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NEWLY-ELECTED DUBLIN MEP Aodhán Ó Ríordáin said he thinks the public does not consider the Labour party’s time in Government anymore and instead judged him and other candidates based on their political convictions.
Speaking to The Journal after his first week in Brussels, Ó Ríordáin said that he plans to stand up for and protect employment rights, continue carrying the green torch in the European Parliament, and oppose Ursula von der Leyen’s second term.
The long-time politician is the first Labour MEP to be elected in 10 years and the only Irish member of the Socialists & Democrats (S&D) group in the EU this term – a group which will be influential decision makers over the coming five years.
Many experts have previously told The Journal that Ireland’s mandate in the EU was underperforming due to an absence of members in the S&D group.
Asked what he makes of the new Labour seat, Ó Ríordáin said he has had a warm welcome from his European colleagues. He said he believes that the public generally related to him for his political beliefs, rather than what Labour did in previous Governments.
“The only time I get asked about [Labour's] period in Government is when I’m being interviewed by journalists.
“I literally did not get asked about it going door-to-door, not once, and it’s because people move on and they want to know what your plans are now and in the future.”
He said that it was a “major breakthrough” for Labour to gain a seat in Europe again, but noted that it will be a big change to leave his “relatively small parliamentary party” in Leinster House to join the second-largest group in the European Union.
Despite this, he wants to be “true to the mandate” and bring European affairs closer to people’s lives, communities and the overall political consciousness in Dublin and the rest of Ireland.
How does the Dublin native plan to do this? Through a seat on the Employment and Social Affairs Committee or the Culture and Education committee, the two political work groups he has applied for.
As previously reported by The Journal, Ó Ríordáin is seeking to advocate for wage increases for workers, ban unpaid internships and work towards an EU-wide right to disconnect.
He sees the EU as a way to improve life for workers in Ireland through legislation such as the minimum income directive that puts a great importance on collective bargaining and unionising.
According to 2021 OECD analysis into pay in Ireland, around 23% of Ireland’s full-time workforce is on what is categorised as low pay, earning less than two-thirds of median earnings.
Ó Ríordáin cited the study and added that around 40% of people under 30 are currently working insecure jobs.
“While we do have full employment, the nature of that employment really needs to be examined more,” he said. “That’s what I’m trying to bring to the table over the next five years.”
While this work is still subject to his selection on the Employment committee – political groups are given a certain number of committee seats, proportional to the seats they hold in the chamber – Ó Ríordáin is still eager to highlight these issues.
He also brought up how Ireland currently employs just 32% of people with disabilities, which is well below the current EU average (51%), and how there is a “lot of work to do” to improve those figures.
He added that free labour, through internships or ‘experience work’, needs to be “rooted out” and believes that, regardless of whether he gets a position on the committee, the S&D group will be tackling these issues in the coming years.
“I would hope over the next five years with the amount of that knowledge that I have, and with the experience of other S&D group members, that I will be in a position to to campaign and hopefully convince ministers here in the Irish government of the need to strengthen our collective bargaining legislation,” Ó Ríordáin said.
“I think what needs to happen is that employers need to understand that it’s better for everybody.
“When employees and their representatives are asked to the table and are working collectively, working together, they are more protected in the workplace. It means that workers feel more secure and they feel more empowered, they’re more productive. It’s a win-win.”
Former Green Party MEP Ciarán Cuffe had tapped Ó Ríordáin as the next MEP to tackle climate change for Ireland in Europe, after he lost his seat in Dublin.
Ó Ríordáin told The Journal that he is still in touch with Cuffe and hopes that he can work with the former MEP and gain from his experience and knowledge of the EU, but also to learn more about the climate crisis.
“I am genuinely terrified of the consequences of lack of action in this space.
“I have young children. I think you don’t need to have children to be worried, but I do and I am – I also know from the the nature of the European election just how unfortunately divisive this issue has become,” he added.
Ó Ríordáin said that he thought Regina Doherty’s comments about the Green Party and other green issues in a newspaper article towards the end of the campaign were “really unfortunate and pretty unfair”.
He added: “A kind of a cultural war has sprung open in various different communities about the infrastructure [and] about cycle lanes.
“We’ve seen what independents are doing with the people in rural Ireland about the green agenda and just for short-term political gain.
“We’ve seen the success of people who are, if you like, openly critical of this agenda – the likes of Ciaran Mullooly or others.
“They may challenge what I just said, but clearly they’re courting a vote of people who are not necessarily full on board with the climate action agenda and seek to delay things. And I have an issue with that.”
He added that he hopes that all four MEPs from Dublin, at least, can work together towards making progress for the Green Deal and says it is something that he is taking seriously.
Speaking on Monday, Tánaiste Micheál Martin told reporters in Luxembourg that a “high-level agreement” had been brokered between Fianna Fáil’s centrist group Renew, the S&D and Fine Gael’s EPP to support Ursula von der Leyen for a second term as European Commission president.
Asked if this agreement undermines Ó Ríordáin’s convictions-over-policy stance, he confirmed that his group will be supporting the German politician’s term – but he has informed the group that he will not be personally supporting her.
“I made this point in our group meeting last week, and I actually got a round of applause for it – now, how widespread that round of applause was, it’s hard to know – but I said the issue of Gaza is of a profound importance to the Irish people and on that basis, I have a massive issue with supporting Ursula von der Leyen. I won’t be voting for her, no.”
The Dublin MEP said the group is choosing to support von der Leyen in her second term to avoid the Commission President seeking support from the far-right.
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As soon as he settles in on his lucrative salary and extravagant expense account he’ll most likely fall into line and go with the flow
Labour does not represent the working class and
A most unlikable individual he can fall in with any party,
@K O: he was liked enough to have had a successful political career for the past 20 years or so.
@donal O’brien: he lost his seat on a number of occasions
A bunch of wasters in that Labour party.
The minute they got a few new seats they went straight back in with FFG, Obviously they haven’t moved on, they did it last week in Dublin.
Because the Journal imagines I am spreading misinformation by describing scientific method modelling and academic funding as a major problem for society, they blocked a comment on the hateful legislation where the government controls information.
Considering that the politicians are one cog in a lucrative wheel spreading the notion that controlling human behaviour equates to controlling the weather, it is dismaying to see the electorate react to comments made to demonstrate how that misadventure (misinformation) emerged.
@Gerald Kelleher: set up your own website and stop whinging
It is a remarkable experience, albeit in an unwanted way, to see how easy it is for misguided politicians to get around the ‘hate speech’ legislation which would not fly with the different approach in an article I can’t comment on because the Journal restricts it. The Journal does allow every meaningless reaction directed at me to remain.
Are commenters so docile, so subservient that they can’t identify that some elements in society with influence work against the Irish community?
I often demonstrate that there is just information, for good or for bad, and it is up to people to decide whether that information leads to a misadventure.
@Gerald Kelleher: The comments directed at you are not meaningless at all.
They are other peoples opinions which count just as much as yours does.
If you are trying to persuade people you opinion is correct, you need to communicate in a better way.
You do have a habit of pontificating and of overcomplicating simple issues.
Try using plain English that woud help!
@Gary :
The difference is that discussing ideas and sharing information only attracts few and you are unlikely to stick around for that. I could tell you that you are wasting your time, but you already know that.
“Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people.” Roosevelt
People should not be so gullible, after all, the legislation being brought in also brings ‘hate speech’ legislation in under the radar of electoral misinformation or disinformation. I see it for what it is and the same with scientific method modelling, so if people see this as preaching, that is nothing to do with me.
There is no correct or incorrect, there is just information and the ability to judge what purpose that information serves for individual or politicians.
@Gerald Kelleher: and as far as you’re concerned everyone else is wrong. And you’re right. Narcissistic personality disorder run wild.
@Alan OConnor: There is no right or wrong. There is just what is best for society.
Misusing online insults to pass hate speech legislation in full view of commenters says more about them than it does me.
In the North of Ireland, shin Fein administer the council tax on behalf of their Tory government. House holders get a bill each month and Shin Fein have in the past voted to increase it. Rates are roughly twice the property tax they oppose in the ” Free State”
Me thanks FF lite are using both sides of their mouth on this one.
@H Woo: you do realize that the council tax is set by govt and ALL UK councils collect it to cover local services,bin charges etc.
I will admit it is a very unfair system for some but it is a council run system,not a party one .
@H Woo: The Free State ceased to exist in 1948/1949. the act was made in 1937.
His a teacher, now that says a lot.
@Áine G: he was a teacher.
He doesn’t listen to people, he always wants to impose his ideas & ideology on everybody, everyone else is wrong bar him. Very lucky with the transfers he got, otherwise he wouldn’t have got elected. He won’t make any difference to Ireland in Europe & the reason Labour didn’t come up at the doors, is because working class people have long forgotten them, after what they did previously.
Hilarious, he makes the same noises as all the others and ignores large parts of the community as it is not the latest hot topic.
A member of the party that took medical cards from the sick, terminally ill & children with down syndrome.
Does Aodhán have shares in the journal, he’s had a article about himself or Liebour almost every day since he was elected.
Another TD who can’t survive on a TD’s Salary. Give us a break
Sorry to spoil your send off pleasantries Aodhan, but the Austerity Gov still rankles with those working people still affected by lifetime pension cuts and cancelled medical cards.
Even more so this week, when the very highly paid public service cohort is whinging about the tax they will have to pay on 90k plus pensions!
I wish you well in Europe, but maybe you can put this cruel inequity on your agenda.
Shin Fein voted on that night
with the government to bail out the Banks.
Only the Labour party voted against the bail out.
@H Woo: is that correct?
If Labour voted against the Noonan bail out austerity measures, it would have collapsed that Gov.
@H Woo: The Dail was presented with information and a course of action that was proposed.
That the information presented by the government to the Dail was not correct is not the fault of any other party not in government at the time.
That Labour sold us out *afterwards” when the true situation came to light is a terrible indictment on that party.
That Labour visited the worst of the burden on those least able to bear it tells us all we need to know about that party.
By their deeds ye shall know them.
@William Kelly:
Not sure how it works, but shin Fein vote may have being enough for the bail out to happen without Labours numbers.
Heard this on the Pat Kenny show one morning.
Mary Lou denied in the studio they voted to bail out the banker so Pat Kenny had one of his researchers fact check it during the show.
@William Kelly:
Not sure how it worked.
Maybe shin Fein’s vote for the bail out made up the numbers.
Heard about this one morning listening to the Pat Kenny show, Mary lou stated they did not vote with the government to bail out the bankers.
Pat Kenny had one of his researchers fact check her.
Turned out she was wrong.
Remember in 2011 when SF policy was to tell the IMF to go and take their money with them. SF never were able to say where the one billion a month to keep school and hospitals was going to come from.
Country was bankrupt and only the IMF / EU loaned us money to keep the lights on.
Choice was that stark, make cut backs or run out of money.
@Sean Butler: The country was only bankrupt because the government decided to bail out bondholders.
Bondholders which they did not have to bail out.
Bondholders which they were still bailing out years after the collapse of the banks.
@ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere: SF voted to bail out the bamks. Labour.voted against it.
@ItWasLikeThatWhenIGotHere: Don’t forget. Bond holders are also made up of,
Pension funds, Credit Unions, Trade Unions, Banks with little old ladies life savings.
Remember Iceland when the government allowed there banks to fail? Icelanders braking down bank doors climbing in windows trying to get what was left of their savings. Which was around 50cents in the euro.
Maybe our government picked the least worse option.
To avoid her bringing the far right with her…
The more I read the more I worry
have your say