Holly Cairns has "big shoes to fill" as the new leader of the Social Democrats - but she can rely on her former leaders for support.
That's according to one of the women she is replacing, Roisin Shortall, who was today during the launch of "Better Ballymun Day" at Ballymun Trinity Comprehensive School. Ms Cairns, 33, took over as leader just a couple of days ago, after Ms Shortall and Catherine Murphy announced their departure as party leaders.
Ms Shortall told Dublin Live: “The party is very well established now, we’ve certainly made a name for ourselves, and we thought this was a good time for us to step aside and pass over the reins to the next generation. And we’re very conscious of that, the need to think about the future, and the need to ensure that the next generation is to find their voice now in politics, because too many young people feel like they’ve been excluded.”
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The Drumcondra native also said that they were all "absolutely delighted" with their new leader from West Cork and that they are "really excited for the next phase in politics for the Social Democrats". Ms Shorthall said: "She has taken on a big role but we’re still here and we’ll be supporting her all along the way, as will the other three TDs in the party. She’s very capable herself, she has a lot of ideas about where she wants to lead the party and we’ll be there to support her in whatever direction she takes it."
Ms Shortall visited Ballymun Trinity Comprehensive School which is in her local area, for the launching of the initiative "Better Ballymun Day", a project developed by the pupils there three years ago. It has now become an annual event that sees a large amount of local groups, organisations, schools, and clubs coming together for a day of action.
The initiative includes over 60 projects, including tree and plant planting, murals with boxes for birds, and educational pieces throughout the community. Lord Mayor Caroline Conroy attended her old secondary school for the event and started digging along with the pupils. She praised them for going out to the community and getting everybody involved.
She said: “For a lot of time, Ballymun has got a bad name and I think this action today shows that we are about doing what needs to be done. This is about taking care of our own environment, our own area, making it better. And I have to say, I’m so proud of you, taking action, not giving out, not standing on the sidelines, but actually picking up tools and getting out there and doing it.”
You can see more about the event in the video below.
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