Meaney bares his soul on nudist bathing

COUNCILLOR Brian Meaney came under intense pressure at Monday’s county council meeting after he sought to expose a tourist attraction not being capitalised upon by County Clare, that of nudist bathing.

“Nudist bathing is a considerable tourist attraction that is not being catered for in Clare. In my research into this, it is an offence under common law to be naked in a public place,” he began.
Councillor Meaney’s motion requested the council review and amend the beach bylaws to facilitate the orderly provision of nudist bathing areas on one or more beaches in the county and to enact draft bylaws to facilitate nudist bathing areas.
Councillor Cathal Crowe referred to the motion as “an absolute joke” and called for Councillor Meaney to withdraw the motion rather than “clogging up our time with this rá méis. It should be thrown out.”
Councillor PJ Kelly agreed with these sentiments and said he felt the motion was “crazy”, likening it to “a new form of A&E, Adam and Eve”.
“Councillor Meaney is a good friend of mine but I would ask him to withdraw the motion and let us get on with the business at hand,” Councillor Kelly concluded.
The motion was seconded by Councillor Martin Conway and also showing support for the motion was Councillor Patricia McCarthy, who highlighted that the county had a culture of nudist bathing for years.
“There have been coves and beaches where it has gone on, off and on. There is nothing wrong with it and the motion deserves proper consideration. I’ll support the motion and seek changes in the law that are discriminating people who do this, who can now find themselves charged with indecent behaviour and be labelled as a sexual deviant,” she stated.
In conclusion, Councillor Meaney stated, “Ireland is the only country where it is a serious offence to expose yourself in public. We need to look at the situation. I don’t understand why they do it. I think it is lunacy myself. The law is an ass in this. We need to have a law reflecting what is in our society. I’m simply asking that we make this request of Government and that it is given consideration.”
Pressure came upon Councillor Meaney to amend his motion further by simply calling for central Government to enact legislation that would enable local authorities to introduce bylaws to facilitate nudist bathing.
The Green Party councillor agreed to do this and the amended motion stated that the council request Government to enact legislation to allow local authorities draft bylaws to facilitate the orderly provision of nudist bathing areas. This amended version was put to a vote and was passed by a majority, with councillors Cathal Crowe, PJ Kelly and Michael Hillary dissenting in the vote.