Annie Hoey (Labour Party – Laytown-Bettystown)

Name: Annie Hoey

Age: 30

Preferred pronouns: She/Her

Party: The Labour Party

Local Electoral Area: Laytown-Bettystown LEA (Meath County Council)

Is this your first time running? Yes

What are your reasons for running as a young person in politics?

I decided to run because I felt like there was no one to represent me or my generation on Meath County Council.

My fiancé and I are faced with many more years of saving before we can even think about getting ourselves on the property ladder. We are trying to plan for our future together, and we want to settle in an area with the services and supports that meet our future family’s needs.

Young people like me are struggling to buy a home in the area and too many are trapped by unaffordable rents. We are concerned that we cannot afford childcare. We want public amenities, such as a library and a primary care centre, in our locality.

We cannot plan for our futures because we are spending hours commuting to and from Dublin for work, instead of working closer to home.

Young people are faced with a lifetime of insecure and fractured employment, and our mental health is suffering. We are leaving our rural communities and our families because we have no choice. Our families are suffering because they worked hard so we could have a better future, but instead we see no way out of our current circumstances.

I looked at the people currently elected on to the Council and I did not see someone that I felt represented me or my experience. I want to work hard for my community. I want to put sustainability into the heart of the work the Council does. There is room for many perspectives on the Council, and it is time that we get young voices in there!