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<\/p>\nThe remarks drew sharp rebukes from colleagues who insisted diplomatic ties with Britain must be respected\n<\/p>\n
During the council\u2019s November plenary meeting, Cllr Tom\u00e1s \u00d3 Currao\u00edn voiced firm objections to Ambassador Kara Owen\u2019s recent trip to Galway \u2013 her first official engagement outside Dublin since her appointment in October.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s very wrong that they come here. I don\u2019t think it\u2019s right that a member of the Crown should come, especially when they still occupy the six counties,\u201d Cllr \u00d3 Currao\u00edn said. Half-joking, he added that the ambassador would be welcome in the west \u201cif she arrived with news of a united Ireland.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Independent councillor referenced several County Galway figures, including Fr Michael Griffin \u2013 whose death during the War of Independence is commemorated locally \u2013 and noted that November is a month in which many such leaders \u201cfaced their capture or death.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s nothing personal with the lady \u2013 I know she is married to a Galway man,\u201d he said, repeating that his objection lay with the Crown\u2019s representation \u201cbeing here while we are still occupied, and have been occupied since 1169.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI have no problem with anyone\u2019s politics or religion, but I have problems with the Crown,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n
Council executives and several councillors moved quickly to counter the remarks, stressing the importance of diplomatic visits.<\/p>\n
CEO Liam Connelly said ambassadors should be met with \u201cfair and even\u201d respect. \u201cThey are not political representatives,\u201d he added, \u201cbut they serve a very important role between governments.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Galway county councillor Tomas O Curraoin. <\/p>\n
Fine Gael councillor Jimmy McClearn criticised his colleague\u2019s comments as \u201cregrettable.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think that type of language is acceptable,\u201d he said, adding that his own discussion with Ms Owen focused on Galway\u2019s trade links with Britain. \u201cI have great difficulty with your contribution.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cllr \u00d3 Currao\u00edn, however, held firm. Reiterating that his remarks were not personal, he used more pointed language, referring to the British flag as the \u201cbutchers\u2019 apron\u201d and recalling Queen Elizabeth II\u2019s 2011 visit to the Garden of Remembrance.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo wonder we went up there with a priest and a dash of holy water to drive the demons out,\u201d he said. \u201cI don\u2019t accept any position of the Crown in this country.\u201d<\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
British Ambassador to Ireland Kara Owen pictured at \u00c1ras an Chontae with Galway County Council Chief Executive Liam Conneally; Cathaoirleach of Galway County Council Cllr David Collins; Mayor of Galway City Mike Cubbard; and Galway City Council Chief Executive Leonard Cleary.<\/p>\n
His comments drew mixed reactions across the chamber \u2014 some murmurs of agreement, others of disapproval, and occasional laughter.<\/p>\n
Ambassador Owen, who previously served as British High Commissioner to Singapore, has strong links to Galway through her marriage to a Ballinasloe native. Her arrival earlier this month had been broadly welcomed by councillors.<\/p>\n
Cathaoirleach Cllr David Collins said the visit highlighted \u201cthe enduring spirit of collaboration that exists between Ireland and Britain.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSuch meetings help maintain existing business relationships and build new commercial opportunities,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Ms Owen\u2019s engagements in Galway focused on commerce and trade, with companies such as Dexcom and Boston Scientific cited as examples of the region\u2019s growing economic ties with the UK.<\/p>\n
Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting scheme. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The remarks drew sharp rebukes from colleagues who insisted diplomatic ties with Britain must be respected During the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":165956,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[92213,61,60,43],"class_list":["post-165955","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-emma-smith","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165955","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=165955"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165955\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/165956"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=165955"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=165955"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=165955"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}