Fianna Fáil councillor Peter Keane earned a stinging rebuke from Labour’s Billy Cameron for voting against a motion against cutbacks to disability services.
Cllr Keane’s party colleague, Mayor Michael J Crowe also came in for criticism when he too opposed the motion at Monday’s city council meeting.
The main criticism being levelled at the Fianna Fáil councillors is that they took part in a march opposing Government cutbacks to disability services but then failed to show support for a motion which, like the protest, condemned Government’s cutbacks.
At Monday’s meeting, Independent councillor Catherine Connolly, put forward a motion calling on the Galway City Council to condemn the HSE West’s cutbacks proposed for the Brothers of Charity services and for services for people with disabilities.
Cllr Connolly called on her fellow councillors to “deplore and condemn” the cutbacks and to “fully support” the campaign by Hope 4 Disability Galway and its call for ‘no more cuts’.
She also asked councillors to “condemn the Government for dismantling of the Disability Strategy” and making the “most vulnerable sector of society” bear the brunt of the cuts.
Fourteen councillors were present at the meeting and 11 voted to support Cllr Connolly. The three Fianna Fáil councillors - Mayor Crowe, Ollie Crowe, and Peter Keane - voted against the motion.
Cllr Keane said Fianna Fáil “sympathised” with the families and their plight but that the Government had to “take hard decisions” due to the state of the economy. However this earned a strong rebuke from Labour councillor Billy Cameron.
“People don’t want your Fianna Fáil sympathy,” he told Cllr Keane. “They want to be guaranteed the little bit of respite care they get.”
Mayor Crowe has come in for some criticism as well for opposing Cllr Connolly’s motion which called for support for Hope 4 Disability Galway, despite havingt taken part in the group’s protest against cuts to services last Wednesday.
