Mullingar newspaper article
Senator Davitt objected to a local newspaper article about Mullingar and asked Senator Craughwell to retract it. The Cathaoirleach said it was not really a matter for the Order of Business and suggested it be taken up directly.
I want to talk today about a town the Cathaoirleach himself knows quite well - Mullingar. Quite an unsavoury piece was written in today's edition of the local newspaper, the Westmeath Examiner. To build the background, and as the Cathaoirleach knows, when one comes into Mullingar from the Dublin road one passes the Mullingar Park Hotel, which has a fabulous convention centre - one of the finest in the midlands - and a health club and spa. Having passed the hotel, one sees the new National Science Park, which was previously the tobacco factory. We talked about that factory 18 months ago. It was closed and has been reopened by the businesspeople of Mullingar. Gary Moore and the guys from TEG and Mergon are in there. They are hoping to create 100 jobs there in research and development. It really is a flagship building and a flagship project for Mullingar. After that, one passes the new Curraghmore school, which is being built, and the new local shopping centre, which is also being built on the way into Mullingar, before one reaches the town itself where the canal is. As we are aware, in the town there are three fabulous hotels and there are approximately 20 restaurants and 20 coffee shops within the canal which encircles the town.
I was quite disturbed to read in the local Westmeath Examiner this morning that Mullingar has been described as unkempt, neglected and degrading by a Senator in this House. I got many phone calls about the article. I was very disappointed to read it, to be honest. Senator Norris is correct, one would not have to look any further than Senator Norris. I mean Senator Craughwell.
Comment on this
Senator Craughwell has described Mullingar as all these things. In fairness, Mullingar is in the top section of the Tidy Towns competition. It also has a very active town team. It has a full-time chamber of commerce and is one of the few towns that has been awarded a purple flag. As I have said, I have talked to several business leaders in Mullingar town and they have told me that they were shocked and disgusted by this article. As an active businessman and member of the business community in Mullingar, I ask Senator Craughwell to rethink his piece in the paper. It would certainly be appreciated by the people in Mullingar. I ask him to amend it or to apologise. If one cannot make a good comment about a place it is not worth making any comment at all. We are very disappointed that the Senator has seen fit to run down our town.