Anton McNulty
History was made in the chamber of Mayo County Council yesterday morning (Monday) when Independent councillor Richard Finn became the first councillor to follow in the footsteps of his father and wear the chain of Cathaoirleach of Mayo County Council.
The Claremorris-based councillor was unanimously elected to succeed Cllr Al McDonnell as cathaoirleach after he received the support of the Fianna Fáil and Independent councillors. In becoming the cathaoirleach, he follows in the footsteps of his late father, Martin, and so became the first ever councillor in Mayo to wear the chain of office which had previously been worn by a parent.
In proposing Cllr Finn for the role of cathaoirleach, Cllr Michael Holmes referred to his father’s previous achievement as a councillor and that the ‘apple does not far fall from the tree’.
“It was not from the wind he took his experience. I know he will serve the county well because when he stands up to speak he puts a lot of thought into what he says. We will have no fear he will do it with great respect and dignity,” he said.
Cllr Finn was first co-opted to the council in 1987 when his father died suddenly and continued to serve as a councillor until 2004 when he was narrowly defeated. However, he regained his seat in 2009 and again in 2015.
His father Martin Finn served as cathaoirleach for four terms in the early 1980s when as an Independent councillor he held the balance of power in Mayo County Council. Previously he served as a Fine Gael councillor since the early 1960s and was elected a TD in 1969 and 1973 but narrowly lost his seat in 1977.
He was appointed to the senate for a few months by former Fine Gael Taoiseach Liam Cosgrove but later fell out with the party and ran as an Independent. He served as an Independent councillor from the early 1980s until his sudden death.
Fine Gael councillor Patsy O’Brien recalled canvassing for Martin Finn in the 70s and regretted not being old enough to vote in 1977.
Special day
“Today is a special day for you. There was no prouder person than me or my family to be associated with your late father. At that point in time, it was proud to support the Finn name, it was a big name and we did wear that badge to vote for Finn and we were proud of it,” he said.
Following his unopposed election as Cathaoirleach, Cllr Finn said he was delighted to follow in his father’s footsteps. He thanked his partner, Rene Lally and his family and supporters for all their support through the years.
“Rene has been with me through the worst and best of times and I thank her most sincerely for her support. I would like to welcome a sprinkle of supporters and canvassers who I can thank for getting me elected to Mayo County. Nothing can express my gratitude for the trust they have placed in me by continuously electing me to Mayo County Council,” he said. He joked that when commenting to a friend that he was bogged down with council work, he was reminded that the worst thing than being elected to Mayo County Council was not being elected.
He set out his priorities for the upcoming year with the continued commitment to the development of Ireland West Airport Knock and the retention of the GMIT campus in Castlebar and an increase in social housing as some of his main concerns.
Congratulating Minister Michael Ring on his elevation to the cabinet, he commented; “Of course we will all be reaching out to him for goodies, well money I suppose. The more we can get the better.”
Congratulating him on his election, Cllr Damien Ryan said he had every confidence the county will be well represented in the next 12 months and everything he outlined will be perused vigorously.
Cllr John Caulfield was elected as Leas-Cathaoirleach and joked that the last Fianna Fáil person to be elected in the position [Lisa Chambers] ended up in the Dáil.
