OUTSPOKEN IRISH Independent candidate Danny Healy-Rae has hit out at the environmental protestors opposed to him winning re-election.
Healy-Rae secured his his Dáil seat for Kerry after coming in fourth place with over 11% of the vote or 8,638 votes.
The Kilgarvan politician is vehemently opposed to the idea of a carbon tax in Ireland and has previously denied the existence of global warming.
He once famously declared in the Dáil: "God above is in charge of the weather and that we here cannot do anything about it."
In the build-up to Saturday’s election, Healy-Rae found himself the target of protests from environmentalists.
These included one woman dressed as celery, who approached the TD as he attempted to vote in his home village of Kilgarvan.
Wearing a costume adorned with messages such as “bite me” and “climate change is real” her efforts did not go unnoticed by Healy-Rae, who sent a clear message to his critics in the wake of securing victory.
"To hell with the planet and the fellas that say we must save the planet and forget about the people! I'm not one of those people,” he told Virgin Media News.
"To hell with the planet and the fellas that say we must save the planet and forget about the people! I'm not one of those people. I make no apologies to anyone, anywhere for that"
Danny Healy Rae speaks to @ZaraKing, as he looks set to win a seat in #Kerry in #GE2020 #VMNews pic.twitter.com/31S56nNRpg— Virgin Media News (@VirginMediaNews) February 9, 2020
“I make no apologies to anyone, anywhere for that!"
The remarks sparked an angry response from Kerry Green candidate Cleo Murphy
“It’s ironic in the wake of Storm Ciara on a day when it’s flooded around the Moll’s Gap Road and the Loo Bridge is closed that Danny Healy-Rae would see fit to say “To hell with the planet”, she said.
Healy-Rae is pro-life and opposed to both same-sex marriage and same-sex adoption, describing it as “unnatural”.
He was re-elected as a TD in Kerry along with his brother, Michael.
