Parade MC sorry for ‘poorly chosen’ words

THE MC of the St Patrick’s Day parade in Greystones has apologised for causing offence with remarks he made following a song by the Girl Guides.

Girl Guides Chief Commissioner Helen Concannon said in a letter that the girls sang a song with lyrics including ‘Can a woman fly an airplane? Yes, she can, yes she can! Can a woman build a building? Yes, she can, yes she can!’

According to Ms Concannon, MC Graham Spurling said ‘ That was very provocative, girls’, and went on to ask, ‘Can a woman go home now and make the lunch? Can a woman do the ironing?’.

Mr Spurling said that the words he used were ‘poorly chosen, ill-advised and inappropriate’.

He apologised and said that the comments were meant to be tongue-in-cheek.

The Girl Guides have accepted the apology, it is understood.

The display by the Greystones girls included posters with messages such as ‘Girl Power’, ‘Equal Rights and the Girl Guide tagline ‘Giving Girls Confidence’, as well as their song.

They chose this year to promote gender equality and celebrate 100 years of the women’s vote.

Mr Spurling’s family owns the iconic former cinema building in Greystones, as well as a number of other cinemas nationwide.