‘LNG is about the future of the whole area’
IT was a tumultuous week for the Listowel Municipal Area’s new Cathaoirleach, Fine Gael County Councillor Mike Foley.
Fresh from adopting the Local Area Plan at the close of a fraught process, Cllr Foley and his colleagues of the prospective Government parties in the district were faced with the choice of backing or rejecting a deal with serious implications for the region’s industrial future.
Cllr Foley and party colleagues Aoife Thornton and Mike Kennelly along with Fianna Fáil Cllr Jimmy Moloney in the end all voted against the programme, citing the likely impact of the LNG blow and the lack of detail in the new government’s fresh promises for the land-bank and its area.
They voted as one again in Listowel on Friday to elect Mike Foley Cathaoirleach, in an informal block, up against both votes of Sinn Féin’s Robert Beasley and Tom Barry.
Though bruised by the implications of the Programme for Government on his home area, Cllr Foley said he intends hitting the ground running for the people, with the future development of the land-bank his number-one priority.
“I definitely would have to thank everyone who put their faith in me last year to elect me, and I’m looking forward to the next year. I’m going to take full advantage of the term for the betterment of the people of my area,” he told The Kerryman on Friday.
“I was the first one to come out against the Programme for Government, especially when the draft formation talks came out first, with my biggest concern the LNG project all along. The land-bank in Bally has been there for 50 years at this stage, just sitting there, and now that we have a realistic project, it has been rejected in the programme for government. And it’s the first time ever that a private development project has been rejected in a programme for government.
“This project was to have been for the whole country, and it was more than just about jobs for North Kerry. It’s about the security of energy supply. The last AG even advised the Government we have to have security of supply or we will get fined by the EU Commission. IBEC has come out and said we need it, John Mullins, the former head of Bord Gáis, came out only recently to say its vital we have security of gas supply.”
“We’re listening about stimulus packages for the last 50 years here. LNG was always about the further development of the land-bank and Shannon Estuary. We should be taking advantage of the Estuary, the engine of the economy of the west of Ireland.”
As it happens, Cllr Foley is already involved in another project seeking to harness the Estuary for an economic boost – but for its natural beauty rather than its deep water.
“Tourism is our biggest industry, but it’s been dealt a massive blow by COVID in Kerry. Revenue here last year was €550 million, but this year it could be down with a loss of €400 million. Thanks to COVID, outdoor activities, rather than indoor activities, are going to become vital in the years to come. It’s important that we take advantage of the national tourism trade, and large-scale trails coming into North Kerry. There’s a Greenway in Listowel now, so it’s vital that is expedited, and we also need to be taking full advantage of the Wild Atlantic Way.
“I’m involved in developing a new walking trail for the adventurous rambler we are now looking to incorporate into the North Kerry Way, which runs from Tralee to Ballyheigue, and connect it to the Shannon Way, which goes through Ballyduff, Ballybunion, over Cnoc an Fhómhair before facing a choice straight to Ballylongford or heading onto Beale Strand and west onto Carrig Island and then into Tarbert. Ultimately it will connect onto trails up the entire west coast and we’re calling it The Slí. We have presented it to Brendan Griffin [for whom Cllr Foley works as parliamentary assistant] and it is actually mentioned on page 27 of the Programme for Government.
“It’s a cheap project, what you’re essentially doing is connecting existing trails using boreens along the coast, but there’s a big market for it domestically.”
Cllr Foley is also calling for a scheme to get the large number of vacant houses in the countryside back into use in another locally focused economic initiative. “There are 35 vacant houses in Ballylongford alone. There should be an incentive to owners to sell and for people to buy. It’s all connected. You have to have industry to draw people in and houses for them to live in and amenities to enjoy and attract more to the area.”