Progressive Fingal alliance back on track

Attempts to form a left-wing coalition on Fingal County Council appear to be back on track.

In the aftermath of the 2024 local elections, where Labour emerged as the joint-largest party on the council alongside Fine Gael, Labour opted to work with the government parties in a coalition, sinking a left-wing coalition in the process.

In June 2024, the Northside People reported on the failed talks between Labour, Sinn Féin, the Greens, the Social Democrats and Solidarity.

At that time, it was understood there were differences of opinion between Labour and Solidarity on mayoral appointments and the local property tax.

Two years later, the various opposition parties are now working in relative harmony on Fingal County Council.

Labour councillor John Walsh told the Northside People that the pact between Labour, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael “broke down” in mid-2025 over “fundamental differences” and were now working with fellow opposition parties instead.

At the annual special meeting to elect a new Mayor on June 12, Labour worked with Sinn Féin, the Greens and Solidarity to back a Social Democrats candidate for the position of Mayor.

In June 2025, Labour councillors broke ranks with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to nominate Sinn Féin councillor Angela Donnelly as Mayor.

Over the course of 2025 and into 2026, Labour has worked with various opposition parties of the left to vote down proposed rent increases for council tenants (which ended up being a red line for Labour), and fought for greater investment in infrastructure (something they felt that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael were not working to provide).

Walsh explained that Labour’s attitude towards Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael had changed after the 2024 general election; Walsh said that the government itself had become more right-wing since losing the Green Party influence, and said that Labour, both locally and nationally, realised there were fundamental differences between them and the government parties.

To Walsh’s point, Labour leader Ivana Bacik has repeatedly dubbed the government, which took office in 2025 with the support of Michael Lowry and various independents, as a “right-wing government,” hinting at a possible change of tack for the party.

This year, it was Social Democrats councillor Joan Hopkins who was the choice to become the left’s candidate for mayor.

Walsh backed Hopkins for mayor, saying that the Soc Dems councillor is a “leading voice” on the council for protecting biodiversity, and is a “strong voice for local democracy and equality.”

“We live in turbulent times when values of equality and diversity are frequently challenged, and councillor Hopkins is well-placed to be a champion of inclusion, equality and diversity in the role of mayor of Fingal,” he said.

“When the opportunity arises, we need to give an opportunity to strong women to serve as mayor. We are good when it comes to electing women as deputy mayor, but not mayor,” he noted.

The Labour councillor said it was a “disgrace” that Aontú and their three councillors have opted to work with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael on a number of issues.

Aontú voted with the government parties last November to pass a controversial budget which increased rents for council tenants, something that Labour argued against.

Indeed, Aontú, which was formed as a breakaway from Sinn Féin in the wake of the Repeal referendum, had to spare the government party’s blushes on this occasion.

Castleknock councillor Ellen Troy and Ongar councillor Gerard Sheehan voted alongside the government parties, alongside new addition, Swords councillor Darren Jack Kelly to install Balbriggan independent Tony Murphy as mayor.

The combined Fianna Fáil/Fine Gael/Aontú/independent bloc voted for the independent Murphy and Fine Gael councillor Luke Corkery as mayor and deputy mayor.

Murphy won by 21 votes to Hopkins’ 13.

Party leader Peader Tóibín is a vocal critic of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, with the Aontú TD recently tweeting that “Micheál Martin has transformed Fianna Fáil into a subsidiary of Fine Gael.”

His only Dublin councillors subsequently backed those same two parties to decide who runs Fingal County Council.

Sinn Féin councillor Angela Donnelly backed Mulligan for the deputy mayor slot, saying that Mulligan is a “true independent.”

“We’d all agree he’s known for his passion and integrity in this room; he’s often a bit of a peacemaker and did a great job of trying to pull together a coalition two years ago,” the Ongar councillor noted.

Speaking to Northside People, Donnelly says that she was “very happy” to see the various parties of the left working together.

She noted that in the current political climate, no single party was going to achieve an outright majority at a local or a Dáil level.

She said this necessitates the formation of either loose groupings or formal alliances of like-minded parties, which, in this context, includes the various parties of the Irish left.

Donnelly said that she was “disappointed” with Aontú for backing Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael.

“They aren’t embedded with them necessarily, but they tend to support the government parties,” she noted.

The Ongar councillor noted that Aontú councillors have worked with fellow opposition parties on various Fingal County Council issues, such as the Fortlawn estate issue, but have voted to support the government parties on major issues such as mayoral elections and budget agreements.

“There is a perception among people that local politics isn’t working for them; most of the power in Fingal County Council comes from the Executive,” she noted.

While Donnelly did not wish to speak for other parties, she says that the various opposition parties needed to “work together” and “build” on recent successes.

“We have more in common than we think; we need to work together,” she said.

As for the government parties (and their newfound council friends) it was their candidate who won the day.

Balbriggan councillor Tony Murphy will serve as Mayor of Fingal County Council for the next year.

Murphy said that regardless of party or background, Fingal County Council members were all committed to improving their communities and that the county itself is “full of opportunity.”

“We are one of the fastest-growing areas in the country; we are home to thriving towns and villages, world-class business, a strong community spirit and a young and ambitious population.”

The Balbriggan councillor said that housing is the biggest issue facing Ireland today, and Fingal was no stranger to the housing crisis.

He said that while the council has made progress on attempting to put a dent in the housing crisis (despite the best efforts of the Minister for Housing – see page four for more), he wanted his term as Mayor to be focused on housing delivery.

“For me, successful communities are more about the actual areas that we live in than the bricks and mortar; we are looking at parks, libraries, green spaces, places where people can come together,” he explained.