WITH the first big debate of the General Election underway, Clare candidates are continuing their preparation for Thursday night’s Electoral Chair Election Debate in Hotel Woodstock while a local activist group took aim at a Clare Senator.
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Some of the eyes of the twenty Clare candidates gazed towards Upfront with Katie Hannon as ten of the political parties were represented in the first big debate of the campaign.
Locally, The Electoral Chair: Election Debate takes place on Thursday (November 21st) in Hotel Woodstock. Book your free tickets – HERE. OneBill.ie have come on board to sponsor this event.
Day ten was the wettest day of the campaign with umbrellas an essential accompaniment for all canvassers and candidates.
Friends of Ennis Hospital attempted to send Senator Timmy Dooley (FF) ducking for cover when they criticised a short snippet of a video featuring the Mountshannon native and Tánaiste Micheál Martin (FF) during his visit to the county. Friends of Ennis Hospital has come out urging its supporters to vote for outgoing TDs, Cathal Crowe (FF) and Violet-Anne Wynne (IND) along with Cllr Joe Cooney (FG), Dr Tom Nolan (FG), Senator Roisin Garvey (GP), Cllr Rita McInerney (FF), Matthew Moroney (IND), Eddie Punch (II), Amanda Major (IND) and Cllr Donna McGettigan (SF).
Punch commented, “A starting point would be a bit of humility and an acceptance that the whole strategy of concentrating everything in the ‘centre of excellence’ has been a desperate mistake. Reality must be faced up to which is that one A&E in the Mid-West, covering 420.000 citizens is just not workable. Other health regions have a ratio of one to 115-200,000 people. We cannot defy basic maths here”.
Co-founder of the Mid-West Hospital Campaign, Hilary Tonge (SD) was omitted from Friends of Ennis Hospital in their list. “It is very important that we have an ED in Co Clare,” said Tonge as she added her voice to the subject.
On Clare FM’s latest instalment of the mini-election debates, Dr Tom Nolan (FG) and Matthew Moroney (IND) were cordial and found plenty of common ground when it came to views on health services. Nolan said, “I will forever be hurt by the decision to close the A&E Department in Ennis. I stand over my comment made this morning, as I did when I first made it at a public meeting in 2003 attended by 15,000 others objecting to the closure of the A&E Department. If elected on November 29th, I will work tirelessly to restore these vital services to Clare”. He later visited Cooraclare, Cree and Mullagh.
Home turf was visited by Cathal Crowe TD (FF) when he canvassed Meelick on Monday evening while the rural roads of East Clare were the focus earlier in the day. Cllr McInerney headed for Corofin where she was joined by the Killeens and also bumped into 1992 All Star, Seamus Clancy.
Also in familiar ground was Cllr McGettigan who was in her stronghold of Shannon. “It may have been a day for indoors, but, we were out knocking on doors.. Rain won’t stop us”.
Singer Susan O’Neill was the latest endorsement for Senator Garvey and she also managed to decorate her car. Plenty of local endorsements were also given to Cllr Cooney as his cause continues to gather momentum while Leonora Carey (FG) pointed to her “years of experience” when working with former Taoiseach Enda Kenny (FG).
In Lahinch, Paddy Murphy (IND) criticised the amount of beach closures in coastal Clare due to wastewater issues and the lack of support provided to persons running businesses reliant on using the water such as surf schools. “It is crazy when you think about it, our natural resource and the amount of you know what flowing through it”.
Barry O’Donovan (RAB) who was the last addition to the ballot was in Ennis as he continues to try put his campaign in motion. The appearance of Michael Leahy (IFP) following Sunday mass at the Friary and the Cathedral remained a talking point, twenty four hours on.
Also appearing on the ballot in Clare are, June Dillon (AON), Kevin Hassett (IND), Michael Loughrey (IP), and Catriona Ni Chatháin (SOC).
