Nicholas McCabe new chairman

FARMER, Nicholas McCabe, from Crinstown, Ardee, is the new chairman of Louth County Council. Mr, McCabe (Fianna Fail) was elected at the first meeting of the council, held in Drogheda on Tuesday morning, when the decisive vote cast in his favour was that of Mr. D.’ Mac Raghnaill (Sinn Fein, Gardiner Place), as it gave Mr. McCabe a majority of one (12 votes to 11) over his Fine Gael opponent, Mr. P. J. O’Hare, the outgoing chairman.

The two Independent members from Dundalk, and the Sinn Fein (Kevin St.) member, all abstained from voting for the chair, or for the position of vice-chairman, into which Mr. Edward Filgate, from Louth Village, was elected, again beating Mr. O’Hare by 12 votes to 11.

Although he has been a member of the Council for 19 years, it is Mr. McCabe’s first term as chairman. A former chairman of Louth Committee of Agriculture, he will be hoping that future Council meetings won’t be as “stormy” as Tuesday’s as there was fierce political wrangling for almost every position on every committee, with Fianna Fail holding the whip hand.

The struggle for control of the Committee of Agriculture resulted in one of the most heated political debates heard at a Co. Council meeting for some time, with accusations flying about freely, and being interrupted at one , stage by a newly elected member, Mr. M. Bell (FF), accusing his fellow councillors of behaving like a “load of children”, and with an Independent, Mr. S. McGuinness, commenting that he was being educated at the meeting about how political parties behaved.