SINN FÉIN BULLYING RESIGNATIONS: ANOTHER FEMALE COUNCILLOR LIKELY TO QUIT

Second woman on Limerick council is likely to walk out as bullying claims keep emerging The nine councillors and one TD who have already quit

THERE is speculation in Sinn Féin circles that yet another Sinn Féin councillor is to quit the party in the wake of bullying allegations.

Lisa Marie Sheehy, 23, Sinn Féin’s youngest councillor, this week became the latest Sinn Féin public representative to resign from the party, citing a toxic atmosphere and a bullying culture.

Now it is thought that her friend, Cllr Ciara McMahon, could be about to quit too.

Ms McMahon was the only member of Sinn Féin to speak out in support of Ms Sheehy this week. Both are on Limerick City and County Council.

It comes as the Irish Mail on Sunday can reveal that Ms Sheehy is resisting an attempt by Fianna Fáil to poach her and make her a Dáil candidate.

Of the possibilities of more defections, a Sinn Féin source said this weekend: ‘Lisa Marie has started something. Where it ends, we’re not sure. As Lisa Marie said, she does not think she will be

‘She’s a huge, huge loss – she’s a fantastic councillor’

the last. But you will see that Ciara is the only one who has spoken out in Limerick. It’s not a female thing and it’s not a gender thing, and it’s not the girls sticking together or anything like that.

‘It’s just she’s a huge, huge loss. She’s a fantastic councillor,’ said the Sinn Féin source.

‘She grew up supporting the party and that’s her family background. She will always be a republican and she will always share republican beliefs, and the ethos of the party as a whole.

‘She just thinks that situations need to be addressed and it’s not just Limerick. It’s the handling of things that need to be addressed.

‘Ciara thinks that Limerick Sinn Féin has lost a star this week and she had huge potential for the party. We don’t know what is the outcome for the party.’

Another Sinn Féin source said: ‘People go into politics to do the best they can and, at the end of the day, it becomes their job.

‘If you feel like you are being undermined or intimidated and you are not getting support it is not right.’

Ms McMahon told the MoS yesterday: ‘I’m friends with Lisa Marie. She has confided in me over the last 12 months. She had to do what she had to do for her.

‘I commend her for standing up for herself and for hopefully showing people that if you are feeling that way in your workplace – or in any situation – that you will stand up and say, “This isn’t right for me – what’s going on is not right.”

‘She’s been a very brave woman and she is a very gifted councillor. And we are at a loss now after her departure in Limerick.’

Meanwhile, Fianna Fáil was preparing to poach the high-profile councillor but any such attempt is likely to fail in the immediate term.

The MoS understands Fianna Fáil wants the UCC postgraduate student to join Limerick TD Niall Collins on a general election ticket.

Mr Collins, Fianna Fáil’s jobs, enterprise and innovation spokesman, knows he will be expected to have a running mate in the next election.

Fianna Fáil sources in Dublin HQ said last night that Mr Collins would be open to the prospect of running with Ms Sheehy in the Limerick County constituency.

Mr Collins, who has been a Fianna Fáil TD for a decade, was re-elected in Limerick County on the first count with 12,276 votes in 2016, when he was the sole Fianna Fáil candidate.

However, given his large vote, the party believes a second candidate could easily be elected with him. When asked to comment on what is being described in Limerick as a ‘dream ticket’, Mr Collins said: ‘Ms Sheehy is a hard-working, able and widely respected public representative.

‘I do know that she has a number of relatives who are members of Fianna Fáil.’

It is understood that cousins of Ms Sheehy have even canvassed for the Fianna Fáil party in Limerick in recent elections.

Parties must select 30% female candidates or lose half their State funding. That requirement will increase to 40% in 2023. ‘She would be a perfect running mate for Niall,’ said a senior Fianna Fáil source in Limerick.

‘The perfect running mate for Niall Collins’ ‘I will not be joining any political party – ever’

‘She is the other side of constituency – and a woman, of course. But she is very good, very articulate and able.’

But any such hopes were dashed yesterday when Cllr Sheehy told

the MoS: ‘I have stated everywhere that I will be continuing on as an independent. I am not interested in joining any political party.

‘I want to make it clear: I will not be joining any political party ever.’

Ms Sheehy said after her resignation from Sinn Féin this week that politics could be dirty but that her experience of bullying was far removed from the norm.

‘ ‘I’ve been bullied in school and been in different work situations but this was more,’ she said.

‘This was viciousness. I was bullied and I’m not going to bend over for bullies.’

She said she was plotted against and pushed out of the party by a small number of members from within who tried to break her down.

Ms Sheehy cited one particular meeting where she claimed she was verbally abused, which prompted her to flee in tears.

She alleged she was confronted by members and sworn at. ‘I felt intimidated,’ she said. Ms Sheehy believes that her close relationship with another former Sinn Féin female public representative partially led to the treatment she received.

Ms Sheehy worked in the past for Sandra McLellan, the Sinn Féin Cork East TD who left the party after speaking of attempts to undermine her.

Ms McLellan faced criticism when she gave an interview to the MoS in 2012, where she spoke of the problems of surviving on the average industrial wage. She was referring to the party practice of allowing its TDs to retain only the average industrial wage and requiring them to hand over the remains of their Dáil salary to the party.

She also revealed that, as well as taking a portion of its TDs’ salaries, the party takes most of their expenses cheques.

Ms Sheehy said she had suffered for knowing too much about Ms McLellan’s situation.

‘I did work experience with Sandra, so I got to know her very well and what was going on in her area.

‘I think they knew that I knew too much and they didn’t like that.

‘I think from that point they said, “We better watch this one,”’ Ms Sheehy told the Limerick Leader this week.

There is further speculation in Sinn Féin circles about the future of Cllr McMahon. A Sinn Féin member said last night: ‘Lisa Marie is not the first and we fear Ciara could follow her.’

Ms McMahon said of Ms Sheehy: ‘She needed to do what she needed to do.

‘We had spoken about her concerns over the last while and I completely understand how she feels.’

‘She’s not the first and we fear Ciara will follow’