Former independent Mayo TD Dr Jerry Cowley said that in the Labour Party “I’ve found my true home at last and I’m here to stay”.
Dr Cowley, whose move to Labour was announced at the party’s annual conference, told delegates: “I always thought Labour but acted independently.” He was proud of his achievements as a TD but the experience showed “the limits of what an independent could do”.
The medical doctor, who campaigned on the Rossport gas pipeline, had told delegates that while he would help if there were safety issues for local residents it was time to “move on”. An Bord Pleanála had decided to move the pipeline away from homes and he had been “vindicated” on the issue of safety, he said.