Independent with Fine Gael roots secures backing in Dáil bid

Businesswoman and Councillor Aisling Moran didn’t lick politics off the ground. Her father John was a much-loved Fine Gael councillor for almost 30 years. He too contested a general election back in 2011 when he bagged a credible 4,300 first preferences on the ticket with Charlie Flanagan. Knocking on doors, canvassing for votes, the open door that goes with the territory of a political household is second nature to her. It’s in her DNA. But she’s no longer Fine Gael.

Cllr Moran parted company with Fine Gael a couple of years ago and has never looked back. She insists she felt compelled to do so believing she had become isolated on the Council as her erstwhile colleagues failed to support her, or back her stance on issues or travel the road with her on matters she went out on a limb for, like challenging decisions, cost overruns and insufficient accountability and transparency as to how taxpayers’ money is spent. 

Her insistence that all Council meetings should be live-streamed and available to view by the public online continues to cause irritation with the Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil councillors in Laois. They have blocked her proposal.

She quit Fine Gael and said “I had to put people, and the public interest ahead of any party loyalty.” Ms Moran has no regrets. And with good reason. In last June’s local elections, she handsomely increased her vote and has found a home across the floor with the other Independents on the Council.

With her reinvigorated mojo Cllr Moran has taken that Independence a step further and formed a potent alliance with fellow Independents, Cllrs Ben Brennan, James Kelly and Tommy Mulligan, who are backing her to the hilt to become not only the county’s first ever woman TD, but also first ever Independent of the modern era to be elected for the Laois constituency in this Friday’s general election.

Cllr Moran is energised and enthusiastic about the prospects and the possibilities. She believes the wholehearted backing of her Council colleagues, her rural community and her extended family network have turned her from being just another challenger to being a real contender for that third seat. What was once a foregone conclusion is anyone’s guess. Anything is possible in the febrile flux of the current Laois political landscape.

“People should vote for me because I honestly believe I am the best placed candidate to win that third seat, a genuine Independent, a real Independent with a proven track record and one that can speak out, and speak up for people and families, for workers, for small businesses, for rural communities.

“To shake up the smug cosy consensus of the same old, same old, that exists here locally in Laois and nationally. This Government’s policies have failed, they will continue to fail, but I am offering solutions, alternative policies, a better way.

“At present people are working to standstill, working for nothing at the end of the week for themselves other than to pay their bills – the sky rocketing costs of living, costs of home heating, costs of childcare, costs of doing business, costs of filing up the tank in your car, 60% of which goes in tax to this government, which they then go and waste and squander without any accountability.

“I am not on a solo run or a protest, or an ego trip. Laois needs a new representative in the Dáil and Independents have proven they can make a difference. I have the fantastic backing and support of three other Independent councillors in Laois, Ben Brennan from Crettyard, James Kelly from Mountrath and Tommy Mulligan, the Council’s newest councillor from Portlaoise. That’s a formidable and serious support base and they are calling on their supporters to vote number one for me.

So what are the key issues she hopes to address? 

“Everyone has their own concerns, but there’s no getting away from the burden of the costs of living and skyrocketing prices for everything.

“The housing shortage and high rents, now hitting €2,000 per month here in Laois are a huge worry for so many people locked out of the housing market and trying to make ends meet. I am offering innovative and practical solutions to address these issues.

“The health service is in disarray. I am astonished that the Government has the neck to talk about its achievements in health – tell that to the nurses on the frontline, or should I say the firing line, tell that to someone looking for supports for autistic children or elderly parents waiting for home help; tell that to someone waiting for hours on end in Portlaoise A&E; tell that to someone looking for a GP at the weekend or mental health supports, or disability services, they’re not there!

Apart from the bread-and-butter issues, Cllr Moran maintains that people, especially young families, and parents are concerned about Climate Change and exercised by the wars in the Middle East.

“Mothers especially are not detached or oblivious from these concerns. What’s going on in Gaza is a genocide, a war crime, a slaughter of innocent women and their children, killing medics, journalists, and babies with no mercy. We must do more than hand wringing. President Higgins has shown leadership, but our government must do more. It’s not antisemitic to call out this murderous disregard for international law by Netanyahu. The time has come to action our outrage and boycott Israel on all fronts.

“Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are like an old married couple, squabbling in public, but they’ll still get back in bed together. Nothing will change if they are returned,” Ms Moran said. 

She believes she has now found her feet and her voice and she is relishing her newfound independence. Whether or not it will land her in Leinster House, only time will tell.

See the Leinster Express newspaper for a 20 page election preview special with interviews of all 12 candidates. The election will take place on Friday, November 29.