Whelan selected to stand in Laytown-Bettystown

Aontú has selected Peter Whelan to contest the Laytown-Bettystown LEA in the 2024 Local Elections for Meath County Council

Peter has been the party rep for the area for some time and brings a wealth of experience as a businessman and community activist in the local area.

Mr Whelan said:

"I'm delighted and privileged to be selected as a party representative in this vast constituency that is so special to me. I made a promise back in 2019that I would continue to work tirelessly on behalf of the people of the Laytown-Bettystown areas.

I have stuck to my promises and have made some people's lives better as a result. I have brought many issues to national attention.

I was proud to be able to help with the Save the Boyne campaign and the campaign to keep the Irish Military War Museum open. On many occasions I have highlighted the lack of Garda numbers in Meath and I have requested a meeting with the Minister of Justice with Party Leader and Meath West TD Peadar Tóibín.

My farming and business experience place me in a good position to speak with authority on many farming and business related issues affecting this region.

I have been farming just outside Slane for 18 years. I sell my free range products every Saturday at a local farmers market and I know and understand the pressures on small and medium businesses especially in these times of rising fuel and energy prices.

I am looking forward to continuing my ork on the ground and giving the people of Laytown-Bettystown the opportunity to vote for a local Aontú candidate that will stand up for them"

The Irish political system is radically broken

In Ireland the vast majority of elected representatives put a finger in the air to check which way the political wind is blowing. They have one eye on their leaders – seeking brownie points – and another eye keeping their seat safe. If elected reps shut up and do as they’re told, they are promoted; if they stand up for what they believe in, they are demoted. No wonder we have the political class we have. No wonder one point one billion euro is being buried in a hole under the National Children’s Hospital and that Stormont is in stalemate.

Throughout Ireland, many people are now afraid to say what they feel, many are afraid to respectfully engage on a range of different topics. Many feel there is a new censorship and a new political correctness in Ireland, that opposition to the establishment is being deleted.

Respectful opposition is not the enemy. Respectful opposition is a critical element of a functional democracy. Aontú will have the backbone to stand up, without fear, for you.