Yesterday evening Gript media accompanied local election candidate John Larkin on a canvass around parts of Newtownmountkennedy Co. Wicklow.
Larkin, who worked for what is now the HSE for decades, is running as an independent candidate in the area.
Local concerns ranged from lack of access to housing to an elderly woman saying she has to bring her own water when she visits the graves of her husband and son as the graveyard tap is not working.
Woman says brother with haemophilia waiting 5 years for surgery.
A woman named Avril told Larkin that her brother who suffers from haemophilia has been waiting for a surgical procedure for five years.
She described the performance of the current government as “horrendous”, she compared how Irish political figures make promises they don’t deliver on to “toddlers” who promise to “eat their dinner” if they’re allowed sweets but go back on their word as soon as they get what they want.
The woman said that her brother had been told by St. James’s that he had been put on a standby list over a six week period and that he could be called at any time for the surgery which had left him in an “impossible” situation with work.
“It’s like choosing between your wealth and your health,” she said, describing how her brother’s employers were not amenable to the situation.
Man refused planning permission to build a house on own land.
A local bricklayer said he has been fighting for planning permission to build a plot of land that he owns in the area for three years.
The man said that Wicklow County Council had initially said that he was not “local” to the area despite the man claiming he could trace his family lineage back 200 years.
He said that once he had shown that he was in fact local that the council’s objection then shifted to him not being “no housing need”.
The man said that although he has a house currently he offered to sell this property at a reduced price to the council so he could build a bigger house to allow his teenage son who has autism to have a sensory room and somewhere to work on mechanical equipment which he said the boy really enjoys.
“Young people are being driven out of Ireland”.
There was a general mood of deep discontent at the actions of the government in regards to the housing of large numbers of migrants in the country at a time when increasing numbers of Irish people are having difficulty securing housing.
One woman said she felt as though “young people are being driven out of Ireland” while the government makes every effort to accommodate those who are just arriving on our shores.
“I’ll never vote for Simon Harris again.”
A woman in her 70s who described herself as a former supporter of Simon Harris said she would “never vote for him again” because of comments he made about people from Newtownmountkennedy who were involved in a long term protest of an IPAS centre in the area.
The woman said she was ‘disgusted’ with how the government was housing asylum seekers in a “prison” like area in the town, saying this was ‘not suitable for human beings.’
The woman also expressed her displeasure at the actions of the government saying that there were currently “4,000” people on the Wicklow County Council Housing list and saying how a new development of 2, 3, and 4 bedroom houses in Newtownmountkennedy was “unaffordable” for anyone who “is not earning €100,000” per year.
Man sharing one room with two teenage sons as 3 generations share one house.
A man in his late 30s said he is currently sharing one bedroom with his two teenage sons and has been on the local housing list for six years.
The man said he has four children with his former partner and that the other two are staying with her as he does not have space for them in the house which is occupied by three generations of his family.
The man’s mother who also lives in the same small house said she has lost three sons in tragic circumstances, including one within the last several weeks.
Lack of services for the elderly forcing people into nursing homes says care worker.
A woman who said she works with elderly outreach organisation, Alone, said that there is a lack of supports for elderly people, in particular those who live outside of Dublin.
The woman said that huge amounts of money is being wasted by the HSE on items such as special comfort chairs and water mattresses which she said the HSE provides to older people especially those who are in palliative care at home.
She said that one of these special mattresses and chairs can cost several thousand euro but that the HSE does not recycle them when they are no longer needed.
She said the general waste of money on medical equipment was “shocking” and that lack of support such as meal services for elderly people meant that many were being “forced” into nursing homes when all they need is home help.
Long Term Fine Gael voter ‘not sure anymore’.
A man in his forties who said he was a long term Fine Gael voter said he was no longer sure he would be voting for the party this time round.
The man who said he has daughters said he was very unhappy about how the situation with housing male asylum seekers in the area was handled.
He said that although he agreed that accommodation was needed that he disagreed with the housing of the men in tents.
Polish woman in Ireland for 17 years deeply unhappy with government.
A woman from Poland who said she has been in Ireland for 17 years said she is deeply unhappy with the government, particularly in relation to its handling of asylum seekers.
The woman who has two young daughters said that the government ‘has done nothing’ for the people of Ireland and expressed that she wished to see changes come from the upcoming elections.
Another young woman blasted the government’s handling of the asylum situation in the town saying she felt that all the people of Newtownmountkennedy got was a combination of “constant lies” or “no information”.
The overwhelming feeling on the doors was one of disillusionment and distrust of mainstream political parties.
Some of those with young children said they felt the safety of the area had been compromised by the housing of male asylum seekers in an area which is very close to a GAA club used by youngsters.
A woman who pulled her car in to chat to Mr. Larkin expressed her frustration that a recent redrawing of constituency lines meant that candidates from Greystones who she was not familiar with were canvassing her house saying she wanted to vote for Larkin but cannot.
The majority of those asked said that no candidates from established parties had knocked on their doors but had dropped leaflets in.