Sinn Fein Slam Cllr John Ryan over attack on memory of two brave firemen

Thursday, 01 October 2009

Sinn Fein councillor John Brady has reacted with horror to Cllr John Ryan’s attack on the memory of Fire-fighters Brian Murray and Mark O’Shaughnessy on issuing an astonishing statement  attacking Sinn Fein on the issue of call vetting which has been operated by Wicklow County Council for many years. Cllr Brady said “ The issue of call vetting of emergency calls was first brought to my attention by  the late Brian Murray, who organised a walk out of the firemen in Bray on the issue of Vetting of emergency calls, this protest occurred over a year before Mark and Brian died fighting a fire in Bray. I was the only public representative to stand with the firemen on their walkout and subsequently tried to raise it with people like Cllr. John Ryan who was a sitting County councillor at the time, however it fell on deaf ears.” “Two years on from the deaths of Mark and Brian their families and operating firemen still have concerns about the lethal practise of call vetting which has been operated by Wicklow County Council as a cost saving measure. I will continue to ask questions on their behalf and will make no apologies for doing so. Cllr Ryan however seems to be little more than a puppet for the Council, he was brought into Dublin by the very same people who are being investigated by a number of inquires into the deaths of Brian and Mark, one person on the trip with Cllr Ryan has actually been arrested and questioned by the police in relation to the firemen’s deaths.” Cllr Brady concluded “ Cllr Ryan is in a prime position as Chairperson of Bray Town Council to sort out the many problems within the fire service in Bray, such as the need for a full time fire service and the lethal practice of call vetting. However it seems Cllr Ryan is more interested in trying to discredit the families of Brian Murray and Mark O’Shaughnessy and promote himself. The only fitting tribute to these brave men is a full time fire service in Bray with no call vetting, no park bench named after the men with Cllr. Ryan’s name added will ever do.”