Acceptance Speech

Speech delivered to Westport Electoral Area Selection Convention on Tuesday March 25th in Wyatt Hotel

Deputy Rabbitte, Mr Chairman, Mr Secretary, Party members, family and friends I am honoured to accept the nomination to contest a seat on Mayo County Council for the Labour Party.

Thank you for this honour.

I want to thank you all for your support here tonight, it means a lot to me and to my family.

Westport is a new town with very old roots. The town as we know it today is less than 300 years old, but its roots stretch back over centuries to the village of Cathair na Mart at the mouth of the Carrowbeg River.

The Labour Party in Westport has old roots too. They are embedded in this town since the 1920s and Westport has had a branch in this town for the last 80 years. Over those years there have been up and downs but the Labour Party has been there, inside and outside the council chamber raising the issues that matter to you.

The Labour Party in Westport has always championed the common interest over special interests and will continue to do so.

In selecting me as our candidate for the County Council the Labour Party seeks to build on our success in Westport.

We are, without doubt, the most active and vocal of all the political parties in the town. Our membership has doubled in two years and we are currently attracting new members at an unprecendented rate.

This is because we are still championing the common interest.

I believe in local government, I believe that the best, most effective government takes place at the lowest possible and practical level.

I believe in Directly Elected Mayors with executive powers, offering leadership and accountability in place of unelected officials exercising "executive functions" at the expense of local democracy.

I believe in our town's potential as a centre for employment, that is why I serve on our town's job creation taskforce.

I believe in supporting local crafts and producers, that is why I am the founding and current chairman of the Westport Food and Craft Market.

I believe in a fair deal and that is why I am honoured to serve on Westport's Fairtrade committee in our designated Fairtrade Town.

I believe that everyone has the right to live in their home town and that is why I support the Tubberhill development which will see the creation of over 90 units of mixed social and affordable housing just up the road from this hotel.

I believe in access for all that is why I am a founding member of the town's Barcelona Committee to oversee our compliance with disability and access requirements in our town.

I can see a future when all young men and women from Westport can afford their own home in Westport

I can see a future when Westport attracts employers from all over the world thanks to investment in infrastructure like super high speed broadband, an N5 dual carriage way linking us to Castlebar and the very high quality of life we offer here in Westport

I can see a future when the majority of Westport's energy needs are met by sustainable sources such as wind, wave and tidal power.

I can see a future when conservation is as important as development.

I can see a Westport, a Mayo, an Ireland where no-one is left behind, no matter what their income, their education or their background.

I believe in an equality of opportunity, I believe in a fair society and that is why I am so proud to have selected here tonight. I will not let you down. I will continue to work hard for you.