Outspoken Ming vows to shake up Dáil

INDEPENDENT Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan made history in Roscommon/South Leitrim when his phenomenal vote not only landed him the first of three seats but also dealt Fianna Fáil a fatal blow in this constituency.

Fine Gael held onto its two seats to return outgoing TDs Denis Naughten and Frank Feighan, but the real surprise was how well the colourful and sometimes controversial Flanagan polled to land the first seat.

The Castlerea-based councillor’s victory comes 14 years after his first general election outing in Galway West.

He has attracted considerable national media attention since then, not least for his campaign to legalise cannabis but also on other more local issues such as the right to cut turf.

Mr Flanagan aligned himself with the New Vision group of independents in this election. Revelling in his decisive victory on Saturday night, he declared: “We have been quiet for too long, the people have spoken.

“I knew things were going to go well. How that was going to translate into votes I didn’t know and I have to say it is a phenomenal result. The people of South Leitrim and Roscommon have spoken and I have to say I’m humbled by it.”

Outspoken, direct, unorthodox, Mr Flanagan looks set to ruffle a few feathers when he arrives in the Dáil having proposed a 50% pay cut for TDs.

“My first day in, I’ll be announcing that I’ll be taking a 50% pay cut not because I want to be a martyr but because that’s all I believe this country can afford… We are here to show leadership, we are here to give people hope, people are going through savage pain at the moment through the universal social charge, pay cuts, no work at all, so it’s the least I can do to show the lead.”