PDs to launch recruitment drive

The Progressive Democrats, who celebrate 19 years in politics today, plan a major recruitment drive in 2005 to sustain the party’s future.

During its 20th year, the party will hold a series of regional public meetings, conduct a membership drive and distribute information in key constituencies.

Party president and justice minister Michael McDowell today promised “political mapping and vision to drive the political agenda just as radically as we drove the political agenda for the last 20 years“.

Mr McDowell added: “2005 is going to be a great year for this party. We’re planning to re-calibrate our sights and plan out a vision for this country.

“We will be the driving force in bringing about increased success for this country over the next 20 years.”

Current and former parliamentary members and party staff gathered in their Dublin HQ today to celebrate the success of the party since it was founded by Des O’Malley during Christmas week in 1985.

Its early members were Fianna Fáil defectors, yet within four years the party had joined Taoiseach Charlie Haughey’s coalition government. It has since served in power for over half of its existence.

The PDs have carved out their own electoral niche as a liberal party promoting lower taxes, liberal social policies and free market economics.

Mr Mc Dowell added: “Ireland is changing as a society. Liberal values are coming to the fore. Not everybody is happy with that. A lot of people decry liberal values.

“It isn’t a party of the right. It isn’t Thatcherite. The terrible bogey phrase that was thrown at us 20 years ago was ’monetarists.’ All of those criticisms seem puny in relation to Ireland’s achievements.”

Party leader and health minister Mary Harney said the PDs helped to transform the country through its policy agenda and “I don’t think anybody can take that away from us".

She said the party’s early economic policies were opposed by the main parties and described as “crazy” by then Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald.

“In Ireland, if you espouse low taxation and pro-enterprise, people assume that you’re fundamentalist or right wing. Nothing annoys me more than to be described as right wing.”

Ms Harney said the party was founded in an Ireland where unemployment was at 17%, the standard tax rate was 35% and divorce and homosexuality were illegal.

She added: “People described our policies as a form of Utopia. There were very few people in Ireland that predicted that we would still be around now.”

Party founder and leader until 1993, Mr O’Malley remarked that Ireland had become one of the most successful countries in the EU from being described as the ’sick man of Europe.’

“The International Monetary Fund was waiting to move into Ireland to tell us how to manage our affairs,” he said.

Mr O’Malley who is now a director with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London, said the PDs helped to socially transform the State from a “homogenous and inward-looking society.”

A book is being compiled about the party to celebrate its first two decades.