FG candidates announced for Kells
Fine Gael launched its Kells Town Council campaign last Friday in the Headfort Arms Hotel where the party"s three candidates - John Callaghan, Seamus Grimes and Sarah Reilly - were announced. The trio were joined on the night by Mairead McGuinness, MEP, Deputy Shane McEntee, Deputy Damien English and guest speaker, Dr Patrick Wall. All speakers spoke of the importance of a change for the better and commended each town council candidate for their selflessness in running for election with the ultimate aim of serving the public under the Fine Gael banner. Ms McGuinness said Sarah Reilly represented a new era for politics in Kells and would bring a refreshed view to the Kells Town Council chamber. John Callaghan was commended for his enthusiasm in seeking reform to the planning and development process to provide the community with the vital amenities it needed. Deputy English spoke of the dedication shown by Seamus Grimes to the people of Kells and his vital work in improving education in the town as a member of Meath VEC. Deputy McEntee stressed how every member of the Fine Gael party in Kells, and of the wider community generally, needed to play their part in ending the state of hopelessness and disarray that the country currently finds itself in. 'It is clear that the town of Kells itself is in need of change, and with the three candidates at the ready, Fine Gael is ready to provide some much needed leadership at local level in Kells,' he said. Dr Patrick Wall, of the Geary Institute Centre for Behaviour and Health in UCD, told the large crowd that the health of a community was just like the health of an individual - you"ve got to put the right things into a body in order for it to work well. 'For too long, we"ve been putting the wrong things into the body of our community - greed, corruption and incompetence. We"ve got to change the diet of this nation,' he said. Dr Wall said that, for too long, the important things in Irish life - community, the family and equality - had been replaced by consumerism, selfishness and self-centredness. Also on the night, Cllr Eugene Cassidy and Cllr John Farrelly got their Meath County Council re-election campaigns up and running. The two councillors are seeking to hold Fine Gael"s current two seats in the Kells area. The two councillors said they would seek to ensure that the voice of the people of north Meath was heard loud and clear in County Hall in the midst of Fianna Fáil cutbacks in Meath.