Commenting on Thursday night's (June 24th) election for Lord Mayor of Cork at City Hall, Workers Party councillor Ted Tynan said that comments from the pact candidate Michael O’Connell that he would “take politics out of the Mayoralty” were a total contradiction of the process that would elect Cllr. O’Connell where a three party pact would once again claim the office of Lord Mayor and deny almost one third of councillors their say in the election.
Cllr. Tynan said that it was not politics that needed to be taken out of the office of Lord Mayor but party politics. “The office of Lord Mayor of Cork is a deeply political office and is one the people of Cork are very proud of. One could hardly say that Lord Mayors such as Tomás Mac Curtain and Terence McSwiney were not political when in fact every fibre of their bodies were full of politics but they did not engage in the politics of self-promotion and exclusion of all other points of view”.
“It is a great pity that those members of the pact parties, and indeed some in the media see the nomination of candidates for the position of Lord Mayor and Deputy Lord Mayor by those of us outside the pact as some kind of nuisance. We do so in defence of the democracy that people like Mac Curtain and McSwiney fought for. To do otherwise would be a denial of the democratic votes of the thousands of citizens who voted for non-pact candidates”, said Cllr. Tynan.
Cllr. Tynan said he will be supporting the nomination of Independent Councillor Chris O’Leary for Lord Mayor and would propose Cllr. Jonathan O’Brien of Sinn Féin for the position of Deputy Lord Mayor.
Thursday, 24 June 2010
Sunday, 13 June 2010
New Stadium elsewhere in Docklands is best solution to Páirc Uí Chaoimh dilemma says Tynan
Speaking in advance of Monday night's (Jun 14) City Council vote in relation to the redevelopment of Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Workers’ Party Councillor Ted Tynan has said that a solution must be found that will satisfy the needs of the GAA to expand and the competing need for a major public park for the citizens of Cork.
Cllr. Tynan said he believed that a totally new stadium within the South Docklands area was the best solution and that he would be opposing the proposal that is before the council, but strongly urging the City Manager to do a swap with the GAA for another site within docklands.
The Workers’ Party councillor said, “The GAA’s proposal envisages the demolition in stages of most of the existing Páirc Uí Chaoimh. This will involve considerable disruption to the stadium’s fixtures with inevitable restrictions on crowd capacity and safety issues for several years. I am proposing that an entirely new stadium, incorporating the proposed Centre of Excellence, be built within a few hundred yards of Páirc Uí Chaoimh. This will preserve the proposed amenity park and give the GAA even more space to expand.”, said Cllr. Tynan.
“The City Council will have to accept that the docklands plan is not a Holy Grail. The economy is a very different animal now to what it was when the lofty plans for docklands were drawn up. It is inevitable in my view that the docklands development will have to be scaled down. This gives the council scope to make plenty of space available to the GAA within a puc fada of its historical home. It can be achieved if people are willing to open their minds and move from their entrenched positions”.
Cllr. Tynan said that the Workers’ Party was fully supportive of the GAA’s plans but that the opportunity to give the people of Cork a magnificent new public park close to the city centre might not arise again for generations. Both of these plans could be achieved if people were prepared to think outside the box and consider his proposal.
Cllr. Tynan said he believed that a totally new stadium within the South Docklands area was the best solution and that he would be opposing the proposal that is before the council, but strongly urging the City Manager to do a swap with the GAA for another site within docklands.
The Workers’ Party councillor said, “The GAA’s proposal envisages the demolition in stages of most of the existing Páirc Uí Chaoimh. This will involve considerable disruption to the stadium’s fixtures with inevitable restrictions on crowd capacity and safety issues for several years. I am proposing that an entirely new stadium, incorporating the proposed Centre of Excellence, be built within a few hundred yards of Páirc Uí Chaoimh. This will preserve the proposed amenity park and give the GAA even more space to expand.”, said Cllr. Tynan.
“The City Council will have to accept that the docklands plan is not a Holy Grail. The economy is a very different animal now to what it was when the lofty plans for docklands were drawn up. It is inevitable in my view that the docklands development will have to be scaled down. This gives the council scope to make plenty of space available to the GAA within a puc fada of its historical home. It can be achieved if people are willing to open their minds and move from their entrenched positions”.
Cllr. Tynan said that the Workers’ Party was fully supportive of the GAA’s plans but that the opportunity to give the people of Cork a magnificent new public park close to the city centre might not arise again for generations. Both of these plans could be achieved if people were prepared to think outside the box and consider his proposal.
Monday, 31 May 2010
Micheál Martin should kick out Israeli Ambassador after convoy attack
Cork Workers Party Councillor Ted Tynan has called on Foreign Affairs Minister Micheál Martin to immediately expel the Israeli Ambassador and break off all diplomatic relations with Israel following this morning’s attack by Israeli commandos on the international aid flotilla to Gaza.
There are a number of Cork activists on the convoy including Dr. Fintan Lane who is onboard the Challenger 1 which is one of the vessels attacked this morning. Cllr. Tynan has expressed concern for their safety.
Cllr. Tynan said that while Minister Micheál Martin had visited Palestine recently and had criticised Israel’s treatment of the Palestinian people this was no longer enough and it was now time to isolate Israel as the pariah state that it is following its attack on a humanitarian aid convoy.
“Words of condemnation are no longer enough from Minister Martin and he must stop the Israeli embassy in Dublin being used as a mouthpiece to justify international terrorism. Israel recently used Irish passports and those of other nations in order to carry out a cold-blooded assassination – several of the other countries involved have broken off relations with Israel but not Ireland. We now have peaceful Irish aid workers being put directly in the firing line by Israel in this heinous attack on the aid flotilla and it is time to take off the kid gloves with which Israel is being treated”, said Cllr. Tynan.
There are a number of Cork activists on the convoy including Dr. Fintan Lane who is onboard the Challenger 1 which is one of the vessels attacked this morning. Cllr. Tynan has expressed concern for their safety.
Cllr. Tynan said that while Minister Micheál Martin had visited Palestine recently and had criticised Israel’s treatment of the Palestinian people this was no longer enough and it was now time to isolate Israel as the pariah state that it is following its attack on a humanitarian aid convoy.
“Words of condemnation are no longer enough from Minister Martin and he must stop the Israeli embassy in Dublin being used as a mouthpiece to justify international terrorism. Israel recently used Irish passports and those of other nations in order to carry out a cold-blooded assassination – several of the other countries involved have broken off relations with Israel but not Ireland. We now have peaceful Irish aid workers being put directly in the firing line by Israel in this heinous attack on the aid flotilla and it is time to take off the kid gloves with which Israel is being treated”, said Cllr. Tynan.
Saturday, 15 May 2010
"Hands off the State Pension" Tynan warns Ó Cuiv
Cllr. Ted Tynan has condemned comments of Social Welfare Minister Eamon Ó Cuiv in which the Minister hinted that the State Pension (formerly known as the Old Age Pension) might be cut in the next Budget.
Cllr. Tynan said that the Minister would find himself faced with the wrath of pensioners if he attempted to interfere with a right people had worked all their lives to earn and the Workers Party described claims about wealthy people on State Pensions as a "red herring".
The State Pension is a means-tested payment. People who have paid in via their PRSI or stamps during their working lives may qualify for a Contributory Pension but the Non-Contributory Pension is subjected to a rigorous means test. The whole talk about people with wealth getting the State Pension is nothing other than a diversion and is a bit rich coming from a government that claimed it was unable to cut the massive pensions paid to judges and the golden handshakes given to criminal bankers.
"The Pension is a meagre enough payment and does not even make ends meet for people, particularly during Winter when they have to spend a large part of their pension on fuel in order to keep warm. In the harsh winter just gone by many elderly people, and indeed other people on welfare or low pay, ran up large bills for heating because it was literally a matter of life or death for them. Eamon Ó Cuiv, a grandson of Éamon De Valera, should know how dangerous it is to try and cut the pension - after all his grandfather got elected Taoiseach for the first time after a predecessor, Ernest Blythe took a shilling off the Old Age Pension. Blythe later lost his seat. Mr. Ó Cuiv should worry about his if he does the same", said Cllr. Tynan.
Cllr. Tynan said that the Minister would find himself faced with the wrath of pensioners if he attempted to interfere with a right people had worked all their lives to earn and the Workers Party described claims about wealthy people on State Pensions as a "red herring".
The State Pension is a means-tested payment. People who have paid in via their PRSI or stamps during their working lives may qualify for a Contributory Pension but the Non-Contributory Pension is subjected to a rigorous means test. The whole talk about people with wealth getting the State Pension is nothing other than a diversion and is a bit rich coming from a government that claimed it was unable to cut the massive pensions paid to judges and the golden handshakes given to criminal bankers.
"The Pension is a meagre enough payment and does not even make ends meet for people, particularly during Winter when they have to spend a large part of their pension on fuel in order to keep warm. In the harsh winter just gone by many elderly people, and indeed other people on welfare or low pay, ran up large bills for heating because it was literally a matter of life or death for them. Eamon Ó Cuiv, a grandson of Éamon De Valera, should know how dangerous it is to try and cut the pension - after all his grandfather got elected Taoiseach for the first time after a predecessor, Ernest Blythe took a shilling off the Old Age Pension. Blythe later lost his seat. Mr. Ó Cuiv should worry about his if he does the same", said Cllr. Tynan.
Monday, 26 April 2010
Tynan condemns slams "opposition" for secret deal on Freedom of City
Workers Party councillor Ted Tynan has a backroom deal has been made between the three parties that control the Mayoral Pact on Cork City Council to share the Freedom of the City over the next four years. The deal has been done in order to push through tomorrow night’s proposal to make the award to former Fine Gael deputy Peter Barry.
Fine Gael and Labour have joined forces with the main government party Fianna Fáil to secure the award for Mr. Barry, a former Tánaiste and member of a coalition government which was in power when thousands of jobs were lost in Cork including Fords, Dunlops and Verolme Cork Dockyard. The latter closed when the government gave a contract for replacement naval patrol vessels to a non-EU member state.
Cllr. Tynan said that once again the controlling clique on the city council had made a secret deal to the benefit of their own parties and to the detriment of democracy and at considerable cost at a time when the council is cutting back on important services and staff.
The Workers Party councillor said that the arrangement made a mockery of the talk of change coming from the alternative government-in-waiting being offered by Fine Gael and Labour. “In Dáil Éireann”, he said, “The main opposition parties give the impression they are at war with Fianna Fáil, but in Cork City Hall they are inseparable allies in order to share the extravagant spoils of office”.
“Just over a week ago”, said Cllr. Tynan, “we heard the Labour Party leader Eamon Gilmore talk about fundamental change in Irish politics and “liberating the country from insiders who have squandered our prosperity’ – he also offered a ‘clear break with the political past’”. I wonder is Mr. Gilmore aware that of the insider deals being made by his own councillors in Cork City Hall?”, asked the Workers Party councillor.
“Are we really to believe that a government composed of Fine Gael and Labour would be any different to one led by Fianna Fáil when all three parties can merrily coalesce to share out the spoils of office in City Hall?”, he queried
Fine Gael and Labour have joined forces with the main government party Fianna Fáil to secure the award for Mr. Barry, a former Tánaiste and member of a coalition government which was in power when thousands of jobs were lost in Cork including Fords, Dunlops and Verolme Cork Dockyard. The latter closed when the government gave a contract for replacement naval patrol vessels to a non-EU member state.
Cllr. Tynan said that once again the controlling clique on the city council had made a secret deal to the benefit of their own parties and to the detriment of democracy and at considerable cost at a time when the council is cutting back on important services and staff.
The Workers Party councillor said that the arrangement made a mockery of the talk of change coming from the alternative government-in-waiting being offered by Fine Gael and Labour. “In Dáil Éireann”, he said, “The main opposition parties give the impression they are at war with Fianna Fáil, but in Cork City Hall they are inseparable allies in order to share the extravagant spoils of office”.
“Just over a week ago”, said Cllr. Tynan, “we heard the Labour Party leader Eamon Gilmore talk about fundamental change in Irish politics and “liberating the country from insiders who have squandered our prosperity’ – he also offered a ‘clear break with the political past’”. I wonder is Mr. Gilmore aware that of the insider deals being made by his own councillors in Cork City Hall?”, asked the Workers Party councillor.
“Are we really to believe that a government composed of Fine Gael and Labour would be any different to one led by Fianna Fáil when all three parties can merrily coalesce to share out the spoils of office in City Hall?”, he queried
Thursday, 1 April 2010
EU General inspects his troops in Collins Barracks
Earlier this week (30/3/2010) we had the unnerving spectacle of a Brigadier General from the EU Nordic Battlegroup inspecting Irish troops in Collins Barracks, Cork City. Brigadier General Jan Stephan Andersson of the Swedish Army inspected the troops, who will be under his command for military exercises in Sweden later this year for what was referred to in a communiqué as "warfare training".
I raised this issue because it runs contrary to what we were told during the Lisbon Treaty referndums (1 and 2). When the formation of EU Battlegroups was raised by the Workers Party and others during the referendum and during the 2 Nice Treaty referendums, we were once again accused of scaremongering and people were reassured that these Battlegroups were purely for humanitarian missions. Now I have to wonder where does "warfare training" fit in to humanitarianism? What type of warfare are these Irish troops to be trained in? Now that the Lisbon referendum has been won by the government - on its second outing - the smoke is beginning to clear and the EU army that was so vehemently denied, is taking shape before our eyes. We are still being told that Irish neutrality is secure. The "triple lock" mechanism will see to that but then there's Brigadier Andersson as bold as brass inspecting troops up in Collins Barracks which was wrested from the control of another empire just 90 years ago.
It is even more ironic when we see that this is Easter Week and marks the 94th anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising when a small band of Irishmen and women looked the British Empire in the face and flew the flag of freedom. This weekend political parties of all shades will mark that anniversary. No doubt Fianna Fáil will traipse into Arbour Hill at some stage and pay mealy-mouthed homage to that rebellion but it is worth recalling what that the Easter Proclamation of 1916 said:-
Quite clearly our neutrality and national sovereignty continue to be sold while we are driven ever deeper into the mire of the EU / New World Order that gives us EU armies and the likes of NAMA to save the bankers while ordinary workers and their families are thrown to the wolves.
The Workers Party will hold its own Easter 1916 commemoration on Easter Sunday. There will be no sharp suits or PR agencies feeding out a steady flow of media-speak. We will gather at the Republican Plot in St. Finbarr's Cemetery, Cork where the graves of patriots like Tomás Mac Curtain and Terence MacSwiney and many others are; where comrades like John Joe Kavanagh and Martin O'Leary lie buried. Did any of them really give their lives so that we could be ruled by an unaccountable bureaucratic elite in Brussels - or a bosses party in Dublin for that matter? I don't think so.
The Workers Party commemoration in Cork will be addressed by veteran socialist republican Sean Garland who will speak about issues relevant to working people and their families today. The Easter Proclamation will be read with pride by Donal O'Driscoll and we will lay wreaths on the graves of fallen comrades. The ceremony will commence at 12 Noon sharp and all are welcome
I raised this issue because it runs contrary to what we were told during the Lisbon Treaty referndums (1 and 2). When the formation of EU Battlegroups was raised by the Workers Party and others during the referendum and during the 2 Nice Treaty referendums, we were once again accused of scaremongering and people were reassured that these Battlegroups were purely for humanitarian missions. Now I have to wonder where does "warfare training" fit in to humanitarianism? What type of warfare are these Irish troops to be trained in? Now that the Lisbon referendum has been won by the government - on its second outing - the smoke is beginning to clear and the EU army that was so vehemently denied, is taking shape before our eyes. We are still being told that Irish neutrality is secure. The "triple lock" mechanism will see to that but then there's Brigadier Andersson as bold as brass inspecting troops up in Collins Barracks which was wrested from the control of another empire just 90 years ago.
It is even more ironic when we see that this is Easter Week and marks the 94th anniversary of the 1916 Easter Rising when a small band of Irishmen and women looked the British Empire in the face and flew the flag of freedom. This weekend political parties of all shades will mark that anniversary. No doubt Fianna Fáil will traipse into Arbour Hill at some stage and pay mealy-mouthed homage to that rebellion but it is worth recalling what that the Easter Proclamation of 1916 said:-
We declare the right of the people of Ireland to the ownership of Ireland, and to the unfettered control of Irish destinies, to be sovereign and indefeasible. The long usurpation of that right by a foreign people and government has not extinguished the right, nor can it ever be extinguished except by the destruction of the Irish people. In every generation the Irish people have asserted their right to national freedom and sovereignty: six times during the past three hundred years[2] they have asserted it in arms. Standing on that fundamental right and again asserting it in arms in the face of the world, we hereby proclaim the Irish Republic as a Sovereign Independent State, and we pledge our lives and the lives of our comrades-in-arms to the cause of its freedom, of its welfare, and its exaltation among the nations.
Quite clearly our neutrality and national sovereignty continue to be sold while we are driven ever deeper into the mire of the EU / New World Order that gives us EU armies and the likes of NAMA to save the bankers while ordinary workers and their families are thrown to the wolves.
The Workers Party will hold its own Easter 1916 commemoration on Easter Sunday. There will be no sharp suits or PR agencies feeding out a steady flow of media-speak. We will gather at the Republican Plot in St. Finbarr's Cemetery, Cork where the graves of patriots like Tomás Mac Curtain and Terence MacSwiney and many others are; where comrades like John Joe Kavanagh and Martin O'Leary lie buried. Did any of them really give their lives so that we could be ruled by an unaccountable bureaucratic elite in Brussels - or a bosses party in Dublin for that matter? I don't think so.
The Workers Party commemoration in Cork will be addressed by veteran socialist republican Sean Garland who will speak about issues relevant to working people and their families today. The Easter Proclamation will be read with pride by Donal O'Driscoll and we will lay wreaths on the graves of fallen comrades. The ceremony will commence at 12 Noon sharp and all are welcome
Thursday, 4 February 2010
Ted Tynan pays tribute to Tomás Mac Giolla
Tomás Mac Giolla with Ted Tynan and Cork's Lord Mayor Brian Bermingham in 2008
Cork Workers’ Party Councillor Ted Tynan has paid warm tribute this afternoon (Thursday) to his friend and former Party President Tomás Mac Giolla who died in Dublin
Councillor Tynan said that Mr. Mac Giolla will be remembered as someone who played a leading role in the promotion of peace in Ireland
“I am very saddened to hear the news of the death of Tomás Mac Giolla. I have known Tomás for most of my life and he was a decisive influence on the formation of my political beliefs. Tomás could always be relied upon when difficult decisions had to be taken and was a rock of commonsense who could see beyond rhetoric and make clear judgements at difficult times”, said Cllr. Tynan.
“Tomás and his wife May were also personal friends for many years and my heartfelt sympathy goes out to May at this time. It is with great fondness that I recall that Tomás and May came to Cork Cork
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