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A TIPPERARY COUNCILLOR is to resign his seat and leave Labour over concerns that the party has “lost its core values”.
In a statement to TheJournal.ie, Bobby Fitzgerald confirmed he is formally resigning his Labour seat on South Tipperary County Council.
“It is regrettable that I have taken this course of action, however, I feel that the policy and the agenda pursued by the Labour party at national level is leading to untold hardship and misery to ordinary families and people which the Labour party should represent.”
The Carrick on Suir resident believes the party needs “real leadership” instead of forming part of a government that supports an economy which “benefits a few at the expense of most”.
He said he now intends to spend more time with his family and concentrate on his business interests (he is a managing partner and founding member of an accountancy and consultancy firm in Tipperary).
“I will continue to be a vibrant and an active member of the community and work at all times to ensure and achieve that the town will be a better place for its entire people irrespective of their political persuasion.”
Fitzgerald’s resignation and statement are not the first signs of tensions at grassroots level. But cracks have also become visible higher up the chain. Chairman of the party Colm Keaveney, who was elected by delegates at the annual conference last April, has already lost the whip for voting against the Social Welfare Bill in 2012. He is one of five TDs who are now excluded from the parliamentary party for dissent.
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Looks like im the first one up, i’ll stick the kettle on
2 sugars make mine strong.
He waited til his pension was guaranteed…
Yup…a leaf right out of the FF manual. Jump ship before it tanks and head to the hills with the pension in under your arm. Feigned honour and nobility by this joker won’t stop Gilmore’s circus from getting pummelled next time round .
Rob, no pension, no big wages, this is a councillor. Sometimes an act of principle is real.
What pension – councillors don’t get pensions?
Gilmore will hear this talk from this chap but he wont listen because he has become deafened by his own ideology.
He actually thinks he is steering a good ship. Deluded.
Well what would you expect from a lying sheep head? Labours way or Frankfurts way! Labours way or pepper spray!
I can’t believe people actually fell for his lies when they voted him in.
Jesus you people have a bad judge of character :-)
And my rant is about happy gillmore.
Just clarifying my position. :-D
You are so right. The way Labour and FG have behaved since coming to power sickens me.
The way they have stripped benefits from elderly on the OAP allowance this year is bordering on evil.
Yet they promote their buddies and family members to lucrative state jobs.
Gilmore is without doubt one of the worst leaders Labour has had – up there with rabbit. Their thirst for power and it’s trappings has blinded then to reality.
But I guess if you look at background of the labour party leadership back to the organizations they were part of in the 70′s and 80′s and you will see that state service was not on the agenda. On the contrary service of a few and distruction of the state were the order of the day.
I wish the media would do a proper investigation of these gentlemen.
(I expect to be reprimanded for these comments)
After the deal that was done on the promissory notes and emerging now on the bank debt it looks like it is Labour’s way after all! Frankfurt seriously pissed off by the debt deal done for Ireland.
What you talkin bout Willis?
The media don’t do proper investigations into these men.
I wish the journal would start seen as they’ve been fair enough so far, but that’s starting to change.
Censorship and what not.
Desmond, are you seriously deluded? A “deal” which will have us paying more to the EU than we already had to has been a victory for Labour? If the best Labour can hope to achieve is to make a balls out of everything they touch then they should just disband and save everyone the trouble.
Labour has lost a lot more than its core values, it’s lost it’s support. They’ll go the way of the Greens & the PD’s. consigned to history! Good riddance.
labour will never hold one scrap of credibility again,gilmore and his lies and the sleveen contempt the frontline has shown to the people will see to that.
RIP labour,you sold your soul but there is a price to pay.
That’s what people said in 1997.At the 1992 general election the Labour Party won a record 19.3% of the first preference votes. By 1997 their coalition with Fine Gael was swept out of power and the coalition led by Bertie Ahern and Mary Harney swept in. That went well, yeah?
Labour has historically always campaigned on a left platform and ruled on a right platform, while wailing that it’s none of their fault, the big boys made them do it.
What do you think the future has for them? Any hope of change for the better?
I wouldn’t have the nerve…to watch a country in economical desperation,kids begging on city streets,high unemployment,massive immigration,an over exhausted tax system etc etc. and collect a massive salary from Dáil Éireann…fair play for standing down and realising this country’s problem,each cheque collector in Dáil Éireann should walk a mile in the shoes of working people with mortgage,children and responsibility and actually see the mess the country is in…kenny and others can get congratulated in Europe for being great and awarded people of the year by the Germans and cheque writers but history will prove otherwise.
its too late for Labour to do a u turn , no one will ever believe them . at least the greens never lied , there will be a lot of teachers looking for jobs next elections.
The Greens were really only destroyed because they took a lot longer to pull out of government than they should have. At least the Green Party managed to bring in some environmental policies here and there. What policies have Labour managed to bring in to help the classes they claim to represent?
Look what the greens have done to the motor industry look how high motor tax is.
Oh look, the shop is sinking. Is this the first rodent off the ship?
Ship
Why wait this long? Labour had shown its true colours even before this governments first budget.
It took him long enough to realise what most Irish people have know for a long time.
He realised it a long time ago, he’s been doing his best to change things. He is new enough to public representation as well. He has done lots of good work locally and will continue to no doubt. A very nice, helpful and approachable man.
I get resigning from the party in protest but resigning his seat means he is deserting the people that voted him in, he’s running away. Why not stay a TD and work in opposition to represent his constituency? Hmmm, me thinks this is just self promotion (with a guaranteed pension thrown in).
He’s not a TD.
Indeed. My bad, thought he was… Ignore my ranting so!
Read the article, he’s not a td, he’s a councillor, it’s in the headline….. noy sure if councillors get a pension
Yup, my bad, I misread! Oh well….
Tom, it pays to really read the article
Indeed Bruce but it pays to read my responses where I say I misRead it and called it out as my bad! Hey we all make mistakes….
Ah calm down Tom. Apologies if you are offended.
Not offended at all! Cheers. (Calmed now!!)
the man is not a TD
Hands up who thinks the Labour Party will be the new progressive democrats or Green Party?? I think so. Hang ur head in shame Labour. The workers party…. I think not….
This won’t bother Gilmore one bit because he’s were he wants to be and craved to be strutting around telling anybody who wants to listen about his getting the country back on track, its depressing looking at him and the damage his gathering friends have done to our people
You can’t eat principles … The electorate didn’t vote for fine Gael or labour they put in a coalition , neither side get to do it their way…and the country’s broken as well which don’t exactly help…
Very true. It’s always the left that’s incapable of holding it together in Government…full of fervour & noble intent- absolutely lacking the discipline to make things happen. Labour. The ULA, the Socialist parties….they’re all the same. And they wonder why the electorate stays predominantly centre-right.
More a case that every time the left goes into government with a right-wing partner, their agenda gets knocked around the place and then they get the same treatment from the electorate post-government. I had hoped Labour learned its lesson here, but alas
Why, after successive FF, FG, et al disasters, people never gave Labour a chance as a single-party government I’ll never know …
It might be a coalition but FG sure do seem to have their hands firmly on the steering wheel. This country needs a revolution. March on Dáil Éireann and put them all out on their asses. Invite people other than those there to seek election and we may get a govt with principals and no fear of putting Germany’s nose out of joint.
It’s really simple, the larger party in terms of seats generally has more control over the others in a coalition. SF won’t go into a coalition with FG or FF because they know that as a smaller left-wing party their beliefs and goals will be swept away by the larger right-wing parties. Labour already went into a coalition with FG before and they knew that the last time they were crippled by a larger right-wing party sweeping left policies under the rug. Yet they did it again anyway.
I voted at that Labour Conference not to go into coalition (for many of the reasons you mentioned – unlike the rainbow coalition, we hadn’t the Dail maths to force an agenda), but it is wishful thinking on your part indeed to think that SF won’t go into coalition with one of the bigger parties regardless of circumstances, period. As soon as one of the larger parties pushes that button (and one of them will – possibly after the next election) and pushes to open negotiations with ye – at that point Gerry and Mary will jump at the opportunity. Why wouldn’t they – think about what you’re claiming here: by refusing coalition outright, SF could kiss any chance of actually enacting its policies goodbye.
The only situation where I can see SF refusing to enter negotiations is if ye are the second biggest party after the next elections. That was our biggest mistake – choosing coalition over leading the opposition and biding our time
Power corrupts Frank Cluskey is spinning in his grave along with a load of other Real Labour people! Those in government have destroyed the Labour Party for they’re own selfish gain
“I will continue to be a vibrant and active member”. Lol.
Labour are nothing more than the lap-dogs for FG who in turn are the lap-dogs for Europe
Then why did you vote for them?
its too easy that when they next lose that they should be just let walk away with wedge in the back phoca..too easy..
Labours way what a sick joke rats and ships come to mind
Who do people want in government ?? Not labour, not fine Gael , I hope not fine fail, that leaves independents, sure they can’t be independents if they have to club together plus where has socialist idealism ever worked … If you think you’d do a better job stand … Me ? I can’t be arsed
most people live socialist lives except in the work place, in the more successful economies a lot of the success have been driven by socialist policies, the scandanavian countries have had many democratic socialist governments, germany has not had so much but they have socialism in the workplace instead, both germany and japan have many socialist elements in their constitutions like a bill of workers rights for example, many socialist companies are also highly successful, co-ops are the way forward, if we applied the same ethos in work that most of us lived by we would have very little need of central government at all
have your say