On Monday 21st October 2013, local members of the Greystones Fine Gael branch convened to select their candidates for the 2014 Local Elections. On the night, four candidates were selected to go forward to contest seats for the Greystones Local Electoral Area on Wicklow County Council for the 2014-2019 term. The candidates selected were Liz Dillon, Cllr. Grainne McLoughlin, Cllr. Derek Mitchell and David O’Reilly. Fine Gael TD for Wicklow, Andrew Doyle said he was delighted for the candidates selected.
Speaking at the Selection Convention in Greystones, Deputy Doyle said, “With this ticket of Dillon, McLoughlin, Mitchell and O’Reilly, Fine Gael is putting forward a strong mix of candidates for the local elections next year in Greystones. The Local Government Bill that was recently published will bring significant changes coming down the tracks to empower local authority members, giving them new reserve powers and strengthening the local government system, making it more accountable.”
“From 2014, with the abolition of Town Councils, there will be new Municipal Districts of Wicklow County Council as part of local government reform who will run each Local Electoral Area. The Greystones Local Electoral Area for the 2014 Local Elections encompasses Greystones, Delgany, Kilcoole, Newcastle and Killadreenan and will hold 6 of the 32 seats on Wicklow County Council from next year.”
“With the four candidates that Greystones Fine Gael members made, it has struck the an appropriate fifty-fifty gender balance, as well as having a healthy mixture of two incumbent Councillors and two new candidates coming forward. It is always important at local elections to strike the right balance between both.”
“Both Deputy Harris and myself will be working tirelessly with the four candidates to ensure that each of them are elected in May 2014 to Wicklow County Council. All of the four candidates bring something different to table, with a variety of skills, representing different communities in the area. I am confident that this strong team will be working on the ground over the months ahead to deliver a strong result.”
“I look forward to getting involved in each of the campaigns for Liz Dillon, Cllr. Grainne McLoughlin, Cllr. Derek Mitchell and David O’Reilly in the months ahead and seeing each of them elected to the local authority next year”, concluded Deputy Doyle.