DUBLIN CITY COUNCILLOR John Lyons has announced he has resigned from the People Before Profit (PBP) party with immediate effect. 

The local representative said he had been having difficulties with the party’s leadership over the last six months and said that those issues could not be resolved.

In a statement this evening, Lyons said: “This decision was not taken lightly nor quickly. I have been a member of the party for a decade, five of those years as an elected representative, but the difficulties I’ve had with the leadership of PBP over the future direction of the party in the Dublin Bay North area over the past six months could ultimately not be resolved.

“Despite the fierce and vicious austerity unleashed upon the people of Ireland over the last ten years as a consequence of the bailout of the banks and property speculators, the communities on the northside of Dublin stood up and fought back and it has been an honour to stand with them as we resisted the regressive local property tax, fought the cuts to home help hours, demanded a reversal of service cuts to Dublin Bus, defeated the government on water charges and achieved real social change with the passing of Marriage Equality and the Repeal of the 8th Amendment.”

In response to his leaving the party, Lyons said he intends on setting up a new “initiative” in the Dublin Bay North area soon.