Former Galway East TD Colm Keaveney has withdrawn from the local elections after being accused of driving under the influence of cocaine.
The former Labour politician lost his Dáil seat in 2016 but was elected to Galway County Council in 2019 as a Fianna Fáil candidate for the Tuam electoral area.
He has told Fianna Fáil that he is not seeking relection. The party confirmed that sitting councillors Mary Hoade, Donagh Killilea and Joe Sheridan would go forward in Tuam along with Tom Quirke.
Mr Keaveney was first elected to the Dáil as a Labour candidate in 2011. He then became an Independent before joining Fianna Fáil in 2013.
‘Buying the bank seemed daring’: how one couple transformed a rural bank branch into a home and business
Prof Donal O’ Shea: ‘The positioning of Ronald McDonald House at the entrance to the new children’s hospital makes me angry’
‘It is a right that was violently taken away’: The Jews who want to be German again
Forget Bluesky and pre-Musk Twitter. Friendship is the only true antidote to polarisation
The 53-year-old, with an address at Kilcreevanty, is before the courts on a charge of driving under the influence of cocaine. The offence is alleged to have happened on June 12th last at Cummer, Tuam.
It is alleged he drove a vehicle with cocaine in his system and that the concentration of the drug – known as Benzoylecgonine – in his blood was greater than the legal threshold, contrary to the Road Traffic Act 2010.
The case came before the courts initially in January and again last week. Mr Keaveney was not in court for either of the brief hearings. The matter is due before Tuam District Court on June 11th for a plea or a date for hearing.
- Sign up for push alerts and have the best news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone
- Find The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date
- Listen to our Inside Politics podcast for the best political chat and analysis
