Two local Fianna Fail candidates are pushing back against the party's strategy around immigration. Councillor Edel McSharry in the Sligo Leitrim Constituency and Dympna Cunniffe in Longford Westmeath have both commented publicly on the government strategy surrounding the location of IPAS centres.
Councillor McSharry called for the abandonment of the current approach, stating that they are pitching communities against each other. Speaking on the Joe Finnegan Show today, The Fianna Fail Candidate says while she stands by the general Fianna Fail Manifesto, she has concerns regarding the specifics of how communities are selected to host IPAS centres:
Meanwhile, a social media account for Dympna Cunniffe made several statements under its own videos stating that the party needs to refocus on the grass roots and 'redirect the ship'. The Longford Westmeath Fianna Fail Candidate is distancing herself from the comments stating to the Irish Independent that she doesn't personally create some of the content on her account. The TikTok account was also highly critical of plans to accommodate asylum seekers in Athlone, stating that children attending local schools will have to walk past '1,000 unvetted men coming and going into Athlone.'
Fianna Fail have confirmed that the party is discussing these comments with the candidate." Party Leader, Micheál Martin, says he doesn't agree with what was said, but drew the line at condemning the comments:
