Taoiseach warmly greeted as he tours Tullamore Show

AN Taoiseach Simon Harris was greeted by hundreds of people during a walkabout at the Tullamore Show.

Showgoers queued up for photographs with the Taoiseach just after he had issued a strong condemnation of those who seek to intimidate elected politicians.

Asked by the Tullamore Tribune if he felt any more personally vulnerable now than he did a year ago, Mr Harris said he did not.

“No, we live in a great country, we live in a country where people are extremely kind, decent. What angers me actually is that a few small people, small in number, small in mindset, seem to misrepresent the views of our people,” he said.

“People with no democratic mandate, with no democratic legitimacy, who hide behind computers and keyboard, screens and anonymous accounts, seeking to intimidate elected representatives. We had elections recently, the local and European elections, I don't think any of these faceless trolls stood. We will in due course have a general election, they're welcome to stand too. I don't expect they will.”

Mr Harris was speaking while flanked by his Fine Gael colleagues, the Offaly party councillors Neil Feighery and John Clendennen, Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue, and the Offaly-based Green Party senator, junior minister at the Department of Agriculture Pippa Hackett.

“This is a great country and what I love about being the Taoiseach of this country is the ability to be accessible and I'm very pleased with how that can continue and I'm very grateful to the gardai for their assistance.”

In further comments at an interview with media in front of the main bandstand at the show, Mr Harris said new regulations are on their way for the use of social media.

The man who has been dubbed the 'TikTok Taoiseach' said: “It's a well known fact I like social media, I use it quite a bit and I believe it can be a force for good and I believe it enables us to have greater connectivity to bring people together to access information.”

The Wicklow TD added: “There's a lot of good things that can happen from social media but it can be the wild west. It can't be an area that operates outside of normal legal parameters. The word media is a giveaway here. It has to conform to rules in the same way as newspapers and broadcasters do.”

“Thanks to the European Union and the work that Ireland and many member states have done at an EU level we do now have the EU Digital Services Act and this does enable member states to take real steps in terms of regulation and in terms of putting in place binding codes, that if those codes are not adhered to there can be sanction including significant financial sanction.”

An Taoiseach Simon Harris is greeted on his arrival by Brenda Kiernan, Tullamore Show and local councillor, Neil Feighery

He said those measures had absolutely nothing to do with freedom of thought and freedom of speech.

“But if you use any form of platform to incite hatred, you can't just think because I did it on the internet I'm not subject to the laws of this republic. That's what it's about. It's about making sure that the laws of the land apply online as well as offline.

“And to any so-called keyboard warrior, let me assure them today that it does, that the online world is not some other little world over there, where you can behave differently in that space than you would when you are talking to your neighbour.

“I'm very satisfied that the gardai take those issues seriously and the very good work being done by [Media Minister] Catherine Martin with Coimisiun na Mean in terms of an online safety code which will be in place and binding by the end of the year for the use of litigants in court.”

Mr Harris condemned the disorder in Derry which resulted in a number of police officers being injured on Saturday night.

“It's obviously very concerning to see the scenes overnight, violence, attacks on PSNI officers and I join with all political parties in Northern Ireland, the First Minister, with the Deputy First Minister and all political leaders, in calling for an immediate halt to violence,” he said.

“The scenes that we have seen in the island of Ireland and indeed in the United Kingdom in recent days in terms of so-called protest; it is anything but protest, that is thuggery, that is intimidation, that is violence and any attack on a police officer in this jurisdiction or in Northern Ireland is of course an attack on our democracy, an attack on our freedom and must be called out and condemned.”

Fine Gael party members welcome Taoiseach Simon Harris to the Tullamore Show, from left, Martin Heydon, Minister of State, Nina Carberry MEP, Mairead McGuinness, EU Commissioner, Cllrs Neil Feighery and John Clendennen at the Tullamore Show

During the question and answer session with the media one of the onlookers asked a journalist if a member of the public could ask a question.

The man, who identified himself as Clive when Mr Harris asked his name, said it was very expensive for non-nationals who are “trying to get Irish nationality”.

He asked if it could be made “cheaper for people with families”.

An Taoiseach replied: “We'll certainly look at that. I'm very proud of the role that Ireland has played in terms of our citizenship ceremonies. In recent years we've significantly overhauled how we grant citizenship. Of course citizenship is a great prize, it's something that doesn't come lightly or easily in any country. I think Ireland compared to many, many countries across the world has been and continues to be rightly generous in relation to citizenship. But I'll certainly look at that issue.”

The man responded: “What about people who have been contributing to the system, not taking from the system but contributing from day one.”

Mr Harris said he would be happy to talk about the matter to the man afterwards.