A very dear friend of mine, a political observer of long standing, likes to make the point that in Irish politics, politicians often act like they have a completely different job to the one that they have. For example, he notes, it is not uncommon to see a TD standing up in the national parliament to complain about the state of a road in his constituency, while, at the very same time the local councillors responsible for that road are passing a motion condemning Israeli actions in Gaza, or calling for solidarity with the people of Nicaragua in their ongoing troubles. The local is debated nationally, while the international is debated locally.
It is in that spirit that we should probably be unsurprised that Mayo County Council’s monumental debate on immigration policy this week was, by all accounts, more substantive and free-flowing than any that has to date taken place in the national parliament. And the outcome, for once, was more than simply symbolic:
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