COUNCIL PROFILE: WATERFORD CITY AND COUNTY:FIANNA FÁIL saw its representation drop from four to just one member on the 15-seat Waterford City Council in the 2004 local elections, with the party relegated to third place behind Fine Gael and Labour in terms of total first preference vote.
Back then the issue which hit Fianna Fáil so greatly was the provision of cancer treatment services in the southeast. While that may no longer be as big an issue, the party is facing an equally torrid time on both jobs and health fronts.
The closure of Waterford Crystal, with the resultant problems for workers securing both redundancy and pension entitlements, along with the closure of St Brigid’s geriatric ward in St Patrick’s Hospital, are likely to hit Fianna Fáil in this year’s election.
In the four-seat Waterford North, formerly ward 1, sitting councillors Hilary Quinlan of Fine Gael, Labour’s Pat Hayes and Joe Kelly of Sinn Féin are all expected to be returned. This could leave Workers Party veteran Davy Walsh in a battle for the last seat with Independent Dick Roche who was very involved in the cancer treatment services campaign.
In Waterford East, formerly ward 2 and now expanded from five to six seats, Fine Gael will take at least two while Labour mayor Jack Walsh should also be returned.
Also expected to hold their seats are Independents Davy Daniels and Mary Roche, leaving Fianna Fáil hoping that one of its four candidates will win the last seat in a fight with Fine Gael.
In Waterford South, formerly ward 3 and down from six to five seats, John Halligan, ex-WP man and now an Independent, Sinn Féin’s David Cullinane and Labour’s Séamus Ryan should all hold their seats.
Former Waterford Crystal worker Donie Fell, who was a Unite shop steward at the plant for 20 years, is among the other South candidates. Running under the People Before Profit banner, he said he decided to enter the local elections after becoming so frustrated with the Government’s “treatment of the workers there”.
The news is likely to be better for Fianna Fáil in Waterford County Council where it currently holds seven of the 23 seats, although the party’s candidate selection strategy in the Dungarvan electoral area, which is reduced from seven seats to six, could prove problematic.
The party has no candidate in Dungarvan town itself and is hoping sitting councillor Tom Cronin from Ardmore and former TD Ollie Wilkinson from near Cappoquin will take two seats. They face an uphill battle as Fine Gael will take at least two and possibly three seats while Labour will be hoping to hold its two seats. So too will Sinn Féin’s Brendan Mansfield, while independent Séamus O’Donnell from Oldparish is also mounting a strong challenge.
Fianna Fáil should hold its two seats in four-seat Lismore as will Fine Gael with Labour’s John Pratt facing an uphill struggle to make the breakthrough.
Labour’s sitting councillor Ger Barron should hold his seat in the new six-seater of Comeragh formed by the merger of three- seat Kilmacthomas and three- seat Suir areas where Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil both look assured of two seats and Fine Gael are fancied to take a third.
In Tramore, expanded from six seats to seven, Fine Gael looks set to take at least three seats, Labour should hold its single seat while Fianna Fáil should take two.
Independent Joe Conway will be hoping to win a seat in a four- way contest with Sinn Féin’s Pat Fitzgerald, Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil.
HOW THE PARTIES STAND
(Outgoing, city)
FF 1
FG 4
Lab 3
SF2
Others5
HOW THE PARTIES STAND
(Outgoing, county)
FF7
FG11
Lab4
SF 1
