Varadkar calls on Higgins & Coppinger to condemn protest violence

Minister for Health and Fine Gael Dublin West TD, Leo Varadkar, has called on his constituency colleagues Joe Higgins and Ruth Coppinger to publicly dissociate themselves from the intimidation witnessed at yesterday’s Jobstown protest.

“The protest in Jobstown saw behaviour of the worst kind. There are reports of intimidation, aggression, sexist remarks and abuse of the Gardaí who were trying to keep the peace. Essentially, a happy graduation day was hijacked.

“The protest was apparently organised and orchestrated by Deputy Paul Murphy of the AAA. I want to know where his party colleagues Joe Higgins and Ruth Coppinger stand on this level of intimidation. I am calling on them to dissociate themselves from the violence on display at that protest.

“Protest is a right in any democracy. Protest has achieved many positive changes. Intimidation achieves nothing but a culture of fear. There is no place for this sort of behaviour in a modern democracy.”