Hundreds of people attended a meeting in the Castle Arms Hotel in Durrow on Monday evening to voice their opposition to two planned IPAS centres in the village.
Fianna Fail TD Sean Fleming, Independent Councillors James Kelly and Ollie Clooney and Fine Gael Cllr John King were among those present. Independent TD Brian Stanley sent his apologies and told organisers that he would be approaching the planning section at Laois County Council in relation to the plans.
The meeting was called by Durrow Community Council in response to two planning applications for asylum centres at Lennon’s Bar and Peadar’s Bar at Mary Street in the village.
Marc Lennon, who lodged the planning applications with Laois County Council, was invited to attend the meeting but wasn’t present.
Chair of Durrow Community Council Ethel Dunphy said two submissions have already been lodged in relation to the plans. “We don’t want unvetted males in the town… we also don’t have the services here,” she said. Ms Dunphy said “our garda station is not manned 95% of the time.”
She referred to claims by Mr Lennon that only families would be accepted at the centre and said, “once Marc Lennon signs on the dotted line he has no say in who goes in.”
Cllr Kelly estimated that planned 21 bedrooms associated with the planning applications could house up to 80 people. He expressed his belief that “a local business is selling out the community.”
He said the village- which has a population of 946 according to the 2022 census- didn’t have the school places, health facilities or public transport to deal with such an influx. Cllr Kelly said garda resources are also an issue and he expressed frustration at the lack of engagement with gardai.
“We haven’t had a Joint Policing Committee meeting in 18 months because there is a new forum and the government is stalling on that as well,” said Cllr Kelly.
Cllr Kelly said the owner of the bars had no contract for IPAS and he questioned where the Ukrainians who are currently residing in one of the buildings would go. He also said there were around 1,700 people on Laois County Council’s housing list.
Cllr Kelly explained that an approval for a guesthouse was a route which could lead to an application for an International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) contract. “There is no contract yet…I know that for a fact,” he told the gathering.
He advised those present to make submissions to the Council in relation to the application before the submission deadline of August 13. Cllr Kelly noted there had been similar applications on two buildings in Mountrath in the past.
Cllr Clooney promised attendees his “100% support” and said “it is services we need in Durrow, not this.”
“We have to fight this and when we look down the hall here tonight we are on our way to fighting this,” he remarked.
Cllr Clooney said he had already made representations to Laois County Council in relation to the plans and he said the matter could be appealed to An Coimisiún Pleanála if needs be. He questioned the motive of the plans. “It’s about money, let’s face it,” he said.
Cllr King said the situation with regard to an IPAS centre in his town of Rathdowney was different. He said the building they are in was sold after a fire and the new owner secured a contract. “We weren’t aware that we could object,” he admitted.
He said the Ukrainian modular homes in Rathdowney for Ukrainians were built in Spring Crescent, which he said was aptly named due to all of the springs on the land. He said the Ukrainians were welcomed and their arrival had benefitted the area and meant the school could get extra teachers.
Cllr King supported the opposition to the centres in Durrow. “We will make it quite clear at the meeting that we are not going to support these IPAS centres,” he said.
Fianna Fail TD Sean Fleming noted there were over 250 people at the public meeting. He said he had contacted the Council in relation to the plans.
“No contract has been signed by IPAS, more importantly, no application has been made to IPAS,” he said.
He explained that the Ukrainians staying in Peadar’s bar can do so without planning permission as there is an exemption due to the emergency nature of their needs. He said both buildings would require planning permission before an IPAS contract could be sought.
Dep Fleming said the only place in Laois which had large numbers of IPAS residents was the hotel in Emo. “As a TD, I have never heard a peep out of it,” he said.
He noted a property in Abbeyleix had applied but the Council refused planning and he said “Laois County Council do look at these things very carefully.”
He suggested that people make submissions not on their emotions but in relation to planning matters such as traffic, parking and schools. “I think we have to look at this type of area,” he said.
One of the crowd questioned Dep Fleming’s support of an EU migration pact. Dep Fleming said the IPAS centre in Emo has been in operation for 20 years. He said the people for Emo welcome them. “In general Ireland as a country, we do need to get other people from outside the country to come in,” he said.
There was a single dissenting voice on the night. Derry Townsend had travelled from Portlaoise to voice his support for IPAS centres.
“I would be in broad support of IPAS centres,” he told the crowd. “I heard, unvetted males,” he said. Mr Townsend said there were no statistics to support the view that there was higher criminality among foreigners.
“There is not higher criminality among foreigners,” he told the crowd, who were vocal in their opposition to his views. “They are coming in. There is a system in place for applicants,” he said.
Pictured above: Derry Townsend (with mic) voices his support for IPAS centres at the top table
He asked how many of those in the room had someone close to them emigrate for a life elsewhere in the last 100 years. “Ireland was desolate. We left en masse and we were called every racist name,” he told the gathering.
A woman in the crowd agreed that the Irish had gone abroad but said they weren’t given food, shelter and weekly money. “I welcome people who come into this country who are workers,” she added.
Another person asked if the man had gone out on the streets of Portlaoise after 9pm lately.
An English man who was in the crowd said “it is an army that is coming in” and he acknowledged his own heritage. He claimed it was men of “fighting” age who were coming through Ireland via the UK.
Cllr Clooney suggested the attendees focus on the planning application. “Fear and concern has to come into it and the services here and not who they could be,” he said.
He said “money was following the population” and he worried about the future of villages and smaller towns. “If that continues the big will get bigger and the small will be wiped away,” he remarked.
Durrow Community Council Secretary Mary Monahan suggested setting up a protest committee in opposition to the plans.
Those gathered were advised to put their objections in submissions to the council. They were told separate submissions would be required for each plan and a fee of €20 would be required for each submission.
“What is €20 towards safety,” one resident asked. Another said, “€40 to save the town basically.”
One person recalled the protests to save Abbeyleix Hospital and suggested marching on the streets. “People power was on the street,” they said. A show of hands was requested to indicate who would be willing to protest and the majority in the room put up their hands.
Pictured above: A show of hands in support of a protest
Dep Fleming said a number of quality objections should suffice.
The meeting ended with the formation of a Protest Committee which will organise templates for submissions in opposition to the planned IPAS centres. A second public meeting is also being planned for next week.
