Triple Lock motion leaves protesters hanging after Galway council’s marathon meeting results in unfinished agenda
Protestors gathered outside Galway City Hall were left hanging on Monday evening as the council adjourned their monthly meeting before discussing a motion over the Triple Lock.
In the hours before Galway City Council’s November Plenary meeting on November 10, about 25 people gathered outside city hall voicing support for a motion by Councillor Eibhlín Seoighthe opposing longstanding Government plans to amend the Triple Lock.
The protest, organised by the Galway Alliance Against War, was marked by quiet conversations, placards, and pamphlet distribution. In a gesture of restraint, the group refrained from chanting, a request reportedly made by Cllr Seoighthe.
Cllr Seoighthe’s motion called on the Galway City Council to “express its dismay at and opposition to” any changes to the Triple Lock. Citing the 2001 rejection of the Nice Treaty, she argued that the Irish public has consistently resisted efforts to alter the mechanism.
“Therefore, this Council rejects government’s plans to abolish or amend the Triple Lock, considering the proposal signifies a breach of trust with the Irish electorate and a serious diminution of Irish neutrality,” the motion stated.
“This is not just about war, it is an energetic, spiritual war,” one protester told the Irish Independent, requesting anonymity. “Seven counties have already done the right thing, and I remain optimistic Galway City councillors will vote the same.”
Local authorities in Louth and Mayo had already passed the motion in opposition to amendments.
Demonstrators called for any changes to the Triple Lock to be put to a public referendum, if the Government would follow through on any amendments.
The Triple Lock requires three layers of approval before more than 12 Irish Defence Forces personnel can be deployed overseas, from the Government, the Dáil, and the United Nations, in a bid to safeguard Ireland’s neutrality. Approval to reform the system was secured in March 2025.
However, Cllr Seoighthe, protestors, and Galwegians never got an answer to the motion before the council.
After nearly two hours of debate on a new NTA bus system, an item that was bumped up in the agenda to accommodate the presenter’s schedule, and three and a half hours since the meeting began, proceedings were adjourned.
Under standing orders, council meetings may not exceed three and a half hours without formal approval to extend.
The meeting, which commenced at 3pm, saw only half the agenda addressed. Acting chair, Cllr Helen Ogbu, standing in for Mayor Mike Cubbard towards the end of the meeting, asked members to consider extending the session.
However, Cllr Peter Keane opposed calls to prioritise special motions and instead proposed adjournment.
The motion to adjourn was passed without agreement on a follow-up meeting, and councillors began packing up for their commutes home at 6.30pm.