New look Louth County Council to meet for the first time this morning

The offices of Louth County Council

The first meeting of the new Louth County Council will take place later today.

This will be the first gathering of the local authority since the recent local elections and the abolition of the town and borough councils.

At the meeting the first chairperson of the new look council is expected to be decided.

The new council is made up of the following:

Dundalk South (7) – Tomás Sharkey (Sinn Féin), Declan Breathnach (Fianna Fáil), Maeve Anna Yore (Independent), Kevin Meenan (Sinn Féin), Jennifer Green (Sinn Féin), Maria Doyle (Fine Gael), Marianne Butler (Green Party).

Dundalk Carlingford (6) – Edel Corrigan (Sinn Féin), Peter Savage (Fianna Fáil), Jim Loughran (Sinn Féin), John McGahon (Fine Gael), Mark Dearey (Green Party), Conor Keelan (Fianna Fáil).

Ardee (6) – Pearse McGeough (Sinn Féin), Colm Markey (Fine Gael), Liam Reilly (Fianna Fáil), Tom Cunningham (Sinn Féin), Dolores Minogue (Fine Gael), Jim Tenanty (Independent).

Drogheda (10) – Imelda Munster (Sinn Féin), Paul Bell (Labour Party), Alan Cassidy (Sinn Féin), Tommy Byrne (Fianna Fáil), Kenneth Flood (Sinn Féin), Frank Godfrey (Independent), Kevin Callan (Fine Gael), Oliver Tully (Fine Gael), Richie Culhane (Fine Gael), Pio Martin Smith (Labour Party).

Adams thanks Louth electorate

Gerry Adams

Sinn Féin president and Louth TD Gerry Adams has thanked local voters for the support they showed the party in last week’s local and European elections.

The party returned their best ever result in an election poll with 10 of their 11 candidates earned seats on Louth County Council and the unlucky JJ Quigley only missing out by just four votes to Fianna Fáil’s Conor Keelan.

Adding to a great weekend for Sinn Féin in the area, Carrickmacross man Matt Carthy also got elected to the European Parliament having topped the poll in Louth.

Commenting on the matter, Deputy Adams said:

“I want to thank all those who voted for our local team of Louth County Councillors and for Matt Carthy for Europe. I also want to thank all our party workers, their families and all our candidates in Louth. Sinn Féin stood 11 candidates for Louth County Council and 10 were elected. I want to thank JJ Quigley for his hard work and commitment and his family for their support.

“Sinn Féin is now the largest party on Louth County Council, as well as across the island of Ireland. In the EU election Sinn Féin took 483,113 votes and four EU Parliamentary seats. The party now has 262 Councillors and is the largest party on eight councils.

“We are committed to using our growing mandate of Councillors, TDs, MEPs, MPs, and MLAs wisely and in the interests of citizens.

“Sinn Féin will also keep the commitments we made to the electorate.

“It is clear increasing numbers of citizens are seeking a new kind of politics. Some combination of Fine Gael, Labour and Fianna Fáil has been in government since the foundation of this state. The old way of doing politics, as practiced by these parties, has failed.

“The message arising out of the elections is that citizens want change. They have rejected the ‘consensus for cuts’ represented by Fine Gael, Labour and Fianna Fáil. The electorate has endorsed Sinn Féin’s message that there is a fairer way.

“The result is also an endorsement Sinn Fein’s message of the need to reinvigorate the Peace Process and for an agreed, united Ireland.

“The huge vote for Sinn Fein also marks a profound change in the political landscape in this state. The Government dismisses this as a protest vote or, as the Taoiseach claims, a sign of frustration by the electorate. This is wrong. The Government has been sent a very clear message. They do not have public support for the damaging policies they are implementing.

“The voters have called time on this government. They should change political direction or call a General Election.”

Tenanty claims final seat on Louth County Council

Jim Tenanty

Jim Tenanty held off the challenge of fellow independent Hugh Conlon to take the last seat on the new Louth County Council following yesterday evening’s recount at the Redeemer in Dundalk.

Just 23 votes had separated the pair in the Ardee electoral area on Sunday night, leading to Conlon calling for a recount.

However, it failed to change the outcome, with Tenanty holding on to take his seat on the new local authority.

That leaves things as follows:

The party breakdown reads as

• Sinn Féin – 10 seats
• Fine Gael – 7 seats
• Fianna Fáil – 5 seats
• Labour Party – 2 seats
• Green Party – 2 seats
• Independents – 3 seats

Meanwhile, the new council is made up of the following:

Dundalk South (7) – Tomás Sharkey (Sinn Féin), Declan Breathnach (Fianna Fáil), Maeve Anna Yore (Independent), Kevin Meenan (Sinn Féin), Jennifer Green (Sinn Féin), Maria Doyle (Fine Gael), Marianne Butler (Green Party).

Dundalk Carlingford (6) – Edel Corrigan (Sinn Féin), Peter Savage (Fianna Fáil), Jim Loughran (Sinn Féin), John McGahon (Fine Gael), Mark Dearey (Green Party), Conor Keelan (Fianna Fáil).

Ardee (6) – Pearse McGeough (Sinn Féin), Colm Markey (Fine Gael), Liam Reilly (Fianna Fáil), Tom Cunningham (Sinn Féin), Dolores Minogue (Fine Gael), Jim Tenanty (Independent).

Drogheda (10) – Imelda Munster (Sinn Féin), Paul Bell (Labour Party), Alan Cassidy (Sinn Féin), Tommy Byrne (Fianna Fáil), Kenneth Flood (Sinn Féin), Frank Godfrey (Independent), Kevin Callan (Fine Gael), Oliver Tully (Fine Gael), Richie Culhane (Fine Gael), Pio Martin Smith (Labour Party).

Drama at count centre as Keelan pips Quigley to final seat by just four votes

Some of the victorious Sinn Féin team at the count centre on Saturday with party leader and local TD Gerry Adams. From left: Edel Corrigan, Pearse McGeough, Gerry Adams, Imelda Munster, Tomás Sharkey, Jennifer Green, Tom Cunningham and Alan Cassidy

Conor Keelan won the final seat in Dundalk Carlingford by just four votes from JJ Quigley

There was drama at the local election count in the Redeemer last night after a recount was ordered to decide who took the last seat available in the Dundalk-Carlingford constituency.

In the end history repeated itself as Fianna Fáil’s Conor Keelan saw off competition from Sinn Féin’s JJ Quigley to take the final seat by just four votes – the same margin that independent councillor Alan Grehan pipped Fianna Fáil’s Donal Lynch by following a similar recount five years ago.

Initially there had been just two votes separating the pair before the recount but it failed to change the outcome.

The failure of Quigley to get elected was the one downside to what was an otherwise fantastic weekend for Sinn Féin, who saw 10 of their 11 candidates elected, with poll toppers in each of the four electoral areas.

As is always the case in elections, there were casualties with established councillors such as Eamonn O’Boyle, Jim Ryan, Jim Lennon, Finnan McCoy, Martin Murnaghan, Linus English, Michael O’Dowd, Sean Bellew and Oliver Morgan all losing seats.

For the first time there is the possibility also of a husband and wife team on the council with Sinn Féin’s Jennifer Green elected in Dundalk South, while her fiancé Alan Cassidy was elected in Drogheda.

Sinn Féin aside, the big winners included independent Maeve Anna Yore and Fine Gael’s John McGahon and Maria Doyle, who secured seats on their debut elections.

It was also a good weekend for the Green Party, with both Mark Dearey and Marianne Butler retaining their status.

The only remaining seat still to be decided is in Ardee, where a recount will take place this morning at 10am at the request of Hugh Conlon, who lost out on the final seat to fellow independent Jim Tenanty by just 23 votes.

The party breakdown look as follows:

• Sinn Féin – 10 seats
• Fine Gael – 7 seats
• Fianna Fáil – 5 seats
• Labour Party – 2 seats
• Green Party – 2 seats
• Independents – 3 seats

There will also be a record number of women representatives, with seven female councillors elected.

As things stand the new County Council will look as follows:

Dundalk South (7) – Tomás Sharkey (Sinn Féin), Declan Breathnach (Fianna Fáil), Maeve Anna Yore (Independent), Kevin Meenan (Sinn Féin), Jennifer Green (Sinn Féin), Maria Doyle (Fine Gael), Marianne Butler (Green Party).

Dundalk Carlingford (6) – Edel Corrigan (Sinn Féin), Peter Savage (Fianna Fáil), Jim Loughran (Sinn Féin), John McGahon (Fine Gael), Mark Dearey (Green Party), Conor Keelan (Fianna Fáil).

Ardee (6) – Pearse McGeough (Sinn Féin), Colm Markey (Fine Gael), Liam Reilly (Fianna Fáil), Tom Cunningham (Sinn Féin), Dolores Minogue (Fine Gael), Jim Tenanty/Hugh D Conlon (Independent).

Drogheda (10) – Imelda Munster (Sinn Féin), Paul Bell (Labour Party), Alan Cassidy (Sinn Féin), Tommy Byrne (Fianna Fáil), Kenneth Flood (Sinn Féin), Frank Godfrey (Independent), Kevin Callan (Fine Gael), Oliver Tully (Fine Gael), Richie Culhane (Fine Gael), Pio Martin Smith (Labour Party).

Full results for each electoral area are also available on the Louth County Council website – Dundalk Carlingford, Dundalk South, Ardee, Drogheda.

Adams launches Sinn Féin proposals for SME sector in Dundalk

Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams TD, Cllr Pearse McGeough and local election candidate JJ Quigley at the launch of the party’s SME proposal document last Friday in Dundalk

Louth TD Gerry Adams, Cllr Pearse McGeough and local election candidate JJ Quigley launched Sinn Féin’s proposals for Small and Medium Enterprises on Friday in Dundalk.

Deputy Adams outlined the party’s 10 proposals to boost the Small and Medium Enterprises sector.

Speaking after the launch of Sinn Féin’s policy document ‘Putting SME’s First’, he said: “Almost 70% of people in work are in the SME sector. This has greatest potential for jobs growth provided the government implements the right programme of policies.

“Under Fianna Fáil and this government some 128,000 jobs have been lost in the SME sector between 2008 and 2012.

“Sinn Féin believes that there are 10 steps that can be taken to effectively assist SMEs to develop and create jobs now.

“Our proposals, which we outline in detail, are to increase consumer demand; abolish upward only rents; tackle utility costs and rates; revive ‘Brand Ireland’; open up procurement; end unnecessary license delays; resolve SME distress and priorities access to credit; increase labour intensive infrastructure investment and to tackle the costs of doing business on the border.

“For Sinn Féin, SMEs are the priority when it comes to fostering indigenous industry and ensuring job creation.

“We strongly urge this government to consider our proposals as a matter of urgency for the SME sector,” said Adams.

Sinn Féin puts forward its largest ever team for local elections

The Louth Sinn Féin team pictured at last night’s local election campaign launch in The Fairways Hotel. Back row from left: JJ Quigley, Cllr Pearse McGeough, Cllr Tomás Sharkey, Cllr Kevin Meenan, Tom Cunningham, Cllr Jim Loughran, Alan Cassidy, Kenneth Flood. Front row from left: Matt Carthy (EU candidate), Cllr Jennifer Green, Cllr Imelda Munster, Louth TD and party president Deputy Gerry Adams and Cllr Edel Corrigan

Sinn Féin is putting forward its largest ever team of local government candidates in Louth for this May’s elections.

The party launched its campaign at an event in The Fairways Hotel in Dundalk last night with president and local TD Gerry Adams addressing a packed meeting of candidates and party activists.

The event, which was attended by Sinn Féin’s EU candidate Matt Carthy, encouraged people to get behind the party’s 11 candidates who will stand for election on May 23rd.

Speaking at the event, Deputy Adams said the large number of candidates being put forward by Sinn Féin in Louth was a statement of intent as to the direction the party wanted to go in.

“Sinn Féin is going into to the Local and European elections in May as a party on the rise, not just in Louth but throughout this state. Since the 2011 General election Sinn Féin TDs and Senators have been holding the Fine Gael/Labour Government to account,” he said.

“They have been working hard to challenge and to change the toxic political culture which has led to the series of political scandals we have witnessed recently and to the bad political decisions which has seen ordinary citizens penalised while those at the top of society have been untouched by the consequences of the economic crisis.

“Sinn Féin is the only all-Ireland party. We will be fighting local government and European elections in the north on May 22^nd and local government and European elections in this state the following day.

“In the 2011 General Election, the best so far for Sinn Féin in this state, the party topped the poll in Louth with 15,072 votes.

“We have a dynamic republican team contesting the local elections in this county with Jim Loughran, Edel Corrigan and JJ Quigley in Dundalk-Carlingford, Jennifer Green, Kevin Meenan and Tomás Sharkey in Dundalk South, Pearse McGeough and Tom Cunningham in Mid-Loutd and Imelda Munster, Alan Cassidy and Kenneth Flood in Drogheda.”

Deputy Adams said that health and justice issues were two of the biggest problems facing the county at present.

“As we face into these elections, there are major issues facing people in Louth. We are dealing with an unacceptable depletion of services at the Louth Hospital. The current crisis at Our Lady of Lourdes in Drogheda is due is its under-resourcing resulting in an inability to cope with the volume of patients they are dealing with.

“Ambulance cover in Louth is totally inadequate and has led directly to fatalities.

“Garda cover throughout the county has been reduced. The Department of Justice is not resourcing or developing the partnerships between the Gardaí and the communities on the ground in the way that it should.

“Louth is also severely disadvantaged as a result of being a border county. There has been no government investment in jobs or capital spend in infrastructure. The failure so far to proceed with the Narrow Water Bridge project has been a huge blow. Sinn Féin will not let this issue fall by the wayside.

“The Narrow Water Bridge project is needed for Louth, for South Down and it is needed as part of our national infrastructure.

“We have seen no innovation or imaginative proposals from the Fine Gael/Labour government to deal with the specific issues faced by border counties.

“Sinn Féin has been actively pursuing the cross-border sharing of local services, north/south and the establishment of specific EU Units as a means of drawing down investment from Europe in a more strategic way.

“There is a housing crisis in Louth with 4,800 people on the waiting list in this county.

“Thousands of families throughout this county are suffering as a result of planning irregularities and unfinished estates, built with no corresponding amenities.

“Citizens in Louth deserve better representation. They need real republican representation and increasingly they are looking to Sinn Féin to provide that,” he said.

The full list of Sinn Féin candidates going forward for election is:

• Dundalk-Carlingford: Cllr Jim Loughran, Cllr Edel Corrigan, JJ Quigley
• Dundalk South: Cllr Jennifer Green, Cllr Kevin Meenan, Cllr Tomás Sharkey
• Mid-Louth: Cllr Pearse McGeough, Tom Cunningham
• Drogheda: Cllr Imelda Munster, Alan Cassidy, Kenneth Flood

Sinn Féin prepare for local election launch

Some of the Sinn Féin candidates who will be going forward for election on May 23rd

Sinn Féin will launch their local election campaign tomorrow night (Thursday) in the Fairways Hotel.

The event will be attended by party president and local TD Gerry Adams, as well as Carrickmacross man, Matt Carthy, who is the party’s European election candidate in the Midlands North-West constituency which Louth is a part of.

In total there will be 11 candidates running for Sinn Féin in the local election on May 23^rd.

Of the 11 candidates, there are new faces and old. There are 7 sitting councillors hoping to be returned, with one of them, Jennifer Green, running for the first time having been co-opted onto Dundalk Town Council. She will be running alongside Cllrs Tomás Sharkey and Kevin Meenan in Dundalk South.

There are also 4 new faces in Ardee, Dundalk and Drogheda. Tom Cunningham will be joining Pearse McGeough in Ardee.

Former Louth footballer JJ Quigley will be joining Cllrs Edel Corrigan and Jim Loughran in Dundalk/Carlingford while Drogheda boasts two new faces in the form of Kenneth Flood and Alan Cassidy who are hoping to join Cllr Imelda Munster on the Louth team.

The official candidate launch will start at 7.30pm and all interested parties are invited to attend.

Fitzpatrick lends his support to Elvery’s staff in Dundalk

Deputy Peter Fitzpatrick in the Dundalk Elvery’s store with store manager Gráinne

Local TD Peter Fitzpatrick became the latest politician to lend his support to staff at Elvery’s Sports when he called into the store at Dundalk Retail Park.

Staff at Elvery’s stores around the country are facing uncertainty over their futures after the store went into examinership recently, putting 700 jobs at risk, including 10 in Dundalk.

Deputy Fitzpatrick signed a petition in the presence of store manager Gráinne, following on from a similar show of support from Sinn Féin local election candidates Cllr Jennifer Green and JJ Quigley, who called in to the store last week.

If you would like to support the Facebook Campaign, you can do so at www.facebook.com/SOSElverys700 or call into the store at Dundalk Retail Park.

Sinn Féin pair lend their support to Dundalk Elvery’s staff

Cllr Jennifer Green (left) and Sinn Féin election candidate JJ Quigley (right) with Elvery’s Dundalk staff members in the Dundalk Retail Park store yesterday

Councillor Jennifer Green and Sinn Féin hopeful JJ Quigley visited the Elvery’s Sports Shop in Dundalk yesterday to lend their support to staff who are facing uncertainty over the jobs.

Elverys Sports, Ireland’s oldest sports retailer has been in existence since 1847 but is currently in examinership. The Examiner, Mr Simon Coyle of Mazars, has stated in a communication to employees that: ‘His aim is to protect the business at all costs with a particular focus on job security.’

There are 10 jobs at risk in Dundalk with a similar number in the Drogheda shop and 700 throughout the country.

Cllr Green said she felt moved to visit the shop as she was “impressed by the campaign launched by the staff to save their jobs.”

She said: “I received an email from the store manager and was taken aback by the passion they had for the company as well as the desire to keep their jobs. The social media campaign has been very positive and is gathering momentum all the time. In just 9 days, they have gathered support from almost 11,000 online friends.”

JJ Quigley, a Sinn Féin candidate for the Dundalk-Carlingford area in the upcoming local elections said: “As a GAA player for Clan na Gael GFC, I obviously have a special interest in sports and all things connected with it. Elverys Sports was always there when I was growing up and the staff always enthusiastic about their sportswear.”

The ex-Louth player continued: “Talking to staff today, there is despondency as they are uncertain about their future. They should know what is happening by next week with the company but it is important that everything is done to ensure the staff, not only keep their jobs, but also that they have similar terms and conditions to what they have now.”

Cllr Green ended by saying: “JJ and I would like to encourage all those who are passing by the Elvery’s Sports shop in Dundalk Retail Park to show their support and pop in and sign their petition which is located just inside the door. It will only take a minute.”

If you would like to support the Facebook Campaign, you can do so at www.facebook.com/SOSElverys700

Sinn Féin select JJ Quigley as third election candidate in Dundalk-Carlingford

Sinn Féin’s team in Dundalk-Carlingford for May’s local elections: JJ Quigley, Cllr Edel Corrigan and Cllr Jim Loughran

JJ Quigley signing his acceptance as a candidate at the Redeemer last night

Sinn Féin have announced a third candidate to run in the Dundalk-Carlingford area in May’s local elections.

The selection was held last night in the Redeemer in Dundalk, where Clan na Gael clubman JJ Quigley was put forward to join councillors Edel Corrigan and Jim Loughran on the party’s ticket.

JJ is well known in the area having played Gaelic football at all levels with both club and county. He is a firm believer that involvement in sport and a healthy lifestyle is essential for the development of young people. Through his community work he coaches football and promotes sport in general in primary schools in the area.

Always interested in politics and with a keen sense of republicanism, JJ joined Ógra Sinn Féin in his youth and went on to join his local Cumann, Halpenny, Worthington Watters and has been a committed and active member ever since.

On accepting the nomination, JJ thanked everyone for their support and said: “It is a personal honour, as a proud republican, to be selected to represent Sinn Féin along with Edel Corrigan and Jim Loughran.

“Now is the time to build, now is the time to expand. It is important that the good people of this community get behind this strong team so an even greater voice can be presented to the Louth County Council on their behalf,” he said.