of the 13 candidates contesting the General Election in the C a v a n / M o n a g h a n constituency this Saturday, February 8, Joseph Duffy from Stranooden in Co Monaghan, met with the Northern Standard on Friday last to outline his policy platform.
Mr Duffy is the only Independent in the field of runners and previously entered the election fray in 1989, 1997 and 2011. Asked for his motivation in returning to the political arena after his previous modest electoral showing, Joe said simply: “Things aren’t right.” He strongly believes that the people of Ireland have been served poorly by their political establishment and the party political structure as a whole, and wants to offer Cavan/Monaghan voters a truly Independent alternative, outlining a mixture of conservative and radical policy positions to which he had obviously given deep thought and had strong conviction in.
He made clear at the outset of our discussion that he was strongly pro-life and opposed to the abortion legislation that had been introduced following the landmark referendum on the controversial issue. He said that all children had the right to life and called for more to be done for women experiencing crisis pregnancies so they did not have to choose the abortion option. He was strongly opposed to abortions on the grounds of detected disability, pointing out that there were numerous examples in Irish and international society of men and women who had overcome physical and mental challenges to achieve highly in the fields of sport and art and make significant contributions to the world of work and…
