Letter to the Editor: Waterford needs more pressure on Government
David Cullinane, TD
Dear Editor,
A recent article by Phoenix asked whether the main Dáil opposition is happy with “glacial progress” in Waterford and suggested that local politics has drifted into stagnation. It is a striking argument but it is also the wrong one.
Let me be clear: there is no stagnation on the part of Sinn Féin. There is no complacency. There is no settling for the status quo. And there is no settling for second best.
The people of Waterford did not elect me and Conor McGuinness to make peace with delay and a lack of investment for Waterford. They elected us to fight for better and this is exactly what we have done, day in and day out, in the Dáil, in the media, on the ground and in our communities.
If Phoenix wishes to fairly assess our record, they should begin by examining the many parliamentary questions, Dáil speeches, campaigns, protests, statements and press releases (including to his own publication) we have issued over recent months and since the last election. It would find robust and sustained criticism of this Government and of Ministers Mary Butler and John Cummins on issue after issue affecting Waterford, as well as offering solutions.
In recent weeks we have challenged the Government on its failure to deal with the cost-of-living crisis and the pressure that rising prices have placed on workers and families. We have stood with former Waterford Crystal workers in their long fight for justice. We have repeatedly exposed the chronic lack of capital funding for SETU and highlighted the unfairness of Waterford and the South East being left at the bottom of the table.
We have raised the failure to meet cancer targets at University Hospital Waterford, the unacceptable delays in public dentistry and orthodontic services for children and the urgent need for timelines and delivery on 24/7 cardiac care. We have called for essential investment at UHW, including an underground car park and the wider capital development the hospital desperately needs.
We have stood with families facing notices to quit and the threat of homelessness. We have opposed the closure of early intervention classes for children with disabilities in Waterford. We have protested outside the ministerial offices of John Cummins and Mary Butler over the lack of support for SNAs.
We have highlighted cuts to roads funding and the failure to properly fund the N24 and N25. We have called out the imbalance in national transport investment, where Cork seems to secure major rail funding while Waterford is expected to accept scraps. We have consistently pressed Government on the lack of support for Waterford Airport and the wider failure to back the infrastructure this region needs to thrive.
This is not stagnation. That is opposition doing its job.
The truth is simpler than the narrative advanced in Phoenix. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael are in Government. They hold the power. They make the spending decisions. They decide what is prioritised and what is delayed. If Waterford is being held back by underinvestment, it is not because the opposition has failed to raise its voice. It is because this Government has failed to deliver.
Of course, opposition has a responsibility to hold Government to account, and I take that responsibility seriously. So does Conor McGuinness. We work relentlessly to put Waterford’s needs on the national agenda and to challenge every decision that sidelines our city and county. But opposition does not sign off on capital plans. Opposition does not allocate funding. Opposition does not sit around the Cabinet table. Government does.
This is why it is deeply frustrating to see Waterford too often treated so poorly. We are expected to welcome crumbs from the table on far too many issues. On occasion we see progress and yes this should be welcomed. This is not a sign of weakness. However, Waterford deserves better than second best and on that we can agree.
My objective and Sinn Féin’s objective is not simply to complain about neglect. It is to end it. I want Waterford to get its fair share of investment, not one that must constantly fight to justify its place. I want a health service in the South East that is properly resourced, with real capacity at UHW, timely access to care and dignity for patients and families.
I want SETU to receive the capital investment necessary to become the driver of regional growth it should be. I want to see Waterford Airport developed, our roads upgraded, our rail links improved, our Port reach its full potential and our economic potential fully realised.
I want Waterford to be treated not as a second to any other city and county, but as a city and county with enormous potential, talent and ambition.
This is what drives my work. It is what drives Conor McGuinness’s work. And it is why we will continue to press, challenge, campaign and organise for the change Waterford needs.
I regret that Sinn Féin is not in Government, because I believe Waterford and the wider South East would be far better served by a government genuinely committed to balanced regional development and fair investment. But while we are in opposition, we will continue to lead from the front. We will continue to expose failures. We will continue to stand up for Waterford. And we will continue to make the case for a different future.
If the Government will not act with urgency, then it is the duty of those of us elected by the people of Waterford to keep up the pressure until it does and to build the alternative that will finally deliver the investment and ambition this region deserves. This is a duty Conor McGuinness and I take seriously. We will never settle for a draw, only progress for our city and county.
David Cullinane, TD
