Mayo candidate Daly hits out at O'Leary attack on teachers at FG event

The general election candidate for People Before Profit in the Mayo Constituency, Castlebar based teacher Joe Daly, has described the video of Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary jeering teachers at a recent Fine Gael event as a “mask off moment."

He stated “As a secondary teacher since 2008 having watched successive Fine Gael-led governments slash and burn the education system it really is a mask off moment to witness them laughing at us with one of their corporate benefactors Michael O’Leary.

“O’Leary is a notoriously anti-union, anti-public sector boss whose company was bailed out by the state in the late 80s and is responsible for climate destruction in terms of climate emissions while not paying a cent in carbon tax on aviation fuel.”

He continued: “Fine Gael is now engaged in damage limitation. Within hours Simon Harris made a demand that international protection asylum seekers should pay for services and called for the government to charter planes to facilitate deportations.

“The cynicism is staggering. Fine Gael has insulted every teacher in the country so they have sought a distraction by punching down at asylum seekers. This is who Fine Gael are.

"They hate teachers, they hate workers, they punch down at asylum seekers; they couldn't care less about those in desperate need of a home and they are funded by rich leeches like Michael O’Leary who feed off the public sector.

“One of the leading causes of the recruitment and retention crisis of teachers is the housing crisis yet Fine Gael is happy to have Michael O’Leary launch their candidate’s campaign when Ryanair is bulk buying homes in Dublin and leaving most of them vacant while many teachers are forced to live at home with their parents”

“O’Leary and Fine Gael are well met. They don’t care about ordinary people and the struggles they face to just have a home and get by.

"What we saw in the video was a despicable multi-millionaire promoting a despicable party. In all of the lessons that matter: our grade for Fine Gael and Michael O’Leary is F minus.

“I appeal to teachers and all workers to teach Fine Gael a lesson, reject their arrogance, reject their transparent attempts at diversion and division, and vote FF/FG out on November 29.”