Aontú leader praises work of party’s Donegal branch

The leader of Aontú has praised the work of the Donegal branch of the party and its contribution to the growth of the party nationally.
In a video message to the branch’s annual general meeting (AGM) TD Peadar Tóibín pointed out how Aontú has grown to 3% in the opinion polls and is now "level with the Labour Party, which has seven TDs and the associated taxpayer funding and a well-established history".

The party, which was founded by Mr Tóibín in January 2029, ran candidates in six of the seven local electoral areas in Donegal in the 2019 local elections. It received
2,265 first preferences and a 3% share of the vote but returned no councillors. The party’s best performance was in the Letterkenny electoral area where party secretary Mary T Sweeney got 856 first preferences, more than 7% of the vote.
The meeting heard the party will soon be appointing representatives for the Carndonagh, Buncrana, Donegal, Lifford-Stranorlar and Milford locaL electoral areas to continue to build on support indicated by the recent national polls.
More than 30 people attended the AGM in Dillon’s Hotel, Letterkenny on Tuesday night.

In his message, Mr Tóibín was critical of parties in the Dáil who voted against a Bill in recent months which was co-signed by Aontú seeking to grant pain relief for unborn babies prior to late-term abortion.
"The past three years have been shocking years in the history of our country. 23,000 abortions have been carried out with the active support of establishment parties such as Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, Sinn Féin, the SDLP and Labour,” he said.

Ms Sweeney, who took 2,382 first preferences as the Aontú candidate in the last general election, told the meeting that housing is a huge issue locally.
The housing problems are exacerbated by the scarcity of properties, high rents, lack of adequate Government support, she said.

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“The issue of inadequate HAP payments is a serious problem in areas of high rents such as Letterkenny where the HAP support only appears to push up the rents.”
Mental health, especially lack of resources for children, is also a major issue, she said.
“Children are waiting three and more years for educational and clinical assessments. Neglected childhood mental health leads to major and unnecessary problems in later years. This appalling situation also affects clinicians who are trying to deliver an efficient service without anything approaching acceptable resources.”
Letterkenny Hospital has inadequate numbers of medical consultants and clinical staff,
and too many elderly people still have to attend hospitals outside the county, she said.
Liam Mulligan, the party’s chair in the cunty, said one of the most pressing local issues is the mica crisis.
“More than 10 years on, the Government has promised much but delivered only procrastination. Aontú is based on principles not on soundbites and continues to demand 100% Redress for affected homeowners.”
Aontú representative for the Glenties local electoral area David Mc Dwyer expressed concern about the lack of gardaí in rural areas of the county, especially in Glenties. He also talked about the depopulation of rural Donegal, saying that of the 96 students who were in his year in school, a mere ten were still living locally.
"We need a Government who will support and service rural Donegal, not further erosion of services and supports. We also need a support network to build homes in our rural communities to sustain them, along with regional development to develop worthwhile jobs."