LORD MAYOR OF DUBLIN Paul McAuliffe: BRINGING CHRISTMAS HOME

LORD MAYOR OF DUBLIN Paul McAuliffe: BRINGING CHRISTMAS HOME

Dublin’s Mansion House, residence of the city’s Lord Mayor since 1715, is the oldest such building in these islands. During the festive season, it’s probably the most Christmassy too.

Its grand forecourt accommodates a crib featuring real animals. Its façade is illuminated by a state-of the-art led light display, part of the city’s innovative Winter Lights pageant. And on Christmas night, a very special someone is expected to descend its chimney for the first time in several years. That is because Dublin’s Lord Mayor, Paul McAuliffe, has two young children – and the stockings will be out.

“We’ve a giant portrait of George IV that hangs on the staircase – it was unveiled by Prince Charles” says the Lord Mayor. “But I don’t think the kids will be paying much attention to the king when they come dashing down the stairs on Christmas morning looking for their presents!”

“Christmas is such an important time in Ireland for families”, he says, “particularly because of our history of emigration. Of course many people come back to Ireland at Christmas time. But it’s an equally important time for those people who don’t get the opportunity to travel home. So we’re always thinking here about those people as well’.

The Lord Mayor attends a variety of charitable events at Christmas-time, but in his case charity really does begin at home – all the money raised by the live animal crib, which is run by Dublin City Council in conjunction with the Irish Farmers Association, goes towards the Mansion House Fuel Fund, one of the oldest charities in Dublin that works to alleviate fuel poverty in the city.

It is appropriate that the Lord Mayor’s own house plays a leading role in the city’s Christmas celebrations. The Winter Lights illuminations are a particularly effective demonstration of this Lord Mayor’s very pro-Christmas stance. Also to be illuminated are the facades of other iconic Dublin buildings including City Hall, The Custom House, The General Post Office and Trinity College. Sparkling seasonal lighting will be installed at O’Connell Street, Millennium Bridge, Parliament Street, Samuel Beckett Bridge, some of it designed in association with local schools and artists.

According to the Lord Mayor, the installations involve 157,800 low power LEDs, 100 tonnes of equipment and 15,780 metres of cable. Believe it or not, however, this dazzling display is eco-friendly. “The lights on the bridge use less electrical power than a domestic iron”, he says.

It’s not just about some pretty lights though. The Lord Mayor places this initiative in a bigger context altogether. He sees it as making an important addition to the city’s appeal. He points out that nowadays it is more about cities competing with each other rather than countries. “We’re competing with cities across Europe in many ways”, he says.

ALL MONEY RAISED BY THE CRIB GOES TOWARDS THE MANSION HOUSE FUEL FUND, ONE OF THE OLDEST CHARITIES IN DUBLIN.

The Lord Mayor is also looking forward to working with Dublin City Council and the Office of Public Works in relation to opening a new European style Christmas market in the grounds of Dublin Castle. “It is something we haven’t had to date and I believe that in terms of attracting tourism it is really important”. Located within the historic and wonderfully atmospheric precincts of Dublin castle, the market will be one more feather in Dublin’s Christmas bow.

Of course Brexit is the Grinch at any Christmas-time discussion of business. The Lord Mayor looks for an upside: “while Brexit poses many challenges, the Irish in Britain have always been very innovative. They’ve had to be, really. So I do think you’ll find that Irish businesses operating in Britain will start to look now for the opportunities. Of course we hope they will look to Dublin and that will bring trade with it. But the sooner we have a degree of certainty about what will happen, the better everyone can make their own plans”.

He also makes the point that some things are more important than Brexit – especially in December 2019. “We’ve had a relationship going back hundreds of years and the links between Britain and Ireland are built around families and communities, not necessarily governments. Regardless of what happens with Brexit that’s going to continue. People in Dublin are very much standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the Irish community in Britain. Happy Christmas from all of us”.