Joe Loughnane, the city's most prominent and outspoken anti-racist campaigner, has been chosen by People Before Profit as its Election 2020 candidate for Galway West.
Mr Loughnane, the founder of the Galway Anti-Racism Network and the Galway branch of the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign, said his campaign will be focused on solutions led politics.
“It isn’t enough for modern socialists to just point the finger at problems," he said. "You have to bring solutions to the table, whether it’s around housing, transport, or the environment. We believe People Before Profit have the policies that will give Galway the best chance of turning the tide on these issues.”
Mr Loughnane said his main campaign issues will be to make Galway a leader in sustainable development and environmentalism; to reduce public transport fares to improve traffic and decrease carbon emissions; to bring waste management back into public ownership to reduce illegal dumping and improve recycling; reform of the licensing laws to "boost the nighttime economy"; to support the arts and work towards establishing a publicly owned cultural space/venue in the city; and to protect Connemara from proposed mining and prospecting.
“We believe that Joe is a strong candidate," said People Before Profit Galway's Adrian Curran. "He’s not a career politician. He was working tirelessly as an activist before the 2019 local elections. He has campaigned for public housing, environmental issues, and worked extensively for the pro-choice movement in the city. He has also been working very closely with various groups in an anti-racist capacity.”
