A Leitrim councillor is welcoming the news of new arrangements for a live crib in Dublin but says the controversy should never have happened.
It was confirmed today that there will be a new live crib at Stephens Green in Dublin after the Lord Mayor had objected to its being held outside the Mansion House on the grounds of animal welfare.
Councillor Paddy O' Rourke from Carrigallen says the controversy shows a lack of understanding of animals and what distresses them.
He says he's glad that a new arrangement has been agreed between the IFA and the OPW to bring live animals to a site on Stephen's Green.
The Leitrim councillor says more interaction between urban and rural Ireland is needed.
"Nobody who knows much about livestock woud've thought there was any great danger to them or any stress or distress caused to them. At the time this was announced about a month or 6 weeks ago, I honestly thought it was some kind of wind-up. This is an opportunity for urban to embrace rural and, god knows, it's often said in this country that we have a very defining line between urban and rural, which we shouldn't have in such as small country, given that the majority of people have some links with rural Ireland.
