A proposal to deny Cllr Noel Larkin his second term as Mayor of Galway and to give Mayor Mike Cubbard a second successive year in office, seems set to fail when it is put to a vote at the City Council AGM in Leisureland tomorrow (Friday ) evening.
As part of the pact agreed after last year’s local elections, Larkin will take the chain and succeed Mayor Cubbard. However, Fianna Fail councillors in the chamber, who were spectacularly omitted from a ruling pact last year, have said that they propose that Mike Cubbard stays on, because his year was disrupted by cancellations caused by weather and the Covid-19 pandemic.
In a tweet this week, Cllr Michael Crowe said that the FF councillors on Galway City Council, having considered everything, believe it only right and proper that Mike Cubbard remain on as Mayor for the next year. “We support that proposition without conditions. Separately, for the record we will oppose Cllr Noel Larkin’s nomination,” it read.
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In addition, the Galway Anti Racism Network (GARN ) has called on Galway City councillors not to cast their vote for Cllr Noel Larkin in the upcoming mayoral vote at Leisureland tomorrow because of his controversial stance on several issues.
GARN called on all elected councillors to hold true to the INAR Anti-Racism Election Protocol signed as part of the local elections 2019 and the Galway City Equality and Human Rights Statement adopted by Galway City Council.
'Maybe some of my terminology might have been a bit harsh at times, but it is not my intention to offend anyone' - Cllr Noel Larkin
“This poses a direct challenge to the ‘Rainbow Pact’ made up of Noel Larkin and the following 10 councillors Martina O’Connor and Niall Murphy (Green Party ); Níall McNelis (Labour ); Owen Hanley (Social Democrats ); Colette Connolly (Independent ); Mike Cubbard (Independent ); Donal Lyons (Independent ); Terry O’Flaherty (Independent ); and Declan McDonnell (Independent ) to take a public position against racism,” it said.
However, speaking yesterday, Cllr Larkin said that he will not be bullied and has the support to get elected. He denied accusations that his comments in the past have been racially motivated. “I don’t do social media but you hear these things. I am not a racist. Anyone who knows me know that I’m not a racist. I do my utmost for the benefit of the people of the city.
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“Some of my statements have been misinterpreted and misconceived to suggest that I am racist. I have been very vocal about anti-social behaviour in my area. Maybe some of my terminology might have been a bit harsh at times, but it is not my intention to offend anyone.
“Maybe my choice of words may not have been the best, but I certainly never intended it to be racial abuse. It is my duty as a councillor to represent everybody in my area. The system is failing a lot of tenants in social housing throughout the city. We need to change it. Maybe that doesn’t sit well with people out there. I would love to hear from groups who have constructive suggestions on how deal with this,” he said.
