Hundreds to attend Aontú Ard Fheis in Gormanston

Hundreds of Aontú delegates from across the 32 counties will gather together in the City North Hotel, Gormanston for the Aontú Ard Fheis tomorrow Saturday.

Members and delegates will debate and vote on 160 motions.

Aontú leader and founder, Deputy Peadar Tóibín said;

“Aontú is just over three years old. We won over 55,000 votes in the last elections coming ahead of long established well-funded parties on the island.

“We now have a membership base of 1,300 members and six elected reps who serve citizens from Wexford to Derry. Our poll ratings north and south put us on a par with, and ahead in some cases, of political parties such as People Before Profit, Labour, Social Democrats and the Greens.

“Despite our size Aontú has made a significant impact on the political culture in Ireland north and south. We were the first to call out the Zappone appointment, the first to call for Robert Troy’s resignation. We were to the fore in calling out the Robert Watt appointment and salary, and the Tony Holohan secondment. We have consistently exposed the duplicity at the heart of the government’s approach to Cervical Check. We have regularly exposed wrongdoing in the Prison Service. Governance and accountability are key issues for Aontú”.

“We were the only party to vote against the introduction of the annual Carbon Tax increases. We are the only party calling for reform of the Block Grants system to include devolution of further tax powers from London to the north.

“We are the only nationalist party seeking to reform the Stormont Institutions to prevent any party holding democracy in the north to ransom. We were the only party to push back on the severity and length of Covid restrictions north and south seeking a policy more in line with other democracies.

“We have fought for ethos pluralism within schools north and south. We are the only party that believes that everyone should have a legal right to life. We have led campaigns for the protection of Health services.”

Deputy Tóibin said his party has introduced legislation on issues such as speaking rights for MPs form the North of Ireland in the Dáil, a Commission of Inquiry into the handling of Covid in Nursing Homes by the State, the protection of children from exposure to hard core pornography, taxing REITs properly, banning Air B&Bs in towns and cities during a housing crisis and free car parking charges in hospitals.

“We are new but we are impactful and are punching well above our weight,” he said.