What’s that you hear? That’s John’s sweet sound of silence

Bradley Bytes – A sort of political column by Dara Bradley

The Letters to the Editor page of the Irish Times every year contains at least one letter from a bird or flower enthusiast.

She or he will have heard the first cuckoo of the season, or seen the first daffodil of the year, earlier than other years, and usually conclude by asking: “Is this a record?”

Well, we think we’ve a record of our own to report. And it’s nowt to do with birds or flowers. It’s not as important as that – it’s about politics.

Fine Gael city councillor, John Walsh, sat through an entire meeting of Galway City Council without saying anything.

Zilch. Nada.

He was mute – for the entire four hours and 33 minutes of the most recent meeting.

A politician, silent, for FOUR-AND-A-HALF HOURS.

It’s not that he was gagged by colleagues, or had fallen asleep.

No, he was awake all right. It’s just that he chose not to speak. And he just sat there, for four-and-a-half hours, and listened. Yes, LISTENED.

Is this a record? And why has nobody alerted the Times?

At previous meetings, when he has spoken, John makes sense. But not a peep out of him Monday.

John is obviously adopting the ‘Say nothing and keep saying it’ school of politics.

And d’ya know something? Listening to some of the squabbling and horse manure that passes for debate among some of his colleagues on the Council, John might have the right idea staying stum.

Declan MIA

John Walsh may have said nothing, but at least he was there ‘til the bitter end.

Declan McDonnell, the Independent, left the meeting early. He wasn’t the only one who left before the end – and they’re entitled to come and go as they please – but we single him out because of his status.

Councillor McDonnell is the head of the City Council’s Housing SPC. This chairmanship brings with it a tax-free stipend of €6,000 per annum, which amounts to €30,000 over the five-year Council term.

And no one would begrudge him it – chairs of Strategic Policy Committees are entitled to this payment. And they perform an important function.

But, is it too much to ask that the chair of the Housing SPC would stay until the end of the meeting, and not leave before the item on HAP (Housing Assistance Payment) was being discussed?

HAP, he would have learned if he bothered to stay, represents an important change in housing policy and changes the relationship between the local authority, tenants and landlords.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.