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MORE THAN 90 per cent of people in Dublin can’t name any one of their three MEPs, according to a survey carried out by a Fine Gael senator.
The survey of over 300 people in Dublin city centre, on behalf of Catherine Noone, found that only 9 per cent could name one of their Members of the Parliament with Fine Gael’s Gay Mitchell the most recognised of the three.
Only two per cent of those surveyed could name two MEPs, while just one per cent able to name all three for the Dublin region – the outgoing Mitchell, Labour’s Emer Costello and the Socialist Party’s Paul Murphy.
The full breakdown shows that 6.65 per cent of those surveyed identified Mitchell with Murphy – identified by 3.3 per cent and Costello identified by just under 3 per cent.
One person surveyed answered sincerely that they believed German chancellor Angela Merkel was an MEP.
Noone said the results highlight a “dangerous disconnect” between MEPs in Dublin and their electorate ahead of next year’s elections for the European Parliament.
“Awareness of the functions and roles carried out by MEPs needs to be raised,” she said.
Noone, who has been among those speculated abut as a possible Fine Gael candidate in Dublin, said that co-opting of party members into vacant seats has contributed to the lack of awareness among people about who their MEP is.
In Dublin, two of the three MEPs were co-opted with Costello replacing Pronsias De Rossa when he resigned in February 2012, while Murphy replaced Joe Higgins after he was elected to the Dáil in 2011.
Are you based outside of Dublin? Can you name your local MEP? Without Googling it, let us know in the comments…
This is probably my best Monday in a long time. Got up at 5am and went to the gym and had a nice breakfast. Feel great. Pity next time I do this will probably be the first day of 2016.
It’s the longest Monday of all time. Kill me, please….
I coped grand last Monday thanks not everybody had a long break
Agreed Sarah!
Advice: Get over it Dawson
And I coped fine the Saturday before.
Well today has made it very clear that I go get a different job. Idiots remain idiots after 2 weeks off. The only difference is it is clearer today
Well I was working over the xmas and I’m not back in work for another week.
Wore my yoga pants in this morning – damn the begrudgers.
The amount of people who appeared to be relearning how to drive this morning on the M7/M9 was fairly disheartening.
The commute to work last week was lane-hog free.
Couldn’t sleep till half 5 with the fear of coming in. Looking at the clock said 10 past 2….looked at what in my mind was a half hour said 5 past 2……Think I was taken by aliens!!!!!
These articles are very presumptuous – a lot of us are back a week now. And I’ve a ‘cushy’ office job.
Was torture… Kept waking up all night- in case I missed the alarm! Worst January blues ever, new job needed.
Easing myself into it, started early so I could finish now :)
Happy enough to be back, though was absolutely positive I had finally got over my office crush, only to see the person in question today, and automatically feel that weird dull ache in my heart. Damn you good-looking co-worker!
Took a half day…..
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…… To go and do a college exam :-(
Best of luck. Hope it went well.
Oh, I hate Mondays.
Thank God for cigarettes!
Keep up the fags and you won’t have too many bad Mondays left.
Lmao
I’m still here thanks to copious amounts of Neros coffee!
Oh you poor poor people that had 2 weeks off. I worked Christmas day and all over Christmas. Just glad I wasn’t in today to witness all the traffic
Everyday I don’t work I don’t get paid so Christmas is v expensive. Between the bank holidays and days the company closes it is the only long break I can take by taking a few days off I get 2 weeks but that is it for the year.
Delighted to be back into a routine!!! Gym at 6am and work was great actually!!! Feel very refreshed!!
Weirdo
I was back the Saturday after Stephens day bunch of wusses. I usually count one hour ahead. So if I have five hours to go I think,only four hours to go and go on. Keep busy with anything of quiet and day flies in.
I don’t work Monday-Friday, 9-5, so I’m grand.
Was tough enough!! Quieter week this week as courts not open again until next week but still missing not getting up until at least 11am…
On site massage helps big time! Prebooked before xmas to ease back in to the routine!
These guys are great! http://www.zestatwork.ie
Ugh.
Not back until the 12th.
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