Longford County Council pays tribute to late Louis J

Members of Longford County Council paid tribute to former Fine Gael TD Louis J Belton at the December meeting of the local authority.

Fellow Kenagh native and council Cathaoirleach, Cllr Colm Murray, spoke of the impact Louis had on his decision to get involved in politics: “He was a mentor, not only to me but to other representatives both locally and nationally, and his wit and wisdom could be relied upon to give good advice in the trickiest of situations.
“Louis Belton was a Politician, a Sportsman, a Raconteur and a man dedicated to his family. He was witty, insightful, kind and caring. And above all he was a friend.”

The seventh member of the Belton family to be elected to the Oireachtas, Louis had a distinguished career as an elected representative.
First elected to Dáil Eireann in 1989, he lost out in the 1992 race in the new constituency of Longford-Roscommon. That year he took up a post as a Senator, on the Administrative Panel, acting as his party's spokesperson on Defence and the Marine in the Seanad up to 1997.

Louis was re-elected as a Teachta Dála in 1997 and continued in office until the May 2002 General Election after which point he retired from public life.

Cllr Seamus Butler described Louis as “a gentleman” adding: “He was extremely well read. He had an increasable depth of knowledge on the body politic. I had great chats with him. He was a sporting polymath, involved in rugby, soccer and GAA. Two years running he won the accolade of the best dressed TD.”

Cllr Paul Ross spoke of the huge turnout for the late TD's funeral: “A true testament to how people felt about him was the send off Louis got,” adding, “When Louis spoke in Leinster house people listened. He was a gentle soul and he will be missed.”