ONE OF THE organisers of fuel protests that ground Dublin and parts of the country to a halt earlier this year is trying to rally support for a similar blockade over a planned 32c increase to diesel coming in August.
Emergency reductions in fuel excise that were introduced in April by the government in response to widespread blockades are set to expire on 31 July.
And James Geoghegan, an agricultural contractor who regularly took to the airwaves as a figurehead of those protests, has now said that talks are underway to take similar action ahead of a spike in the cost of fuel caused by the US-Israel war on Iran.
In a Tik Tok video captioned ‘Fuel protests part 2′, Geoghegan claimed that some involved are discussing using tractors and heavy machinery for options including the blockading of Dublin, to “blocking airports, to blocking ports or blocking Ursula von der Leyen when she comes to Dublin” during Ireland’s EU presidency next month.
Geoghegan added that the coalition of farmers, agricultural contractors and hauliers want to “start a campaign to stop all future carbon tax rises” by the government.
“We stepped down the protests when we got some bit of help and now they’re taking the help away. We’re going to have to step back up the protests,” Geoghegan told his more than 22,000 followers.
Fuel support package
Included in the government’s fuel support package in April was a surprise measure that postponed the increase in carbon tax from May until the budget in October.
That package also saw excise on petrol and diesel cut by a further 10 cent. That brought the total reduction on diesel to 32 cent and the total reduction on petrol to 27 cent.
Traffic is already expected to be at intense levels for parts of the EU presidency, including when European Commission president von der Leyen visits Ireland on 2 and 3 July as Ireland takes on the bloc’s reins for the rest of the year. Any move by fuel protesters to blockade streets as seen earlier this year would only add to the gridlock.
The exact plans for these proposed demonstrations have not been determined, Geoghegan said on social media over recent days, as he outlined that protest organisers would decide on the precise action over the coming weeks.
They are planning on holding two public meetings, one in the north of the country and one in the south, as part of their organising.
“Put in what you want done,” Geoghegan said to his followers on social media.
He claimed that he is facing “massive” diesel bills of €400 daily due to his work as an agricultural contractor.
At the end of the video he said that any new protests would not be “just about farmers” and seek to be for a wider group.
“We’re bringing everybody with us on this one,” he said.
Geoghegan further said that the government had “told us to fuck off with ourselves” during the previous blockades, claiming this was targeted at “everybody who works, everybody who drives, especially people in rural Ireland”.