The Social Democrats have tonight welcomed the election of their Councillor, Mary Callaghan, to the role of Deputy Lord Mayor. Callaghan, a Finglas native herself, ran for the first time in the 2019 Local Elections and was elected to represent the Ballymun/Finglas Ward. A former computer programmer, Mary has worked both in Ireland and abroad and currently sits on a number of Boards for Community and Education projects in Dublin. This evening she thanked her party for the nomination, the Councillors who supported her and said she was looking forward to working with the newly elected Mayor Hazel Chu.
Speaking following her election, Cllr Mary Callaghan said:
“I want to extend my condolences to all those directly impacted by the Covid-19 crisis and especially those who have lost loved ones during the Covid crisis. I thank all our frontline workers and the people of Dublin City who have adhered to the health advise and guidelines in order to get us to a point where we are in a position to begin reopening our city.
“As we emerge from Covid and attempt to reopen our city we must learn from the positive ways we found for services to work together to improve things in our city. We have been given an opportunity to embrace new ways of working and new ways of living that are cleaner, fairer and more sustainable. While we often have different approaches to things, I believe that every Councillor in DCC is motivated to improve the lives of the people living in Dublin City.
“We live in a beautiful city, full of culture, talent and vibrancy. Our job now in the Council is to create and maintain an environment where that culture and vibrancy can thrive, where we care for our vulnerable residents and we provide good quality accessible services to all. I look forward to working with Lord Mayor Chu and all other Councillors to make this a reality.”
Party co-leader Róisín Shortall TD in whose Dáil constituency Callaghan was elected, said:
“I have worked closely with Mary for a number of years now and have seen first-hand how committed she is to representing the people who elected her in Ballymun and Finglas. Her dedication to improving the quality of life for those living in our city is obvious to everyone who engages with her. She is passionate about improving Dublin in a fair and sustainable way to ensure that everyone in the city has access to the kind of quality public services that a modern capital city requires. For the Social Democrats it is exciting to have someone in the role of Deputy Lord Mayor who can bring this passion for protecting the vulnerable and combine it with a vision for a vibrant and thriving modern Dublin City.”
29th June 2020
[ENDS]