David Gardiner, Workers’ Party representative for Palmerstown-Fonthill, has criticised Labour and some so-called independents for coming together with Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil to ensure that the latter two maintain their control of South Dublin County Council, meaning that we can expect politics as usual in County Hall for the next five years.

Gardiner said: “There is a desperate need for our political representatives to fight for better public services at present, and so it is disappointing to see Labour, a self-proclaimed socialist party, and independent councillors, supposedly there to hold the larger political parties to account, support the same old right-wing rule of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil.”

“Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil’s ideological commitment to the private market has consistently failed working people both at the local and national level. They have caused a housing crisis and left working people to pay sky-high bin charges, and yet here we have Labour and independents getting into bed with them. It appears that if you vote for Labour or certain independents, you’ll still end up with Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil.”

“The Workers’ Party fights for a new and better Ireland, and ultimately that can only be achieved by building a principled, socialist republican party of working people.”