RENUA Ireland have announced that their Mayo candidate in the forthcoming General Election will be Michael Farrington. Mr Farrington, who is based in the Mayo East area of the constituency, said in the wake of his nomination that his objective was to build on the strengths this unique part of the country has.
He said ‘‘Mayo is a unique county in terms of the natural beauty of its landscape and the innovative hardworking nature of its people. Despite on-going neglect from central government the most unspoilt county in Ireland has huge untapped potential. My priority for the people of Mayo is to build up infrastructure in areas such as tourism including Knock airport and the hotel and restaurant sector; to help build and develop our SME’s and regenerate the high street in our towns and villages. Mayo deserves proper support and funding from central government in areas such as broadband, roads , policing and job creation.’’
Mr Farrington also pledged that he would protect the unspoilt nature of the county, noting ‘‘I will be a strong opponent of attempts by outside agencies to use Mayo as some sort of experiment for projects such as wind-farms or pylons. The last thing Mayo requires or needs is a Ruhr style spiders web of pylons and high voltage cables criss-crossing our valleys and town-lands. I am strongly pro-development but only if that development is sustainable and benefits the people of Mayo directly as distinct from vested interests.’’
Commenting on his decision to run for RENUA Ireland the first time electoral candidate said ‘‘It is a major life-changing decision but I have decided to run because of the belief and concern amongst so many people I meet that Mayo needs a new voice and new direction. I have close friends in Fianna Fail and Fine Gael but I believe I can be a stronger voice for change and for Mayo in a new and emerging party like RENUA Ireland. The older, long established parties are not trusted, understandably so, by the people.
"I believe I can do more for Mayo in a new party that has been set up to listen to the voice of the people and bring new solutions to solve long standing problems. Renua Ireland is a party that brings fresh thinking, new ideas, and above all else a clear vision for Irish society and the economy now and for our future generations. We believe in promoting evidence based solutions to solve long term problems.This is not a time for simple commentary or standing idly by. It’s time for action.’’
Mr Farrington also said it was his intention to run a positive campaign, noting that, ‘‘Too many people in politics talk about what hasn’t been done. I intend to centre my campaign on what can be done for and with the people of Mayo. We have been neglected in Mayo by successive governments but this is particularly the case in the past four years. The neglect is such, that it is not unfair to say that in government buildings Mayo has become the forgotten county. Electing me to the Dail will send a sharp reminder to the government that Mayo people should never be written off. I intend to campaign on a positive energetic platform of change for Mayo and in particular East Mayo the most forgotten part of the forgotten county.’’
Mr Farrington who is married with three children expressed the hope that his business experience would be of use to the people of Mayo. I am passionately pro enterprise and strongly believe we need to encourage enterprise from all economic sectors - private, public and social. I have worked in a variety of positions in Accountancy and Financial Control, was at Director level in a Financial Institution and have spent most of my adult life running an Import and Distribution business into the hotel, catering, retail and allied trades.I believe these experiences mean I can put together a positive programme to support enterprise to help build thriving high streets and SME’s. I want to help to develop Mayo, to make sure the West is awake, and not just engage in the hollow politics of complaint and personal character assassination.’’
