Harris must try to win back the support of rural Deputies

Dear Sir,

Following the thrashing the Government received in the recent referendum results and the subsequent resignation of Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, it is now clear they have lost the support of rural Ireland.

Former Attorney General and current Senator Michael McDowell cleverly courted the rural vote on the no side - and won a landslide victory.

New Taoiseach Simon Harris must now make it a priority to win back the support of the rural TDs, cold-shouldered by Leo’s golden circle from Dublins’ leafy suburbs.

And the numbers of TDs who have stated they are not running in the next general election are now in double digits.

Of course the success of Dublin as our capital city matters, as do all of our cities, but winning back much lost ground in rural Ireland has to be a top priority for all parties, as the referendum results clearly show.

The residents of our countryside have had to suffer a lot of setbacks like the emigration of our youth and the closure of vital services such as garda stations, banks, health services, post-offices, shops and pubs in the lost decade of austerity.

Okay, we have the Wild Atlantic Way along the west coast of the country which boosts tourism during the summer months, but quietens down considerably from October to April each year.

And farming is going through a turbulent time with new green regulations coming at them from right, left and centre.

But they are resilient people in the regions, who need help to negotiate a better future for themselves and their families, and not to be talked down to by their supposed superiors in Dublin 4.

As has been shown in the recent referendums, rural Ireland cannot just be taken for granted and ignored by the powers-thatbe in our capital city.

As it was shown clearly on March 8th, rural Ireland can stand up for itself with plenty of clout at the ballot box, when the opportunity presents itself.

Yours faithfully,

Tom Towey. Cloonacool. County Sligo.