Mayo Councillor Patsy O’Brien is spot-on in his views on briquettes ban

by Auld Stock

COUNCILLOR Patsy O’Brien was spot on when he stated at a meeting of Mayo County Council that the people of our county would not accept the banning of briquettes and coal in their fireplaces.

This is a step too far and the banning of such fuels should be vigorously fought by our public representatives.

Already I see where briquettes are being imported into Ireland. The authorities tell us this is a temporary measure. I don’t believe them. In this country there are several instances where temporary has become permanent.

It’s not all that long since we had several beet factories in Ireland, including a sugar producing plant in Tuam. During late summer I recall the large piles of beet along the road on the way into Tuam.

This was the time when General Michael J. Costello was in charge of Comhlucht Siuicre Éireann, the name of the department in charge of beet production.

The closure of beet factories resulted in the loss of hundreds of jobs and was a big blow to farmers who grew beet.

Now all our sugar is imported and there is talk of reopening one of our sugar producing plants. Can you “beet” that? This is surely a classic case of closing the door after the horse has bolted.

I wonder who were the clever clogs who closed our beet factories and what were our Dáil deputies thinking at the time.

Patsy O’Brien is right. He deserves to be listened to. Patsy is talking common sense.

*Mark Killilea, who came from Belclare, Tuam, was one of those responsible for developing the beet factory in Tuam. A bicycle mechanic by trade, Mark worked in a shop, known as Brady for Bikes, Main Street, Castlebar.

The premises was later occupied by James and Annie Guinan. Later still the premises was acquired by Paddy Fahey whose daughter Mary and her husband now run a business there. Mark Killilea, a prominent republican, later became a Fianna Fáil member of Dáil Éireann. Mark Killilea’s son, Mark Junior, also became a member of Dáil Éireann and the European Parliament.