Politics

Labour confirms Prendergast candidacy for European elections

Outgoing MEP for Ireland South constituency was only name to go forward at selection convention

Phil Prendergast is Labour’s outgoing MEP for the Ireland South constituency
Phil Prendergast is Labour’s outgoing MEP for the Ireland South constituency
Sun Mar 09 2014 - 18:24

The principles of tolerance, freedom and human rights must be Ireland's "calling cards" abroad, Tánaiste and Labour leader Eamon Gilmore insisted as he welcomed confirmation that Phil Prendergast will be a European election candidate for the party.

Ms Prendergast, an outgoing MEP for the Ireland South constituency, which encompasses ten counties in Munster and Leinster, will hope to extend her stay in Brussels when she goes to the polls in May. The 54-year-old former senator from Co Kilkenny was the only name to go forward to the party's selection convention in Cork.

Attending the convention with party colleagues, Mr Gilmore said the forthcoming European election could be the most important in recent times, warning of the potential for a sizeable far right grouping in the parliament. He said the ongoing economic recovery had to work for working people.

Mr Gilmore said his party had a "proud and progressive" tradition and had campaigned for a more modern, more open Ireland. "But the principles of tolerance, freedom and human rights must also be Ireland's calling cards abroad, and in our engagement with the European Union, " he added.

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"2014 may be the most important European election we have fought, since Ireland joined the European Union. An election that has the potential to shape the character of the Union." He added: "Ireland, and Europe, need the progressive values of our movement. And the people who will stand up and fight for them. Our candidate for Ireland South, Phil Prendergast, is no stranger to standing up for what she believes in."

Ms Prendergast said she would leave no stone unturned in the bid to keep “Labour values” at the heart of communities. “These European elections will have a profound impact on the future direction of the European Union project,” she said.

"Not only will they determine the presidency of the European Commission, but for the first time ever, the Treaty of Lisbon means that the Parliament will dictate the pace and direction of change for the next five years. It is the Parliament and its members who will decide what sort of EU we will be looking at in 2019, one still talking about bond yields and interest rates, or one talking about people, and families, and communities."