Cork TD set for showdown with Tánaiste following 'Jekyll and Hyde' comment
Ahead of tomorrow's meeting, Cork East TD James O'Connor said he won’t be seeking an apology from the Tánaiste, but he thinks it was an inappropriate remark for the party leader to make.
Cork Fianna Fáil TD James O’Connor has said he feels like he is “hitting his head off a brick wall” in his bid to address local issues ahead of a showdown meeting with Tánaiste Micheál Martin.
Mr O’Connor sought a meeting with his party leader after a heated exchange between them at last week’s parliamentary party meeting where Mr Martin said O’Connor was a “Jekyll and Hyde” character.
Ahead of tomorrow's meeting, the Cork East TD said he won’t be seeking an apology from the Tánaiste, but he thinks it was an inappropriate remark for the party leader to make.
Mr O’Connor said his frustration emerged after Mr Martin visited his hometown of Youghal in February. He raised a number of issues with him but claims none have been addressed.
He said Youghal has welcomed a significant number of Ukrainians and had called for additional resources for the area, particularly for schools.
Mr O’Connor had sought additional provision of DEIS status for local schools in the area and said he was left “disappointed” that none were included in the programme expansion earlier this year.
He said Mr Martin did not give him an indication that he would ensure they received DEIS status.
"I’ve to be very clear that it’s inappropriate for politicians to directly intervene with departments but what I wanted from that day was for him to go back and to recognise that a community of 10,000 people welcoming 1,000 people from Ukraine to Youghal deserves Government support."
It is understood a number of local organisations in Youghal received funding from the Government’s Ukrainian community recognition fund, but Mr O’Connor said he wanted support for schools.
He plans to reiterate the items he has brought to the Tánaiste’s attention including the Castlemartyr bypass, the Green’s Quay site for regeneration in Youghal, as well as a local resource centre.
“It's important we discuss what happened and why it happened and why I am as angry and as frustrated as I am,” Mr O’Connor told the Irish Examiner.
“It’s not baseless, I would query significant details of some of the rebuttals he made to some of my points.
When put to him that Mr Martin may be dealing with a number of issues, including demands from other backbenchers, Mr O’Connor said Cabinet ministers are “well able to look after their own constituencies” and referenced how up to 15 or more of the 310 new DEIS schools were in Education Minister Norma Foley’s constituency.
Mr O’Connor said he received a lot of supportive calls from his colleagues following last week’s meeting, with one TD recalling how he went to former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern with five items and by the time he had returned to his office, two issues had been resolved.
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