generalised factor, the study of the ‘European family farm’ only made this issue recognizable to the world. Farms were considered to be the dominant agricultural production in the capitalist countries (Brandth 2002). The study used theories of gender role and identity, explaini ng the issue in the form of discourses. In the 1990’s questions were being raised towards identity of women and men in the rural farms, these questions eventually shifted towards feminism (Brandth 2002). â€Å"Discourses are forms of power. They constitute minds, bodies, identities of individuals as parts of wider networks of power relations† (Brandth 2002). It was used in the context of giving out a meaning towards the differences of men and women, there were three discourses formulated by Hirschman, called as the exit, voice and loyalty. Women, who didn’t want to be subjected to unequal status left the system, some used their voice to protest against it, while others simply were loyal and confined themselves to the household activities. The law stated that the ‘family farm’ should be passed on from father to son, since women were considered weak and have no access and knowledge of property and agriculture. Women only came into this, only by marriage. Hence, the male leads the family into it, he allocates what job has to be done, and he participates in forums decisions, and doing so he becomes publically recognised. Since women are adaptable and flexible, their tasks are confined to household chores, and these tasks are unpaid and not recognised as productive output from them. On the other hand, men’s identities were tied to their ownership of the farms, their occupation and the productive outcome which give them status and economic income. â€Å"Real work was equated with physical tasks and women’s self image is based on the absence of such qualities† (Brandth 2002). In recent days, with the improvement of farming technologies, the female work, such as milking cows, and so on are now being done by these improvised machines, making women less efficient and thus making farming a whole masculine activity (Brandth 2002). Hence with this example it is clearly pointed out that the social construct differentiates an d distinguishes men and women. Apart from gender being differentiated by a social construct, there are factors which raised questions and studies in the society, one of such being gender and its relation to sexuality. There is always a taboo when it comes to sex, and it seems to be a common pattern in the world. Even though, we have sexual feelings and we practice them as it being a part of nature, it is also deeply influenced by culture (Bonvillain 2006). Culture teaches people what is the right thing to do, in what way, when, where and so on. There are a lot of examples where culture intervenes and states the ‘norms’ under which the people in that society or community should behave sexually. For example, sexual relationship between members of a nuclear family or distant relations is prohibited in most cultures. There are other countries which have the legal age of having sex, which are usually the Americans and Europeans, where the legal age is 16, so if a person indulges in a sexual relationship wi th a person who is below 16 it is considered against the law and will be filed for statutory rape (Bonvillain 2006). Other regions such as India, sex before marriage is considered as sin based on the cultural beliefs, whereas in American society it is inappropriate to have sex if you’re not husband or wife (Bonvillain 2006). While in some countries where sex could be considered as normal, other societies, like Islamic countries for example, any adultery committed by a male or by a female is severely punished, or most commonly stoned to death (Bonvillain 2006). But this isn’t the only issue considering sexuality, the most recent yet shocking development, is homosexuality between men and woman. â€Å"Homosexuality was considered to be a violation of the natural law† (Bonvillain 2006). People were only meant to engage in heterosexual activity (between man and woman) to reproduce. During the 1980’s indulging in homosexual activity was considered in crime, people were imprisoned when caught doing so. But in 2003 some parts of the United States, suspended the law, and made hom osexuality legal, soon European countries such as Canada, Belgium, and Netherlands passed an act which approved of homosexual weddings (Bonvillain 2006). If one digs deeper into this issue, where these debatable, one can find that it roots back from religions. Most religion disapprove of homosexuality but in religions such as Hindu, for sexuality, scriptures of homosexual activity only stated that it was normal and natural, to be attracted to the same sex (Bonvillain 2006). But in today’s society the main issue is regarding the issue of males being attracted to each other, an example of this issue is ‘Homophobia of men’. Homosexuality is considered to be a cultural construct, which apart from the ‘lesbian identities’ gave rise to the ‘gay identities’ (Herek 1986). It is common for normal men, to avoid influencing with homosexual men, as they fear what the public might think of them being judged as not ‘masculine’, where as its more normal for woman to associate with lesbians or homosexual women, as they are not being judged by the rest of the females (Herek 1986). Studies showed, that the social construction of gay identities meant that there was something psychologically wrong with that person, it was never attributed to the fact that homosexuality is more of a social construct than something being wrong with the individuals mental state (Herek 1986). Gay men are more scared to come out, or feel comfortable about their sexuality in the public than gay woman. The reason for this is because, men look for other men’s approval to gain the status of being ‘a man’ (Kimmel). â€Å"We are under the constant careful scrutiny of other men. Other men watch us, rank us, and grant our acceptance into the realm of manhood. Manhood is demonstrated of other men’s approval. It is other men who evaluate the performance† (Kimmel). As mentioned earlier, men look for other men’s approval, and because of this gay men are subjected to stigma and discrimination (Herek 1986). As a result, they develop ‘defensiveness,’ an unconscious defence mechanism (defined in psychodynamic terms). This helps them avoid or repress their homosexual tendencies (Kimmel). To summarise, gender is not biologically determined because people have the free will to choose their sexuality (i.e. they are not born being homosexuals, it is clearly a social construct). Gender roles, is defined as a set of rules or rather guidelines towards the behaviour of men and woman. The rights and duties, attitudes and behaviours of men and women constitutes of how they are culturally associated with gender (Bonvillain 2006). The works of men and women are separate, as in, men carry on doing work which they are culturally supposed to be doing and women do their work, based on what the norms of cultures tell them to do. When these two norms interact with each other, they reflect a lot of differences and changes in status, prestige and power of men and woman this is called as ‘gender relations’ (Bonvillain 2006). It is obvious that men are thought to be more superior to women as they are more power driven and physically stronger than woman. While, men get more prestigious and leadership jobs, woman are confined to their homely duties of being a house-wife or in other words a care- giver (Bonvillain 2006). This brings about the inequality of men and woman. There tasks which categorize what woman are capable of doing such as, caring for children and their husbands, cooking food, making clothes and other homely chores, while men on the other hand do more physical and dangerous tasks such as, hunting animals, conducting warfare etc, this is called division of labour (Bonvillain 2006). Gender and status are the most recent conflict and the most studied topic in today’s society. Gender equality, happens when both the male and female agree to equal rights and behaviours. Gender inequality happens when the male and female do not agree to equal rights, attitudes and behaviour (Bonvillain 2006). An example of this, is male dominance in china, the male adult, was the head of the family and they expressed their dominance over their children and wives. Traditional Chinese cultures had more Patriarchal gender relations (Bonvillain 2006). In conclusion, the question â€Å"is gender biologically determined?† is incorrect, even though gender has a biological definition, gender is mostly socially defined in this context. The tasks or norms which each gender (i.e. male and female) is supposed to perform in the society, is based on a social construct. They are not born to be who there are, instead these social constructions are in-built within them since childhood. Since they taught to act and behave in a specific way which is culturally approved. They choose to be what sexuality appeals to them and what each individualistic gender they are taught to be. Hence ‘Gender’ is strongly driven by culture. REFERENCES: West,C and Zimmerman, Don. 1987. Doing Gender. Sociologists for Women in Society 1(2): 125-155 Herek, Gregory. 1986.on Heterosexual Masculinity. American Behavioural Scientist 29(5): 563-577 Brandth, Berit. 2002. Gender Identity in European Family Farming: A Literature Review. European Society for Rural Sociology 42(3): 181-200 Kimmel, Michael. Masculinity as homophobia: Fear, Shame and Silence in the Constructions of Gender Identity. Bonvillain, Nancy. 2006. Chapter 10, â€Å"Gender† from Cultural Anthropology. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. Pp. 251-282. ISBN: 0-13-045545-8