This publication will be different. It is not the magazine of the parliamentary party. It is not the magazine of Fianna Fáil Headquarters. It is your newsletter - "The voice of the members”. It is you the members who will drive the content of this publication. Our aim is to provide a platform for members from all over Ireland and abroad to express their views and help set the course for the future
of the Fianna Fáil party. Cuisle will give members the opportunity to share their opinions on party matters, on everything from the latest policy approach, to the efforts to revamp the party. As the party continues to adjust to the fallout from the General Election last February, what is becoming clear is that if the party is to be revived, the membership will be the driving force. We hope that Cuisle will play its part in the renewal process that is underway. There are a lot of great ideas amongst the membership on how we can move forward however there are too few ways of communicating them. We want Cuisle to be one vehicle for bringing these ideas and other issues to the attention of the approximately 50,000+ people who are registered members of Fianna Fáil. Cuisle will help to generate debate and keep members informed about activity within the party. We want this magazine to be thought provoking and represent the issues that are being talked about by members up and down the country. In order for the Fianna Fáil party to progress we must accept the challenges facing us and recognise that it can only be by the hard work and dedication of our members that the party can again reclaim its historical place at the heart of Irish society. Whilst we need to face up to the mistakes of the past, we cannot continue to allow our detractors to define us by them. Fianna Fáil has a proud history. We need to celebrate and retain the positive aspects of our party and embrace this opportunity to redefine our core values and principles. The objectives of this newsletter can be summarised as follows:
• To represent the various views of the Fianna Fáil membership.
• To keep members informed about what is going on in the party and the issues facing us.
• To help stimulate debate about the future of the party and how we will be organised into the future.
• To provide political information to our members concerning Fianna Fáil and our opponents.
• To assist in driving the renewal process, encouraging our members to take an active role in the rebuilding of Fianna Fáil.
• To help bridge some of the communications gaps which exist within the party. All these objectives place the member as the central focus of our new publication. So if you have a view on a particular Fianna Fáil related issue - tell us. If you disagree with something published, let us know. If you'd like to submit an article or a letter, then get in touch. This is your newsletter, so we need your content and ideas if it is to be a success. We hope that you will see from this issue, that we are not afraid to do things differently. We are not afraid of publishing strong opinions and articles of interest. We will not shy away from publishing articles that are critical of aspects of the party when the criticism can be justified. So why is it named Cuisle? Well, the direct translation of Cuisle is pulse. The membership has always been the life blood of Fianna Fáil. This newsletter aims to take the pulse of the membership on a regular basis. We hope you enjoy this newsletter and that you will help make Cuisle a success by engaging with the ideas raised. All the articles will be posted on the Fianna Fáil discussion forum if you would like to debate the points mentioned. You can also contact us directly if you have any views. You can email us at [email protected] or write to Cuisle PO Box, c/o Fianna Fáil Headquarters, 65/66 Lower Mount Street, Dublin 2.
