This is a subscriber-only article
Farmers taking part in today’s protest are now on their way from the Port Tunnel to the M50.
At least 100 tractors are taking part in the protest. The Irish Farmers Journal understands that they will be escorted through the Port Tunnel by gardaí and after that they will head for the M50.
Slow convey on the move now... One of the organisers said they're in no hurry to move off but when they do it won't be through the port tunnel it will be out the Malahide road and onto the M50 from there - tractors will travel north and southbound @farmersjournal pic.twitter.com/Cdjz9Cc59c
— Barry Cassidy (@BarryJCassidy) January 16, 2020
James Geoghegan, who says he is a committee member of the Individual Farmers of Ireland, told the Irish Farmers Journal at the protest: “We’re here, we’re making our protest. We have the Port Tunnel blocked. Some lorries are getting in now, but traffic is very, very restricted.
"We’ll be on the M50 southbound and then turning back up northbound.
“We have to be listened to. This is our last stand on this one. If things don’t change in the next Government, if they keep up disrespecting farmers, we will up the ante next time.
“This upped the ante from November…the next time we’ll block it for a lot longer,” he said.
Held up traffic
“We came down from Merrion Square, down by the Liffey and the docks. It took us a lot longer than expected, which was brilliant, we held up traffic, we delayed the city and it probably proves the power that we have with tractors and machinery.
No shortage of action in the city today - the tractors which protested overnight in Dublin city centre are at the port tunnel @farmersjournal pic.twitter.com/dM1k7cbi6F
— Barry Cassidy (@BarryJCassidy) January 16, 2020
“We need to get results, we haven’t time to be coming up here, but after today, any TD that thinks we’re not capable…after the first protest in November we threatened to block the M50. When we leave the Port Tunnel today, we’re heading straight for the M50,” he said.
No Government
Geoghegan said that when the protest was planned, they didn’t know the Government wouldn’t be sitting “but it was decided then that there was so much planning gone into this, some people thought this was a couple of tractors that just rocked up, there’s been two months planning going into this”.
This is not something that happened overnight or a pop-up protest, he said.
“We are genuine farmers in trouble, trying to save rural Ireland because the bigger organisations have let us down,” he said.
“We’ve made our stand now, hopefully the Government will listen to us this time. They didn’t listen the last time,” he said.
More to follow
SHARING OPTIONS: