Aontú will stress a 'fair deal for Donegal is needed' at Letterkenny public meeting

Anger at Dublin’s approach to Donegal’s crumbling homes and crumbling health service will top the agenda at a public meeting next week.

Aontú leader, Deputy Peadar Tóibín and Donegal’s Aontú representative Mary T Sweeney and local election candidate Mick Harkin will be the speakers at Letterkenny’s Dillon’s Hotel on Monday, March 4, at 8pm.

Speaking following his selection at the weekend, Deputy Tóibín said: “I am very grateful to my colleagues for their confidence in selecting me as their candidate in the Midlands North West EU Constituency which includes County Donegal.

“There is a growing chasm between the lives of the people here and an increasingly distant Dublin government. I am a conviction and a campaigning politician - I cannot stand idly by and watch the damage this government is doing to this country. Aontú will use the European elections as a platform to fight for practical common sense solutions.”

Ms Sweeney added: “The devastating extent of Mica mayhem in the “Forgotten County” is not new to Aontú as we have been fighting - and will continue to fight - for a real and full 100% redress for all homes affected, not the current so-called improved scheme which is far off the mark. Homeowners are being left with a shortfall of €100,000 plus.

“I have seen first-hand the joy and hope families felt as their forever home gradually came to fruition when visiting different stages of the build. Now it repels me to my core to witness the same families suffer unimaginable distress while their houses and lives crumble around them. It is time for this uncaring government to stop treating the victims of their negligence as criminals until proven innocent.”

The Aontú council candidate for Letterkenny has campaigned for a dedicated laboratory in Donegal to assess and certify building materials to ensure current, new and rebuilds will not be subject to use of the same deleterious materials.

Ms Sweeney said: “There needs to be stricter regulations regarding the quality of sand and aggregate that goes into the making of concrete blocks. It beggars belief that Mica homeowners have been deplorably let down by local politicians and government alike. Donegal people are being treated like pariahs compared to the Pyrite homeowners of Dublin where the government covered the full cost. This is another example of politicians in Dublin disregarding what they view as a political backwater. Aontú demands the same fair deal for Donegal.”

Michael Harkin, the Aontú council candidate for Glenties Electoral Area will also address the meeting. He said: “We are experiencing a housing disaster like never before. While families fear losing the roof over their heads, over 160 council houses are lying vacant across Donegal alone. This is a scandal that would not have come to light were it not for a housing investigation initiated by Aontú. Our research also shows that it takes an unacceptable average of 8 months for councils to re-let a house. This is outrageous given that the private sector rental property takes three weeks to turn around a house. We in Aontú will fight to ensure these vacant council houses will be brought back into use pronto.”

Pointing to the county’s health service concerns, Ms Sweeney who is also Chair of the Letterkenny Hospital Campaign, claims there is an immediate need for a Minor Injuries Unit in both north and west Donegal to alleviate pressure on Letterkenny University Hospital: “I have heard LUH A&E being frequently compared to a warzone with sick patients without trolleys waiting for beds. We are calling on the HSE to open a Minor Injury Unit in the empty rooms to the rear of St Conal’s Hospital in Letterkenny where there are already excellent parking facilities available. There are 11 such units in Ireland with the most northern being in Monaghan yet none are located in the deprived North West. Donegal continues to be neglected by the HSE.”

“We are at crisis point with almost 3,000 people on the outpatient waiting list for LUH alone. Donegal has the longest waiting list in Ireland for services such as Ophthalmology. Our elected representatives are clearly not doing their jobs. These waiting times must be addressed without delay and our hard-working healthcare providers listened to, valued and supported. There must be a fair deal for Donegal!”