First person of colour co-opted onto Carlow County Council
People Before Profit member, Miriam Boush, has been co-opted onto Carlow County Council Photo: Paul Curran
ACTIVIST Miriam Boush has been co-opted onto Carlow County Council at a special sitting of the council, yesterday, Monday. She is covering her People Before Profit party member, cllr Adrienne Wallace who's on maternity leave.
From Carlow town, cllr Boush is the first person of colour on the council, with several councillors noting that it was a historic day.
She received a warm welcome from her new colleagues.
“I hope you find out we’re not just a group of grumpy old men,” joked cllr John Cassin.
Cllr Brian O’Donoghue warned cllr Boush that bureaucracy moves very slowly, comparing the council to an elephant moving slowly through the jungle.
Cllr Wallace also received many well wishes from her colleagues on the birth of her baby boy, Freddie.
In a statement, cllr Wallace said she was delighted for cllr Boush.
‘She has a deep commitment to the people of her home county of Carlow and I know her sense of social justice, her energy and her drive will serve them well,’ said cllr Wallace.
“Local government should reflect the people they serve,” said cllr Boush in her acceptance speech, remarking that a diverse community needs a diverse representative body. “I believe that representation matters and that local government should adapt to the communities they serve.”
Cllr Boush highlighted her aims as a councillor, stating that during her six-month stint, she will be focused on tackling the rising cost of living for people in Carlow and aims to ban data centres from being built in the county.
She has more than 100,000 followers across her social media accounts and will use her platform to communicate with her constituents.
“I aim to use my time on the council to make politics accessible and enable people to engage in local politics and advocate for themselves,” cllr Boush said.
Cllr Boush expected to be co-opted two weeks previous, just as cllr Wallace was beginning her maternity leave.
However, she said she was told as she arrived that the seat must be vacant for 14 days before it can be filled by a temporary appointee.
Cllr Boush said she missed out on crucial budget meetings due to this delay. She said that neither her nor her party were made aware of this restriction.
