Life outside the loop just as busy for Jim

Jim, who served ten years as a county and town councillor until a shattering electoral defeat last June, feels both blessed and disappointed in being removed from the cut and thrust of local politics.Shedding the responsibilities of a public representative has allowed him to focus more on work, family and social life."Any sitting councillor will tell you that the workload of a local authority member is very time consuming, and it's much more so since I first sat in 1999," Jim told the Westmeath Examiner."When I was first elected, public representatives were treated in a more voluntary capacity, and if you did anything, people appreciated it."But when dual mandate and paid salaries were introduced, the demands on a county councillor increased substantially, and you became treated as a paid official."If the Fianna Fáil man has any advice for budding public representatives, it would be this: once you enter the Council, treat it as a full-time job."At the end of my ten years, the workload became very time consuming for me," Jim explained. "It became difficult to do everything while running Mullingar Autos, especially with the downturn in the economy."Having said that, I enjoyed my time in politics. I found it very rewarding to be in a position to help people, and while I enjoyed being involved in the larger decisions and the cut and thrust of local politics, the most pleasure I got was doing small things for individuals, and to help them on their way."Jim admits he is "bitterly disappointed" over his narrow election defeat.While canvassing in Mullingar East, he recalls, people thanked him for his work over the past decade, but couldn't promise him a vote because of his party colours."There was a lot of aggression on the doorsteps, mainly about politics in general, but particularly about the Fianna Fáil party."Some people, openly and apologetically, admitted that they couldn't vote for me because they didn't like the way the country was being run. I was caught in the crossfire at the time, and I feel that I was blamed for everything that was going wrong at a national level."So I was very disappointed. It creates a great void in one's life, when you lose a political seat so unexpectedly."It's a big shock to the system, but I'm very lucky to have such large demands on my time with work and family."After completing his education at the St. Mary's CBS primary school and Mullingar Vocational School, Jim served his time as a mechanic, and built up his sales experience before opening Mullingar Autos at the Dublin Bridge during the 1970s.With politics set aside for now, he has thrown his full attention towards carrying the business through what is a tough time for the car industry.For the past year, work has progressed on a new, 16,000 square foot after-sales and service workshop across the road from the main Mullingar Autos showroom."The motor industry has to reform itself to meet the challenges of the recession," Jim remarked. "But happily, with the Government's scrappage scheme in place, already there has been a vast improvement in business since the start of 2010, and consumers seem to be more confident in investing in an upgrade for their cars."Jim and his colleagues are building for the future at Mullingar Autos, to have the infrastructure in place when stability returns.He believes that Mullingar itself is ready for that eventuality."I'm so proud to have been involved in politics for a decade when there was so much funds available to drive Mullingar forward."One can see the benefits of better broadband coverage, massive investment in roads infrastructure, good schools, the upgrading of our water and sewerage and the number of industrial parks available to us."This bodes well for investment in Mullingar, once the economy begins to rise again."A former President of Mullingar Junior Chamber of Commerce in 1979, he also served as President of the Chamber proper in the late 1980s. He continues to play a prominent role in local business circles.The former county council Leas-Cathaoirleach has been on Fianna Fáil's governing National Executive for the past five years, and although he is still involved on this front, he has taken a back seat from politics for the time being.His role on the National Executive led him to one of his happiest moments as an FF politician."One of my most memorable days over the past ten years was in the spring of 2008, when I accompanied then Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern to meet Dr. Ian Paisley at the commemoration of the Battle of the Boyne," Jim recalled."It was a wonderful experience, mingling with local councillors and business people from the North, and talking about planning a future for North and South as one unit."Admitting that it is desirable from his point of view to see the border disappear in the future, Jim nevertheless stressed the importance of maintaining peace in the country.But such concerns are left to the politicians for the moment, as Jim concentrates not only on his business, but also his family and hobbies.An ardent Westmeath GAA fan, Jim looks forward to seeing how Brendan Hackett fares as the county's senior football manager. He also hopes to pay closer attention to the fortunes of Cullion's hurlers and Mullingar Shamrocks.It's no secret that Jim is one of Mullingar's most dedicated Manchester United fans. As a member of the United supporters' club in Castlepollard, he regularly takes his son James to Old Trafford."I'm watching with great interest to see if United will retain their Premiership title," he said."I'm also a great follower of Alex Ferguson. He's one of my idols, and I'm always in awe at his management skills. They're second to none."They say that behind every good man there's a good woman, and Jim says that he is also indebted to his wife Bridie for all her hard work and support during his years as a councillor."One of the big benefits of not being in politics right now is that I get to spend more time with Bridie, James and my family," the Knockdrin man said.Jim also devoted a lot of his time to caring for his elderly parents.Staunch Fianna Fáilers themselves (Jim's father, now in his nineties, headed the local cumann during the '50s and '60s), they were brimming with pride when their son was first elected to office in 1999."Now I'm very pleased to have that little bit extra time to spend with them," Jim said.