THE PROGRESSIVE Democrats will finally cease to exist on February 28th, party leader Senator Ciarán Cannon said last night. The decision was taken at a national executive meeting in Dublin.
The Registrar of Political Parties, Clerk of the Dáil Kieran Coughlan, is to be notified “in the next few days” that the PDs wish to be removed from the register as of the end of next month.
Minister for Health and Children Mary Harney and Senator Fiona O’Malley also attended the meeting, which lasted for more than three hours and was conducted by party chairman Peter Wyer. The members of the executive heard academic submissions on behalf of the University of Limerick and University College Dublin, both of whom are seeking to obtain the party’s records and documentation for their archives.
Mr Cannon said no decision was made as between UL and UCD because it was felt that founder members who were no longer on the national executive should be consulted on the issue.
The lease on the party headquarters at Dublin’s South Frederick Street expires at the end of February.
With regard to State funding, Mr Cannon said: “A decision was taken that it would not be appropriate for the party to accept any more State funding from January 1st and that that would be communicated to the Department of Finance.”
Last night’s meeting was mainly devoted to “the normal legal and financial aspects of winding up the party”.
Mr Cannon said there was some consideration given to holding a social event to mark the party’s 24 years of existence later in the year.
However there was “not much discussion” about this, because “the priority is the orderly winding-up of the legal and financial affairs of the party”.
