The disability campaigner Ms Kathy Sinnott has announced she will run for the European Parliament in the South constituency. Mark Brennock, Chief Political Correspondent, reports.
Ms Sinnott's entry into the contest will bring further competition to the already keenly contested constituency, which has been reduced to a three-seater for the June 11th poll.
The President of the European parliament, Mr Pat Cox, will announce tomorrow whether he is to seek re-election.
Ms Sinnott came to national prominence as a result of her court victory for the right to education for her disabled son Jamie Sinnott. She missed out on a Dáil seat in the Cork South Central constituency by just six votes after a long recount in the 2002 General Election.
Announcing her candidacy yesterday she said: "Ordinary people do not need a professional party politician whose foremost commitment is to their party and their political advancement. A truly independent MEP can really push their concerns within European Committees and with the Commissioners".
She said yesterday there was a threat to the Irish Constitution from the proposed EU Constitutional treaty. She also said she wanted to highlight "the growing control of Brussels over our rights and our everyday lives". The issues of farming, fishing, financial difficulties faced by young families, rural isolation and crime were also issues with which she was concerned.
The two outgoing Fianna Fáil MEPs, Mr Brian Crowley and Mr Gerard Collins, are running again. Fine Gael's Mr Simon Coveney and Labour's Senator Brendan Ryan are among the candidates.