John Sheahan, the Sinn Féin candidate in the Ballina Electoral area, has called for Swinford Courthouse to be handed over to the community following its closure in late 2013. Mr Sheehan said: "It was a sad day for the people of Swinford and surrounding areas when Swinford Courthouse held its last sitting in November 2013. The closure marked the end of an era as the service dated back to the middle of the 19th century. The loss of the court service means people now have to travel to Ballina for court sittings and has cost local business up to €250,000 in revenue annually. This closure could result in more job losses that Swinford can ill afford.”
Continuing, Mr Sheahan said: "Ideally we would like to see the court service being restored to Swinford, but if this is not going to happen, I implore Justice Minister Alan Shatter to hand the courthouse over to the people of Swinford so that the local community can best decide how best to utilise it for the benefit of the community. This is the least the Government can do for the people of the area.”
