Noel Thomas

Noel Thomas (born ) is an Irish politician from Gortachalla, County Galway. He has been a member of Galway County Council since 2014, serving first for Fianna Fáil before leaving the party in 2024 following disciplinary action after he claimed "The Inn is full" and stated Ireland should refuse to take any more refugees following an arson attack on a hotel planned to house asylum seekers. Thomas joined Independent Ireland soon after, and stood as the party's candidate in the 2026 Galway West by-election but failed to win the seat.

Political career

Fianna Fáil Thomas was first elected at the 2014 Galway County Council election. He came to wider attention in December 2023, following an arson attack on the Ross Lake House Hotel in Rosscahill, which had been earmarked to accommodate 70 asylum seekers. In January 2024, Thomas claimed there was "political interference" behind the Garda raid on his home.

At a Galway County Council meeting, Thomas accused authorities of acting on external orders, saying the Garda Serious Crime Squad "are getting orders from someone to come and raid our houses". He also criticised Green Party councillor Alastair McKinstry, alleging that McKinstry had implied the two Fianna Fáil councillors had "stoked" local tensions before the fire. Walsh joined in rebuking McKinstry, denouncing both his party and Fianna Fáil's response, and describing the impact on his family as severe. McKinstry rejected the allegations, saying he never accused any councillors personally. He said his earlier motion, which passed in December, simply called on "all community leaders to lead by example and alleviate fears, not stoke them". Gardaí said the searches were conducted to gather evidence related to the suspected arson at the hotel. He said that Ireland's main political parties, including Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, Sinn Féin, and the Greens, had become "very detached from the ordinary people".

In June 2024, Thomas ran for Independent Ireland in the 2024 Galway County Council election, topping the poll in the Connemara South local electoral area. On 29 November 2024, Thomas's father, Noel Thomas Sr, died on polling day during the 2024 general election, which Noel Jr contested in Galway West. Independent Ireland issued a statement expressing condolences to Thomas and his family, describing Noel Thomas Sr. as a respected member of the community who would be "sadly missed". Noel Jr received 9.4% of first-preference votes but was not elected.

IRB claims In August 2025, reports emerged that Thomas had attended meetings of a subversive group claiming to be the historical Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB). The group claims to have established a "shadow government" with its own network of councils and court system. Thomas topped the first preference vote but having led the poll for 10 counts, lost the election to Sean Kyne of Fine Gael on the 11th count, after Kyne secured the vast majority of transfers from the Labour Party candidate.