FF members’ threat to quit over boundary
Senior Fianna Fáil members in Leitrim have threatened to resign if the Oireachtas approves the recommendations of the constituency commission.
The commission recommended that Leitrim should remain in its present state (divided in half and attached to two other counties, Sligo and Roscommon). The constituencies are Sligo-North Leitrim and Roscommon-South Leitrim.
The Leitrim Dáil ceanntar (the unit overseeing Fianna Fáil branches in the county) argues the county is disenfranchised, with no prospect of returning a Leitrim TD. It had urged the commission to make Leitrim a constituency in its own right, but that appeal fell on deaf ears.
The Dáil ceanntar erected signs on approaches to the county reading: “You are now entering Disenfranchised Leitrim — A TD-free zone courtesy of the Constituency Commission.”
Mr Gormley has said the legislation will implement the recommendations without amendment, in line with precedent.
“In the past, governments of all hues have brought forward bills to give effect to commission recommendations without amendment, and it is my firm view that this practice should continue,” he stated.
Should the Oireachtas pass the legislation, it could trigger the resignations of the officers of Fianna Fáil’s Leitrim Dáil ceanntar.
“It’s not an empty threat” said the Dáil ceanntar secretary Jimmy Gilheaney this weekend. “We’re 100% serious.”
A spokesman for Fianna Fáil headquarters said attempts were being made to arrange a meeting with the Dáil ceanntar officers “in the near future”.
“They asked for a meeting with the Taoiseach and Tánaiste. That wasn’t possible in the run-up to the Budget. But we’re hoping to arrange it soon.”
