Labour is ready for new challenges

Sir, – As long as the Labour Party has existed there have been those seeking to write our obituary, and Barry Walsh has been a regular contributor on your pages (“Labour – a case of managed decline?”, Letters, June 15th).

Commentators initially gave us no chance in the Dublin Bay South byelection in 2021 or for the Dublin MEP seat, while constantly underestimating the leadership of Ivana Bacik and the ability of our candidates to win seats in the local elections.

The Labour Party focused our limited resources on winning an MEP seat in Dublin and in blooding a new generation of candidates.

We are proud of the principled campaigns by our candidates in South and Midlands North West.

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We trebled our council seats in Cork City and Galway City, and won back seats in Sligo and Kilkenny. In Dublin, Wexford, Louth and Tipperary Labour candidates topped their local polls, showing we are well positioned for the upcoming general election.

Across the four local authorities in Dublin, Labour won more council seats than Sinn Féin or parties of the left.

Our next mission now must be to co-operate with progressives parties on the left who are serious about governing, to provide an alternative in the next general election to the rise of the far right and the expected increase in support for Independents. – Yours, etc,

CATHAL McCANN,

Political Director,

The Labour Party,

Leinster House,

Dublin 2.