Whelan ready to take the fight to Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin

Six new primary schools, keeping the local Community Nursing Homes open and new jobs were among Labour's local achievement's listed by Senator John Whelan last week.

The General Election candidate said it was easier to walk around Portlaoise now that the sixth new primary school had started construction in recent weeks.

Senator Whelan said Labour had brought the country back from the brink and put people back in employment.

“We have made mistakes, but we didn’t destroy the country and we didn’t run it into the ground. We are the party that brought it back from the brink and we are the party that put people back to work. We are doing our best and we did it honest fair and up front.

“We are creating 1,000 new jobs a week. People are back working. I was unemployed for three years, the lads around me with the vans, the lads around me who are doing the roofing and the block laying everyone has work again, everyone is on the move. The country is getting back on its feet.”

He said the Labour party had kept nursing homes in Shaen and Abbeyleix opened, when a certain part of the Fine Gael party were of the view that everything should be privatised.

Senator Whelan also claimed Fine Gael's policy to abolish the USC and last year's marriage equality referendum as victory for the Labour party.

Senator Whelan appealed to his supporters to get him 50 votes each and he said he could win the election.

“We will not be deterred, we will take this fight to Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil but particularly to Sinn Féin,” he added.