Proposal to name Port Tunnel in Haughey’s honour sparks row

A ROW has broken out among Dublin councillors over a proposal to name the Dublin Port Tunnel in honour of Charles Haughey.

The call was made by two Fianna Fáil councillors, Tom Brabazon of Dublin City Council and Michael Kennedy of Fingal County Council. They proposed that the tunnel should honour Mr Haughey in the same way that the River Lee tunnel in Cork commemorated his predecessor as Taoiseach, Jack Lynch.

However, the Labour Party yesterday rejected the proposal and also described any suggestions for naming the tunnel as premature.

Cllr Sean Kenny, Labour’s chair of Dublin City Council’s traffic committee, said that proper consultation would need to take place in finding a name for the €750 million tunnel, which is due to open this autumn.

He also questioned if Mr Haughey should be honoured in that manner: “As evidenced by the low public turnout for the Charles Haughey funeral in Donnycarney on Friday, I do not feel there is a large public demand for naming the tunnel as a commemoration to him” said Mr Kenny.

“I feel that the manner of the call by councillors Brabazon and Kennedy is a piece of political opportunism,” he said.

The matter of naming the tunnel will be listed on the transport committee’s agenda next week. The last such large-scale piece of infrastructure named in that way was the Samuel Beckett Bridge in Dublin.

Meanwhile, Fianna Fáil minister Eamon Ó Cuiv said this weekend that if the proposed National Park for the Blasket Islands could open this year, it would be a fitting commemoration not only to the islanders but also to Mr Haughey.

Mr Ó Cuiv, the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, described Mr Haughey as a ‘Blasketer’, referring to his ownership of Inishvickillaune, one of the Blasket Islands.

He described the late Mr Haughey as having a special attachment to the West Kerry Gaeltacht of Corca Dhuibne and that the fruits of his work could be seen on the Blaskets and at the port of Dingle, where a commemorative bust of the late Taoiseach was erected last year.

“It would be nice if the year of his death would be the year that the national park proposed for the Blasket would go ahead.

“Not only would it be a mark of commemoration to the people who lived there but it would also commemorate another Blasketer who lived on Inishvickillaune once, Charles J Haughey,” said Mr Ó Cuiv.

The indications are that the Haughey family will retain private ownership of the island.