Léargas

When An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar finally decides in 2020, with his Fianna Fáil partner in government Micheál Martin, to call the general election my tenure as the TD for Louth will come to an end. Sin é. It will also mean for me that after 38 years I will no longer be an elected representative of the people. Sin é fosta. I was first elected by the people of west Belfast to the short lived Assembly in 1982. The following year I was elected as MP for west Belfast. With a brief break I was an MP, and an MLA in the Assembly until 2010 when I announced my intention to run for the Dáil for the constituency of Louth. It was a significant initiative by Sinn Féin. Some in the media described it as a “gamble.” Some predicted- hoped - I would fail to be elected. But with a great team of activists and the goodwill of the people of Louth I topped the poll. Just over ten years later the general election will be called and I will leave the Dáil. I will continue to be a political activist bu...

  If you are looking for a gift for Christmas, a decent book of Irish interest or republican memorabilia, political posters, craft work, Irish language cards, prints, recordings of rebel songs or decent T-shorts then the new An Fhuiseog is the place for you. Siopa an Ealine, the republican book shop has been a local feature of the Falls Road for over 40 years. Now located at 55 Falls Road it was first opened at 85 Falls Road in 1975 by Proinsias MacAirt. I knew MacAirt. He was imprisoned in the 1940’s and 50’s and later in the 1970s. In fact he was one of those republicans who were interned for a short period in August 1969. MacAirt was also editor on Republican News for two years between 1970 and 72 until his arrest and imprisonment again. Outside of his more serious activist role MacAirt also loved to sing. He was a fine seán nós singer. In 1975 republicans took over an old derelict building at the corner of Linden Street on the Falls Road. It became the centre for...

In an ever changing and increasingly technological world more and more people are spending increasing amounts of their time on social media platforms – Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and others. Much of this is about keeping in touch with families and friends and work. I know of one group of neighbours in a street in Lenadoon in West Belfast who keep in touch with each other on Facebook messenger. They exchange news, local gossip, details of family events, look after each other, and have an eye to community safety. That is happening also in many rural communities across the island. Or at least in those communities which have broadband. But the new technology has also become a battleground for political ideas, especially at election time. At the weekend it was revealed that the Tories had paid for 2,600 ads on Facebook for one day. The Labour Party and Lib-Dems have together spent more than one million pounds on social media ads since the start of November. Despite this there is stil...

I believe that citizens have rights. Economic, as well as civil, and social rights. I believe in a citizen centred rights based society. These rights include the right to a home, to a public health service, access to education at all levels, the right to a job, a green environment and safe communities. I believe that it is the birth right of all citizens to have these rights. It is also the means to create a fair and equal society. That makes sense in public policy terms. In my view it also makes economic sense. That is of course if you believe the economy should serve the people. The provision of these rights means healthier, more united empowered communities. Investment in communities makes sense. One of the best aspects of my work as a TD for Louth and East Meath is meeting with a wide range of community and voluntary groups. The work they do is exactly the same work that I was part of in West Belfast. The  Family   Addiction  Support Networ...

Mark Ward the new Sinn Féin TD addressing the media at the Dáil Dublin Mid West is a sprawling constituency with vast housing estates of working class communities cheek to jowl with more affluent neighbourhoods. On Friday afternoon I was there with Nikki, Christina and RG.  We were part of the Sinn Féin team campaigning for Councillor Mark Ward in one of the four Dáil by-elections. While much of the focus in the North is understandably on the Westminster general election, Sinn Féin, as the only real all-Ireland party, was also fighting these four by-elections. They were to fill Dáil seats left vacant when four TDs were elected to the European Parliament in May.  We all knew the Dublin Mid West contest was going to be a tough challenge. The seat had been held by Frances Fitzgerald, a former Fine Gael Minister for Justice and Tánaiste. It was the one seat of the four that Fine Gael was expecting to win but the local activists led by Eoin Ó Broin...