Ellen O’Malley Dunlop to run for Fine Gael in Dublin South West

Fine Gael has announced that Ellen O’Malley Dunlop is joining Colm Brophy on the Party’s General Election ticket in Dublin South West.

Ms O’Malley Dunlop, who is Chair of the National Women’s Council of Ireland and prior to that spent ten years as CEO of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, was added to the constituency ticket on Tuesday night at a meeting of Fine Gael’s Executive Council.

Speaking today (Wednesday), Ms O’Malley Dunlop said: “I am delighted to be announced as a Fine Gael General Election candidate for Dublin South West and I look forward to the challenge.

“For more than ten years as CEO of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, I have influenced positive change on complex issues such as sexual and gender based violence and the rights of victims of crime. If elected I will continue to work for legislative reform for women’s and victims’ rights, and I want to be a champion for a reformed provision of supports for our older population.

“I also want Ireland to have a robust 21^st century mental health service and I have a range of suggestions to improve services including the expansion of counselling and psychotherapy services.

“I look forward to getting out and about in the constituency to meet the people of Dublin South West and discuss my proposals with them.”

Deputy Colm Brophy added: “I am delighted to have Ellen on board as my running mate in Dublin South West.

“Fine Gael in Government has put the right policies in place to help our economy and society develop in the wake of the economic crash and as a result we have grown our support in Dublin South West over recent years.

“It is important as a society that we continue to foster a spirit of inclusiveness and equality, which is why I am very pleased that Ellen will be my running mate in Dublin South West. I know she will add a lot to the Fine Gael ticket here with her immense experience of public service.

“Securing two seats in Dublin South West will enable us to further that work so that we can continue to improve people’s standards of living and access to new opportunities. We will be working together with that goal and objective clearly in mind.”

ENDS

NOTES TO EDITOR:

About Ellen O’Malley Dunlop:

• Ellen is married to Sandy and has 4 sons and 5 granddaughters.
• She worked as a Primary School teacher in Tallaght and subsequently trained as a Psychotherapist. In the early 1980s she set up St. Catherine’s counselling centre for individuals and families in Tallaght.
• An enthusiastic advocate for statutory registration for counselling and psychotherapy she became the first woman chair of the Irish Council for Psychotherapy and lobbied Government on issues of suicide, marital breakdown and children’s rights.
• She became CEO of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre in 2006 and over her 10 year tenure she led 8 National Awareness Raising Campaigns on Sexual Violence, lobbied for and succeeded in delivering (in collaboration with other NGOs and Government Agencies and UCD) two new Sexual Assault Units in Mullingar and Galway.
• As a member of the Turn off the Red Light Campaign she lobbied for the Sexual Offences Legislation 2017.
• She was appointed Adjunct Professor to the School of Law UL in December 2015. With the Centre of Crime Justice and Victims’ Studies UL she lobbied for and succeeded in getting  a definition of consent included in the 2017 Sexual Offences Legislation.
• Ellen served as an ordinary member of the National Women’s Council for 4 years and has served as Chair since 2017.
• She served as a member of the Board of Gaisce, The President’s Award for 5 years, and is currently serving as a member of The Legal Aid Board. She has been Director of the Annual Bard Summer School Clare Island, Co. Mayo for the past 24 years.