"We are sick of people running down Ballyhaunis" - Mayo Cllr hits back

There were heated exchanges at yesterday's Mayo County Council monthly meeting over a planning application for an IPAS centre in Ballyhaunis town.

An impassioned Cllr Alma Gallagher expressed her strong opposition to the proposed IPAS centre in her home town and said that an effective 3.5 percent increase to the town's population would be “unacceptable.”

As was exclusively reported by The Mayo News last week, planning permission is being sought for the construction of 32 accommodation units in the Old Convent Accommodation Centre in Ballyhaunis.

Cllr Gallagher told the packed chamber that “our government policy has shifted towards state provided care, not private providers. So that ship has sailed, we want to get that message out there to Bridgestock Care Ltd.”

The Ballyhaunis-based politician also took issue with a social media video posted by Aontú Deputy Paul Lawless, stating that “I will not have any Oireachtas member talk down rural towns like Ballyhaunis.”

This prompted a heated exchanged with Aontu Cllr Deirdre Lawless, who was co-opted onto the council when her brother, Paul, was elected to the Dáil last year.

Cllr Lawless rejected Cllr Gallagher's criticism and urged anyone who hadn't seen the video to do so.

Lack of services

She said the video highlighted the lack of services in the town that Cllr Gallagher had spoken about.

Cllr Gallagher hit back and said that she had watched the video and had also heard a radio interview with Deputy Lawless.

“This is not the first time, Cllr Lawless, that we have experienced this throughout the county, where representatives are like Miley Cyrus and her wrecking ball. They swing into rural communities, they cause absolute devastation with inaccurate information and they cause hysteria within a town.

“I am well aware of the destruction sometimes Aontu can cause. You can't pick and choose statements. You have to look at it in its entirety. And I did listen to that [video]. I listened to statements that were made on Midwest radio this morning about my own hometown and I won't tolerate it. I am elected by the people of Ballyhaunis.

“We are sick to our teeth of people running down Ballyhaunis. We are held as a model of best practice in Europe for migration.”

The Fine Gael politician also said the town was very familiar with IPAS centres as the first application for one came in 2001. She also listed a number of projects in the town that have been funded by the Community Recognition Fund.

“It's a shame to see Government party politicians trying to claim the opposition are part of the problem when we're trying to help you and work together to solve the issue,” Cllr Lawless said.

The Aontu politician also said that her party has “always been against illegal immigration and migration, we have always looked for balance and fair policy where communities are considered as well. So I think it's great that, finally, we're not being censored anymore.”

Cllr Donna Sheridan took issue with the idea of councillors being 'censored' and called on Cllr Lawless to do 'a little Google, a little research on it' as the councillors have been speaking about immigration in the chamber for a long time.

Special meeting

“We had a special meeting in January 2024 where all of the 30 of us that are sitting here discussed immigration. It's not something that we haven't discussed. We have been very open, and the members of this Chamber had expressed their views and took a decision to instruct Executive of this Council not to engage any further with the department in regards to what was happening in this county at this time. So to say, come in here and say that now today, suddenly we can speak openly. We have been doing that in this chamber for a very long time.”

In a statement to The Mayo News after the meeting, Cllr Lawless wrote, “What unfolded in the chamber today was not debate ― it was bullying. It was a concerted attempt to drown out dissenting voices by those who cannot bear to face the truth of their own failures. That is not democracy; that is abuse of power.”

The statement also stated that “ Paul Lawless hasn’t sat on this council for nearly a year, yet he still manages to occupy space in the minds of Fine Gael councillors, who spend more speaking time attacking him than addressing current members. At this point, he ought to be charging rent for the space he occupies in their heads. If the Government devoted half that energy to fixing their own blunders, Ballyhaunis would be exhausting its great potential instead of being denied it by their leaders.”

Minister of State Alan Dillon said he recognises the concerns expressed by Ballyhaunis Chamber of Commerce and members of the local community.

“Ballyhaunis has a proud tradition of welcoming people from all backgrounds, but the community has made it clear that local services are now stretched to capacity,” he said.

“I will continue to advocate for balanced regional planning and ensure that Ballyhaunis is not unfairly burdened without the necessary supports in place.”

The planning application from Bridgestock Care Ltd is currently under consideration by Mayo County Council. The decision is due to be made on the application in the early days of 2026.

Cllr Gallagher told the chamber that she had been “talking directly and personally to representatives within the planning section. No officer yet has been allocated to this case, but I hope that they will bear in mind that a 3.5 increase in our population is not sustainable.”