Is Labour the catalyst to Ireland's revival?

On Friday the 18th. of February, Irish Youth Times editor Andrew McKeown and Political correspondent Tom Lawlor met with Labour leader Eamonn Gilmore.

ANDREW McKEOWN, Political Editor
I was when I was comtemplating how opposites can come together; how their respective basic elements bounce off each other; do opposites attract; can elements which have such differences in their nature co-exist in a stable environmnet. Yes, you have guessed it ... I was in chemistry class. It was during this class that I learned from a classmate that Labour party leader Eamon Gilmore was in town on canvasing tour. To fulfil my duty as a journalist , I attained permission to leave school to report and Tom and I made our way to the Town square, Dundalk.

Gilmore's campaign bus (emblazoned with the slogan step on board for mental health) was parked at the square and surrounded by members of the party, public and press. We introduced ourselves to the press officer and were kindly given time with Gilmore for a short interview.

When asked by IYT journalist why young people should vote for Labour, Gilmore replied "we want this country to have a future and our priority is job creation". He stated that Labour wish to prevent the emmigration of the youth of Ireland. "For the country to succeed in the future, our people must be well educated".

Gilmore stated that his party would reverse the minimum wage cut if elected into government as labour "disagree fundamentally with cutting pay from the lowest paid, you should start at the top. The wage must be sufficient to provide incentive for people to work."

We then asked, in reference to the slogan on his campaign bus, what Labour would do to support youth mental health iniatives. Gilmore told us that his party is, to his knowledge, the only party to publish a seperate policy on the matter. Mr. Gilmore told us that the best way to tackle the rising mental health issues is to prevent them before they become problems. "The Labour party is committed to the prevention of homophobic bullying, to general bulying in our schools and they should be dealt with straight away."

Our interview with Gilmore led me to ponder in Chemistry class 'Is Labour the catalyst to Ireland's revival or will it cause unwanted reactions?'