Proposed left-wing alliance on Dublin City Council falls apart

A coalition of the various centre-left to left-wing parties on Dublin City Council has failed to gather the numbers needed to lock out Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael from the halls of power.

The coalition, which consists of the Social Democrats’ 10 councillors and Sinn Féin 9 councillors has received the backing of progressive and left-wing councillors such as Pat Dunne (Right2Change), John Lyons (Independent Left), and independents Cieran Perry and Berry Heneghan as well as People Before Profit’s 2 councillors.

The progressive alliance said they agreed upon an “agenda of inclusion” which they said focuses on providing social and affordable housing, addressing fuel poverty, safer streets and better public services.

Despite this, the alliance is short of the 32 needed for a governing majority on Dublin City Council as the Greens joined Labour in walking away from the talks.

The alliance has announced they will nominate Daniel Ennis of the Social Democrats for the position of Lord Mayor of Dublin, with Janice Boylan of Sinn Féin serving as Deputy Lord Mayor.

Both candidates represent the North Inner City constituency.

Should Ennis become Lord Mayor of Dublin, it would mark the first time that the Social Democrats have held the position.

Labour pulled out over disagreement over the Local Property Tax, which led to Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon dubbing Labour “mudguards for Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil,” while the Greens pulled out following a week of talks for reasons that are yet to be disclosed.

“Dublin needs a Lord Mayor like Daniel Ennis more than ever. It is therefore deeply regrettable that Labour and the Green Party have squandered an opportunity to form a genuinely progressive alliance on Dublin City Council that would smooth the path to his election,” Gannon said.

Social Democrats councillor Cat O’Driscoll, leader of the party on Dublin City Council said “we’ve seen a rise of the far-right which is partly driven by continued underinvestment in social and public service – decades of poor leadership from Fine Gael and Fianna Fail has brought us here and we are looking for change.”

“Throughout the local elections campaign, we heard from people who are struggling to heat homes, access services and feel unsafe in their city.”

“Our alliance, with inclusion and anti-racism at its core, is focused on addressing the challenges in housing, safety, climate and city services, leaving no one behind. We are very disappointed that the Greens and Labour left our talks to and missed a valuable opportunity to form a left-leaning alliance on Dublin City Council.”

Sinn Féin councillor Daithí Doolan said “this progressive alliance offers a great opportunity for the people of Dublin. It offers a real alternative to the conservative politics of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. Our programme for the next five years aims to deliver a City for all. Housing, community safety, public services and tackling climate change are the cornerstones of this important agreement.”

Doolan, who is Sinn Féin’s leader on Dublin City Council said “Sinn Féin are committed to working with other parties and the council management to deliver on this agreement, and I would strongly encourage others to work with us too.”

People Before Profit councillor Conor Reddy said “talks between councillors of the broad left on Dublin City Council have demonstrated that the left can unite to deliver on core principles and to provide a much-needed alternative to Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil.”

“This is a positive development as we approach a General Election and raises the prospect of breaking the 102-year cycle of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil rule. By walking away from discussions with the left to speak to Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, Labour and the Green Party have shown where they stand, this is clarifying and should not be forgotten.”

“We should also remember that the powers and funds that councillors have to deliver change are severely limited by central government – recognising this, we will use our platforms to campaign and organise for change from the ground up. Left alliances between political parties on the Council represent progress, but real change will only come when communities, workers and their unions are empowered to fight for it, we believe that the new progressive alliance can play a valuable role in this task”

Fine Gael are the biggest party on Dublin City Council with 11 seats, but a coalition of them, Fianna Fáil and the Greens on 8 seats each and Labour on 4 seats would be one seat short of a majority.

The annual meeting of Dublin City Council takes place on Friday.