INDEPENDENT IRELAND’S NEWEST elected representative does not believe in the politics of the “left and right”.  

On Thursday, the party announced that Bill Clear, an Independent councillor in Kildare, had joined the party, becoming its 24th councillor. 

Clear, a former Merchant Navy Captain, is now his party’s spokesperson on Defence and the Equestrian Industry. 

He was first elected to Kildare County Council in 2019 as a Social Democrats councillor and re-elected in 2024, topping the poll.

However, he left the party shortly afterwards to become an Independent after not being selected as the party’s candidate in the general election. 

Speaking to The Journal, Clear said he was approached by all parties “bar one” about joining.

He declined to say which party did not approach him, but confirmed that he had meetings with both Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. 

A spokesperson for Fine Gael told The Journal that “party HQ” did not have any discussions with Clear.

“When I met with Independent Ireland, they were a party with similar views I would have, kind of common sense on the ground rural Ireland views,” Clear said.

Asked if his views have shifted on issues since leaving the Social Democrats, Clear said no. 

“My green and my climate action views are still quite strong,” Clear said, adding that active travel and public transport remain huge interests for him. 

“I think we often try to put parties and people into these boxes, you know, modelling ourselves on the US.

“In Ireland, you could meet anybody in the street, and they would have mixed views on a variety of different things,” Clear said. 

He added that he is “very much into free speech” and does not “buy into” looking at politics through a prism of left-wing versus right-wing.

Asked why he ultimately decided that Independent Ireland was the party he wanted to join, Clear said it was after meeting the TDs and seeing how they are “in politics to fix issues in their communities”.

“They’re very community-based. And the freedom to speak your mind on issues as well, that was very important to me. I’m not really into parties where they’re constantly saying ‘they can’t say that, you can’t do that’.”

He added that the way the presidential election unfolded and the way “Simon Harris actively tried to prevent other candidates getting elected” also had a role in his decision to join Independent Ireland. 

This was a reference to Simon Harris instructing Fine Gael councillors across the country to oppose the nomination of Independent candidates for the presidential election. 

“I found that very irritating,” Clear said. 

“I felt that the political elite tried to fix that election.

“They should have let the people decide,” he said, adding that this is why he believes there was such an unprecedented number of spoiled votes.

Clear said he “could not in his heart” spoil his vote and that he personally voted for Catherine Connolly. 

Kildare County Council did not nominate a candidate for the election, but Clear said if it did, he would have nominated Maria Steen.

“I wouldn’t agree with her views, but it’s in the interest of democracy. I think it’s really important that we let the people decide. I don’t like this idea of fixing, basically fixing the election. And it was trying to be fixed by the two main parties.” 

Policy differences

In the last week alone, the Social Democrats and Independent Ireland have had heated clashes on immigration. 

On Tuesday, Independent Ireland TD Ken O’Flynn accused Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon of “trying to shut down debate” on the topic after Gannon accused the government of following the playbook of Nigel Farage and Donald Trump when it comes to immigration.

Asked if he has shifted his views on immigration at all, Clear said:

“The view is very simple. If you come here to Ireland to work hard and contribute to society, you’re very welcome. However, if you come here to Ireland and do not contribute to society, and you particularly break the law, I think, really, there’s no place for you. We have a housing crisis.”

Clear describes himself as someone with “strong views” and as a person who speaks his mind. 

He believes this is why his home was targeted last December, when a rock was thrown through his sitting room window. The man responsible was never caught by the gardaí.

“That was very upsetting,” Clear said, adding that his daughter had just left the room 20 minutes before the window was smashed. 

“We really want to encourage more women to join our party, to be candidates throughout the country but anyone you talk to at all, they all have said that they are concerned for their safety… It’s shocking really,” he said. 

The Social Democrat days

Asked about his experience of the Social Democrats, Clear said former leaders Catherine Murphy and Róisín Shortall were “very trusting”.

He said Holly Cairns, the current leader, was also “very good” and “trusting” but that “you did feel sometimes from other politicians that you can’t be saying that”.

“You have to listen to people on the other side and not just say they’re bad people, because they don’t share your views,” Clear said.

“I respect other people’s opinions.

“I’m very open that way. That comes with age. I would be older than most people in the Social Democrats, but everybody to be fair, now, they were open.

“Some of the members wouldn’t appreciate that [openness to other opinions],” Clear said.

On his relationship with the Social Democrats now, he said: “We’re colleagues and friends. I don’t fall out with anybody, there’s no point in politics.”