Latest news with #LocalDemocracyTaskforce
Irish Independent
2 minutes ago
- Politics
- Irish Independent
‘Independence for Clonmel' amid debate to revive borough councils
Speaking to the Irish Independent, Deputy Murphy said that the Clonmel Borough dates back to 1608, and that it should be reestablished under the Government's Local Democracy Taskforce. "There has been some soundings from the Taoiseach in particular, and I know during the General Election back in November when he visited Drogheda, he said on the record that the abolition of borough councils, and indeed many of the town councils, was a mistake,' Deputy Murphy said. "Now that the Government has established this Local Democracy Taskforce that I felt that it's really important to keep this on the agenda … I spent 15 years as a local councillor, I'm a strong advocate for local government,' he added. "I genuinely believe that in terms of many of the challenges we face at a national level, that some of these challenges can only be truly solved with the meaningful involvement of local government and local authorities'. The Local Democracy Taskforce commits to reforming and strengthening local government, as outlined in the programme for Government. According to Deputy Murphy, the abolition of Clonmel Borough Council, as well as the amalgamation of North and South Tipperary County Councils in 2014 had a 'huge' impact on Clonmel. "I felt that the power base switched to Nenagh and I did call for independence for Clonmel,' he said. The restoration of the borough council would allow monies made in Clonmel to be reinvested back into the town, the Fine Gael deputy said, and would ensure that the town could benefit. "Clonmel is really strong, we have a lot of commercial rate payers here and there's a real concern about the lack of transparency in terms of all these monies going into a centralised pot and how much of it is coming back to Clonmel? 'Parking charges is another example, I think in terms of Tipperary, 50% of all parking charges is raised in Clonmel, and I don't think it's sustainable, so that's why I'll continue to champion independence for Clonmel and the restoration of the borough council,' Deputy Murphy said. ADVERTISEMENT 'I have faith in Tipperary County Council and I do have confidence, and I'm a strong advocate for local government, and while we can often be critical of Tipperary County Council, at the same time I think they do get an awful lot right,' he explained. Highlighting the issue of a lack of resources from central Government for local authorities, Deputy Murphy said that's another issue that needs to be addressed. "I think one of the failings of Tipperary County Council is the extent to which we're resourced at the national level and whatever about the reestablishment of the boroughs, which is basically financial independence for towns like Clonmel, there's a separate issue as well and that's the extent to which local authorities are financed at the national level and that more than anything impacts on Tipperary County Council's ability to do its job,' Deputy Murphy added.
Irish Independent
3 days ago
- Business
- Irish Independent
Special meeting in Louth to decide on Local Property Tax (LPT) rate
The issue was raised at the July meeting of the local authority, where councillors heard that as this is a 'revaluation year' they would have to make a decision before the end of August on whether the LPT base rate will be amended, or if it will remain the same. The meeting was told that in any other year a decision would have to be taken by the middle of October, with a workshop held in September, ahead of the annual budget meeting. But this year the onus is on members to make a decision by August 31. Director of Service, Bernie Woods, explained that for every one per cent increase or decrease represents €115,251 for the local authority and the full increase of 15% would be just over €1.7 million. She explained that if they decide to increase or decrease the rate, councillors can also decide how many years this change would apply to, up to 2030. Ms. Woods added that for 2026 Louth County Council has received an additional €600,000 in their Local Property Tax allocation. The baseline is now €11.966 million before any decision is taken by the members. She explained that although the bands have changed, it 'hasn't had a major affect', with almost 90% of households in Louth falling within the first three bands. Around 48% of households in Louth are in the first band, which means a LPT of €95 in 2026 (Valuation up to €240k), over 24% fall within the second band of €235 (up to €315k), and just over 18% are on the third band rate of €333 (up to €420k). A further 10% are in top rate of over €333 (Valuation over €420k). The Director of Service outlined the weekly increase on the householder, if members agreed to increase the rate, explaining that a 1% increase would mean just 2 cents extra per week for properties that fall in the lowest band, and six cents a week for households which are in the third band. An increase of 5% would cost those on the first band an extra 9 cents per week, and an additional 32 cents each week for properties that fall within band three. Louth County Council does not hold a monthly meeting in August, so it was advised a special meeting could be held to ensure a decision is made by 31st August. Cllr. Pio Smith proposed that councillors defer making any decision until a special meeting is held, to discuss the matter further. This was seconded by Cllr. Andrea McKevitt. It was agreed to hold the meeting on August 26. Cllr. John Sheridan told members that they should 'think very carefully about this over the new few weeks.' He said there had been 'huge fanfare a few weeks ago about the Local Democracy Taskforce and the review of local government,' but added this issue had been 'on the books since 2013, and Louth has never made a move on it.' He added that a number of other councils had made changes over the last few weeks. "We are talking about more powers, but this is a power we have never had the courage to engage with.' 'My own personal view is that most constituents are rational if you can discuss something with them, if you can show projects which are deliverable with this you can win an argument in relation to it.' "So I appeal to my colleagues to have constructive decisions about this over the coming weeks.'
Irish Independent
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Was the abolishment of Town Councils good or bad for Mayo?
This comment was made during a discussion about the abolition of town councils, which divided Mayo County Council members at the annual general meeting (AGM) last week. Cllr Blackie Gavin raised the discussion topic and directly addressed Minister Calleary, who was present at the AGM, as he said, 'At a national level they're on about bringing back some of the town councils, I think that's very important.' The Castlebar-based councillor argued for the importance of town councils in relation to capital project funding not being spent in Mayo. He said, 'We got nearly €12 million here a number of years ago for capital projects in our county town of Castlebar, and not a euro has been spent yet. I know from talking to my colleagues all around the State, every other town and village has the money spent except Mayo. It's a disaster.' Town councils were abolished in 2014 under the Local Government Reform Act, in which 80 town councils across Ireland were dissolved in an aim to streamline local government. Phil Hogan, who was Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government at the time, steered the reform. Cllr Richard Finn told the AGM, 'When Phil Hogan abolished the town councils, I thought it was the best day for local government. I believe it has given the small towns and villages that we represent around the county an equal share of the national and the county cake, 'We are elected here as county councillors, not town councillors, and we have to work for the county and spread the money around the county equally.' His comments were supported by Cllr Neil Cruise, who stated that he favours a strengthening of the municipal districts over the reinstatement of town councils. He said, 'The small to medium-sized towns and the villages are getting a lot better bang for their buck in the municipal districts.' A new Local Democracy Taskforce was announced at the beginning of June. It aims to reform and strengthen local government by examining the structure, functions, governance and funding of local authorities. Cllr Damien Ryan from Ballinrobe has been appointed to the Taskforce. He spoke at the AGM and backed the abolition of town councils, saying they created a two-tier system where 'If you had the luxury of a town council you had a massive funding stream, but everywhere outside of that was completely eliminated.' Cllr Ryan argued that funding for the municipal districts must increase, as the funding mechanism has not followed the 2014 reform to local government. He is an advocate for reform in local authorities and said, 'If we are serious about balanced redevelopment and social inclusion, then local authorities that don't have the mechanism to collect the funding that keeps them sustainable need to be looked at. The Department of Finance have to step in there, ADVERTISEMENT Learn more 'Funding follows the power and follows the people. The capitalising of local authorities that don't have the luxury of density of property base has to be looked at.' He argued that if that is done properly, then local government reform would 'not need to be touched again for another 25-30 years'. In response to this, Cllr Gavin said, 'We collect over €1 million from pay and display in the town,' but stated that Castlebar doesn't get this funding back to spend on local projects. He finished making his case for the reinstatement of town councils by saying, 'The councillors have no powers. The ordinary man on the street has more say than the elected councillor.' This article has been funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.
Dublin Live
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Dublin Live
Local Democracy Taskforce established aimed at giving councillors more power
Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. More info Ministers have confirmed the establishment of the Local Democracy Taskforce to reform and strengthen local government. The taskforce's work will be organised into four key pillars: Structure, Finance, Functions and Governance/ Accountability. It is expected to give more decision-making powers to councillors amongst other reforms. The taskforce will focus on: The possibility of devolving more decision-making powers to Councillors; How to strengthen the framework and powers of Municipal Districts and Area Committees; Consider granting councillors greater input and control over the development and implementation of the local authority budget and mechanisms to enhance fiscal autonomy. It will also examine: The rebalancing of power between elected councillors and the executive, to ensure that elected officials have a right to be consulted on a greater range of decisions; Mechanisms to increase the accountability of the Chief Executive and Directors of Services to councillors for executive decisions, and; The proportion of local authority members to population and examine how to deliver greater diversity of representation. The taskforce, confirmed by Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, James Browne and Minister of State with responsibility for planning local government John Cummins TD, will be chaired by Jim Breslin, former Secretary General of the Departments of Children, Health and Further and Higher Education. Deputy Browne said: "The work of the Taskforce will pave the way for the next generation of local government reform. Local government plays an important role in our democracy and in the delivery of essential services in Ireland. Local authorities provide over 1,100 services and are the linchpin for the lives of many in our community at local level. "Now more than ever, we recognise the importance of continually striving to enhance our democracy at local level, ensuring that the very best people enter local government and have the powers and capacity to work on behalf of the people who have elected them." It will have strong input from the Local Government sector and will be comprised of Local Authority elected member representative bodies, Local Authority executive representatives, the National Oversight and Audit Commission, the Local Government Management Agency, the Local Government Audit Service, the Department of Housing Local Government and Heritage, as well as a number of independent experts. The first meeting will be held later this month. Join our Dublin Live breaking news service on WhatsApp. Click this link to receive your daily dose of Dublin Live content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. For all the latest news from Dublin and surrounding areas visit our homepage.
