Connacht Tribune
The season of stultifying political party think-ins
World of Politics with Harry McGee – harrymcgee@gmail.com
Autumn, season of mists and mellow fruitfulness … and a series of stultifying political party think-ins. In the Irish political calendar, September is the month of think-ins where parties wow us with their state of knowledge and share their strategic thinking with the world.
Or put more simply, exploit a golden opportunity for cheap publicity.
The think-ins, as they are called, are ritualistic. They allow parties to gather the troops (their elected representatives); discuss the strategy for the coming Dáil; hear from ‘experts’ such as economists and political scientists; and thrash out internal differences.
To the outside world, there will be a couple of media opportunities where the party leader sets out her or his stall for the immediate future, usually by announcing one big initiative.
A few of them over the years have been memorable. In Inchdoney, Co Cork in 2004, Bertie Ahern more or less ditched the Celtic Tiger philosophy of “when I have it I spend it”, as articulated by Charlie McCreevy. However, the embrace by Bertie of “socialism” came too late to prevent the looming storm.
The other memorable one that springs to mind is in 2010 in the Ardilaun in Galway when Brian Cowen had a very late night and gave a very rusty interview on Morning Ireland the following morning. That was another nail in his political coffin, he was already under huge pressure at that stage; and he never recovered from it.
So they have kicked off this week. Sinn Féin was in Cavan on Monday and Tuesday and Fine Gael is in the Galway Bay Hotel on Thursday and Friday.
You can sense from the meetings if there’s an election in the offing. If we are mere months away from polling, there’s always a sense of nervousness and urgency, a mild underlying panic. The party’s loudest people are beating the drum and they are taking pot shots at easy targets.
You might have got that sense this September. Three critical events relating to Irish polics will occur over the next two months: the Budget; the renegotiation of the Confidence and Supply agreement; and the October deadline for UK’s divorce deal on Brexit.
It might not be enough to set the pulse racing. But you would expect at the very least, to hear the distant sound of war drums.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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World of Politics with Harry McGee
An Opposition party is a bit like an invading army trying to surmount the defences of a seemingly impregnable fortress – constantly surveying the moat, the drawbridge, the doors and the battlements to spot any weakness.
For a Government party, the chink usually reveals itself when it tries to push through a deeply unpopular policy – like, for example, the decision to bring the eviction ban to a close at the end of March.
The Government’s thinking was that, by delaying the end of it, it was storing up problems for itself. The longer it left the measure in place, the bigger the queue of landlords who wished to sell up when the restrictions were lifted, triggering a huge number of evictions.
As it was, even ending the restriction now, according to campaigners such as Peter McVerry, was going to cause a “tsunami” of evictions.
Senior Coalition figures admitted that it was going to have an impact on homelessness in the short term.
As soon as the Government announced it was lifting the ban, there was a hue and cry from the Opposition.
Several back benchers in Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael expressed concern but were brought around by assurances from senior Ministers that local authorities and approved housing bodies would be given the go-ahead to buy properties from landlords who were selling up and leaving tenants in situ.
However, if there are any upsides to the move, they will not become apparent for months at the very least, by which time there could be a big spike in the homelessness figures.
From the moment the decision was made, the Green Party TD for Dublin Central Neasa Hourigan signalled she opposed the move.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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Plans to develop a marine park in Conamara were dealt a major blow this week after An Bórd Pleanála refused to grant planning permission for the development.
Galway County Council had already rejected proposals by Údarás na Gaeltachta to develop Páirc na Mara on lands east of Cill Chiaráin village.
The regional authority responsible for economic, social and cultural development of the Gaeltacht, appealed the decision to the planning appeals board but it too has refused to grant permission.
This latest decision blows a big hole in Údarás na Gaeltachta’s job creation plans for Conamara – its five-year employment strategy launched last year hinged on jobs growth from Páirc na Mara.
Reacting, in a statement to the Connacht Tribune, Údarás na Gaeltachta said it was awaiting ABP’s Inspector’s Report.
“This will help to inform how we proceed in the coming weeks. We remain committed to the Páirc na Mara project and to sustainable development and job creation in the Iorras Aithneach Gaeltacht area,” it added.
In a letter from ABP member, Chris McGarry, the Board gave two reasons for refusing the plan.
They related to the lack of information about the potential impacts of climate change; and the potential impact on water levels and the water supply in nearby water sources.
The proposal involved phase one of the continued development of a marine innovation park on a brownfield site of nine hectares, to include a number of marine-based industrial facilities and educational and applied research sites at Cill Chiaráin.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Galway 4-27
Westmeath 1-12
Ivan Smyth at Cusack Park
GALWAY hurlers fired in 2-8 without reply in the final 15 minutes of this National League tie as they secured a flattering 24-point victory over a gutsy but outclassed Westmeath outfit.
On Sunday, Conor Cooney looked sharp as he fired over five points from play for the second game running. Daithí Burke was solid once more at centre back and even though Westmeath moved Davy Glennon on him in the second half with the aim of dragging the Turloughmore man away from goal, Burke went about his business in a typically quiet and efficient manner.
With brothers Davy and Ronan Glennon facing off on opposite sides, this was a unique occasion for the pair. Davy did fire over a point but was starved of quality ball. From a Galway perspective, Padraic Mannion and TJ Brennan were the next best in defence as the pair both grabbed a point apiece. Evan Niland was reliable from the dead ball and when he moved out from the full forward line, he was more effective in linking the play.
Galway clearly possessed the superior stickmen and never trailed but after a promising start they faded out of the game, going 11 minutes without a score. They finished the first-half strong to see their lead increase from three points after 27 minutes to nine at the break. The third quarter was sloppy from a Galway perspective as they were outscored by six points to four in the first 20 minutes of the final period before the reinforcements arrived against a tiring Westmeath.
Galway then rattled in 3-9 and conceded just a solitary point thereafter with Declan McLoughlin and Jason Flynn grabbing goals before wing back Tiernan Killeen added another late on. After a poor start in Ennis seven days prior, Galway raced out of the blocks notching five points in as many minutes.
Cianan Fahy opened the scoring after eight seconds while Brian Concannon, Liam Collins, Niland (’65) and Conor Cooney gave Galway the ideal start. Cooney could have had a goal before arrowing over but Tommy Doyle produced a brave block, one which saw him retire injured moments later.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
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