Joan Collins (politician)

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Joan Collins
TD
File:Joan Collins TD 2011.jpg
Teachta Dála
Assumed office
February 2011
Constituency Dublin South-Central
Dublin City Councillor
In office
June 2004 – February 2011
Constituency Crumlin-Kimmage
Personal details
Born June 1961 (1961-06) (age 63)
Nationality Irish
Political party Independents 4 Change (since 2015)
Other political
affiliations		 United Left (2013–15)
People Before Profit (2007–13)
United Left Alliance
Socialist Party (1996–2004)
Spouse(s) Dermot Connolly
Website joan-collins.org

Joan Collins (born June 1961) is an Irish Independents 4 Change politician. She has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin South-Central constituency since February 2011.[1]

Local politics

A post office clerk by profession, Collins was elected to Dublin City Council at the 2004 local elections for the Crumlin-Kimmage local electoral area.[2] She was involved in the Anti-Bin Tax Campaign. She is a former member of the Socialist Party,[3] leaving with her partner, the former secretary of the party, due to a dispute with the party leadership.

Her Community and Workers Action Group joined the People Before Profit Alliance in 2007 and Collins was re-elected as a local councillor under their banner in 2009. While a councillor Collins remained employed as a post office clerk.[4]

As a councillor Collins came to prominence on 27 January 2011 when she confronted Bertie Ahern on camera as he was being interviewed outside Leinster House on the day Ahern retired from politics with a €150,000 a year pension as wages were being cut and taxes increased,[5][6] with Collins telling the former Taoiseach, "Have you no shame. You've been on the TV there the last few days mouthing out of yourself. You should be ashamed of yourselves. Shame on you. How dare you". Ahern ignored her and dismissed her as someone who had approached him "to try get themselves on television and radio", though Collins later said she had not seen the television cameras.[4] She released a video in which she stated she had been annoyed by "the smug smile on his face and the way he was waffling on as if he hadn't got a care in the world".[7] A year later she said she did not regret her action against Ahern, and said that Fianna Fáil had not approached her about the incident since her election to the Dáil.[8]

National politics

Collins successfully contested the 2011 general election for the United Left Alliance,[9] taking 12.9% of the first preference vote.[10][11] She said the election should have been a referendum on the Finance Bill.[12] In March 2011 due to the dual mandate rule, she was replaced on the city council by her party colleague Pat Dunne.[13]

Collins committed to facilitating the nomination of Senator David Norris for a place on the ballot paper ahead of the 2011 presidential election. She said that the people of Ireland should be allowed to decide Norris's suitability for the role.[14] On 20 September 2011, she confirmed she had signed the relevant papers.[15]

In December 2011, she described the proposed household charge being brought in as part of the 2012 Irish budget as a "Trojan Horse".[16] On 15 December 2011, she helped launch a nationwide campaign against the proposed household charge.[17] In February 2012, she accompanied a collection of housing groups to Mountrath, County Laois, who successfully prevented the deputy sheriff and gardaí from evicting a man from his home, using an incorrect interpretation of the constitution as the basis of their argument.[18][19][20] The man was ultimately evicted two weeks later, an action which Collins strongly condemned.[21]

In December 2012, Collins named crime journalist Paul Williams and sports star Ronan O'Gara under Dáil privilege as being among those to benefit from having their penalty points cancelled by gardaí. Justice Minister Alan Shatter called Collins's action a "total disgrace" and she was reported to a Leinster House watchdog called the Dáil Committee on Procedure and Privileges.[22][23]

In April 2013, along with Clare Daly, she founded a new political party called United Left.[24] As of December 2015, United Left is no longer on register of political parties.

At the 2016 general election, she stood as an Independents 4 Change candidate, and was elected.[25]

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ The Socialist Party, Joan Collins and the Bin Tax Battle An analysis by Dermot Connolly, ex Secretary of the Socialist Party
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Collins, Joan. "Why I tackled Ahern at the Dail". PBP – ULA. 30 January 2011.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ ULA Candidates
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Cllr Pat Dunne People Before Profit by Andrew Nally, The Liberty, 3 May 2011.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Oireachtas
Preceded by Teachta Dála for Dublin South-Central
2011–present		 Incumbent
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