THE Renua Ireland candidate for Kerry, Donal Corcoran, has said that the cost and availability of quality childcare in Kerry is one of the biggest issues facing young families in Kerry.
The cost of childcare is the equivalent to a second mortgage and in some cases and while there is tax relief in relation to some mortgages there is no tax relief for childcare, says the Tralee-based candidate.
Renua Ireland is proposing tax relief for childcare and the establishment of community crèches and have launched their childcare policy today to address this issue.
A NEW candidate and a new party was added to the general election ticket in Kerry this week.
Caherslee man, Donal Corcoran, will run for Renua in the party’s first ever general election.
Once a member of Fianna Fail, the stone mason instructor at Kerry ETB joined Renua because he was disillusioned with politics in Ireland.
He is originally from Laois, but has been living in Tralee since 1990.
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Last week it was reported that Fianna Fail Councillor, Norma Foley, was approached by Renua to run for the party in Kerry, but she declined that offer opting to stay within Fianna Fail.
After being put to a vote of Renua party members, Donal Corcoran, was approved to run for the party on Monday.
“Our local policies are centered around mainly jobs, tourism and also crime. Those are the Renua policies, that are going to be implemented at a local level,” told TraleeToday.ie.
Mr Corcoran is interested in selling Kerry as place to do business with an emphasis on renewable energy providing jobs so the county can be self sufficient.
He describes Renua as being harsh on crime; “The way we see it is, jail not bail.”
“In the party manifesto we have ‘three strikes rule’ that will result in a mandatory life sentence for serious crime. We want a far less soft approach to crime. We want to come down on it hard.”
One of the major talking points around the party is its open vote on a proposed referendum to repeal the 8th amendment of the constitution, which gives equal right to the life of the mother and the unborn.
“I will be looking forward to the holding of a referendum and I will be voting yes.”
“I have discussed this with Eddie Hobbs and Lucinda Creighton, one of the core principals of the part is freedom of thought. Matters of conscience are left to individual party members.”
Mr Corcoran is the 15th candidate to be added to the ticket in Kerry, a daunting prospect for a new party in the county.
“We know it’s a mammoth task to get elected, but it won’t deter us to get a Renua candidate elected in Kerry.”
He is unsure of how many went for the Kerry candidacy and how many Renua members there are in Kerry.
“I don’t know how many members or supporters there are in Kerry, but I carried out a street collection in Dingle back in August and it went well,” he said.
“We seem to have good support. When the party was first launched there was a lot of interest. Now there’s a candidate to focus on in Kerry there should be a greater understanding of what the party has to offer.”
