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Dail Éireann — 2026-06-09
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Gary Gannon (SD), Dublin Central

I want to talk about the erosion of a community service. I am conscious the Minister of State may be taking this on behalf a different Minister. I have to be honest - the Minister of State is an Independent who is not part of the same party as the Minister with responsibility for the matter and I am not sure what role the Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has in relation to the loss of a postal service. I am quite frustrated. Myself and Deputy Hearne are both here at 11.10 p.m. on a Tuesday evening. We equally have families to be home to. I do not think this is an appropriate standard for parliamentary debate. There was no communication with our offices on the change of Ministers. I think it is really disrespectful not only to our role but to the people we represent in our respective constituencies.
I want to speak on the loss of a postal service in Drumcondra but I am also speaking about the erosion of community. Community happens in a multitude of different forms. That postal service parcel delivery office on Home Farm Road, off Griffith Avenue, is a place of congregation. It is a place where older residents in particular in an older part of Dublin city actually find their routine. They find their engagement. They go about their business. It is a source of community. We are about to lose a site from a semi-State entity. There will be a big hole in the ground that once was a State service and residents are angry about it. They are not just angry because of the loss of a particular entity; they are angry because of the loss of a service. There has been no consultation. The residents rightfully feel disrespected.
Further compounding that disrespect, when we strive to have a parliamentary debate about the loss of service, while I respect the Minister of State's role, I have no concept of what happens after this. He will read from a prepared script, but who will take this back to the Minister with responsibility, who seems to be able to give a soundbite to the media about some ridiculousness every once in a while? However, when we are here to engage on a substantive issue, we have nothing. I genuinely feel disrespected and the communities we represent are equally disrespected.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-06-09/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-14T01:01:05+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-06-09