17px Young Bloods 5/17/10 5:51 PM Page 17

THE PHOENIX MAY 21, 2010 17 Cllr storm is brewing in Labour deputy leader ’s West back yard and radical left winger, Fingal County Councillor Patrick Nulty, is at A the centre of it. Burton is one of Dublin West’s three TDs alongside Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan and enterprise spokesperson . The constituency gains an extra seat at the next election and, with Labour riding high in the polls, the prospect of Burton bringing in a running mate seems plausible. The problem is who to put on the ticket and Burton is unlikely to favour Pat Nulty. With a convention looming in the autumn, current Labour leader . At councillors to publicly oppose the Lisbon the cumbersome selection the party’s special conference in April 2008 Treaty in September 2009, earning him an machinery is swinging into action. Hopeful on Gilmore’s 21st Century Commission angry written rebuke from party General candidates have first to express interest in plan to modernise the party, Nulty opposed Secretary Ita McAuliffe. standing and then pass an interview with a the proposals. Ironically his main objection panel of the all-powerful Organisational was the centralisation of candidate BATTLE Sub-Committee, headed by Gilmore loyalist selection procedures to the detriment of James Wrynn. Once approved by party HQ local party democracy. In April 2010 Cllr Nulty openly opposed the successful candidate can proceed to Little wonder then that when Nulty a Council junket to a housing conference convention. sought a nomination for the 2009 Council in Brazil due to take place this November. Two local councillors have expressed an elections senior Labour party figures, His motion was defeated by 13 votes to 8 interest to run alongside Burton – Fingal including Joan Burton, were less than with three of the Labour party’s seven County Council Labour group leader councillors siding with Fianna Fáil and Cllr Tom Kelleher and Fine Gael to approve the junket. One Cllr Patrick Nulty. of those in favour of the Brazil trip was Twenty seven year old Nulty has Labour group leader Tom Kelleher, been a thorn in the side of the Labour Nulty’s main competitor for the leadership since his days as Chair of Dublin West nomination. in 2007. He joined the Kelleher is close to Burton and party in 2000 and was active in both believed to be her favourite for the the Trinity College and Mulhuddart nomination. With Nulty continuing to branches. oppose coalition with Fine Gael, he faces an uphill battle in passing the CAMPAIGNS Organisational Sub-Committee interview. However, there may be In 2002 he was elected chair of the method in Nulty’s radicalism. Trinity Labour branch and led the The Dublin West election will be a successful referendum campaign to tightly fought contest. Burton and have Coca Cola products taken off Varadkar are assured of reelection, campus. His promotion of left wing and, unless his health forces him to campaigns such as Shell to Sea and the step down, Brian Lenihan will also be Irish Anti War Movement endeared returned. The last seat could turn into him to the middle class radicals in a dogfight between Socialist Party College Green, but not to newly MEP and the second elected party leader . Labour candidate. Higgins is a However, his election to the Chair formidable candidate and is well of Labour Youth in 2006 gave him a known in the constituency but he was place on the National Executive beaten in a three-seat contest last time Committee of the party and brought and a left wing Labour candidate him into direct combat with Rabbitte. could see him lose out again. At least Nulty used his position on the NEC to Patrick Nulty that’s Nulty’s argument and he will be attack Rabbitte’s Mullingar Pact with hoping that, ill discipline not with Fine Gael and, in addition to heated supportive. Following Nulty’s expression of standing, Labour party strategists may disagreements in private, Nulty also interest in a place on the Mulhuddart Ward prefer an errant left wing candidate to a publicly attacked his own leader. ticket in June 2008, Burton made no secret more “right wing” party loyalist in a battle In a letter to on January of her opposition and lobbied the with Higgins. 30, 2007, Nulty accused of Organisational Sub-Committee to block the However, though Nulty’s record as a playing the “race card” following a young radical’s path. radical irritant to the party leadership may controversial speech on immigration. He When the Burton approved candidate, help him curry favour with floating left went on to describe Pat Rabbitte’s response Caoimhe McDermott, withdrew from the wing voters and attract Socialist Party – “40 million Poles can’t be wrong” – to election race in February 2009, the way was transfers, his opposition to the inevitable Kenny’s speech as “deeply troubling and left open for Nulty. But with only 12 weeks Labour-Fine Gael coalition could make him politically inconsistent with the values of to polling day few thought he had a a risk not worth taking for party HQ. the Labour Party”. And in a direct chance. However, Nulty topped the poll on A lot will depend on Joan Burton, whose challenge to the Labour-Fine Gael electoral June 5 with 1,898 first preference votes, main concern may not be the coming pact negotiated by Rabbitte for that year’s pushing his senior party colleague Cllr election but the one after that, when voters general election, Nulty called on party Michael O’Donovan into third place. will be assessing the record of their Labour supporters to “transfer their preference Since securing local government office TDs after a period of government with Fine votes to other parties on the left.” Nulty has continued to displease his elders Gael. One way or another, time is on Nulty has also crossed swords with and betters. He was one of four Labour Nulty’s side.