A Shannon Councillor, who supported Peter Casey in his bid to secure a nomination to run in the Presidential election, has come out in defence of the businessman’s comments about Travellers.
Mr Casey has come under fire after saying it’s ‘just wrong’ that Travellers have been given special status.
However, Independent Councillor Gerry Flynn says the comment is “fair” in his eyes.
Clare FM’s James Mulhall reports:
Calls have been made for Peter Casey to pull out of the race for the Áras, after the comments he made about the travelling community.
Speaking on the Independent.ie podcast ‘The Floating Voter’, Mr Casey said Travellers should not be recognised as an ethnic minority.
Calling their ethnic status ‘wrong’, Mr Casey also criticised them for not paying their way.
The controversial comments have seen Mr Casey land in hot water, with all of the other presidential candidates condemning the comments.
Pavee Point has labelled it ‘grossly insulting and offensive’, while the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commissioner says Travellers are almost ten times more likely to be discriminated against than general population.
Co-Director of Pavee Point, Martin Collins says Mr Casey must pull out of the race.
However, his conduct has been defended by one local representative here in Clare.
Shannon Councillor Gerry Flynn seconded Peter Casey’s nomination to get the backing of Clare County Council, one of four local authorities who gave him their backing to run in the election.
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You can hear Cllr. Flynn’s comments in full here.
