Legislation for directly-elected Mayor of Limerick to be published soon
RECENTLY-appointed Minister of State Kieran O'Donnell has confirmed it's the intention of government to publish legislation before Easter which will pave the way for a Directly-Elected Mayor in Limerick.
The Limerick City TD, who was appointed to government before Christmas, made his comments in response to a query from Green Party TD Brian Leddin.
"The Local Government (Directly Elected Mayor with Executive Functions in Limerick city and county) Bill is well advanced and has been identified as a priority and he (Minister Darragh O'Brien) is working towards the Bill being published in April this year," said the Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
Welcoming the comments, Deputy Leddin said: “It has been almost four years since the people of Limerick voted to elect their mayor directly and to bring more functions and powers to the local level. While it is significant that the legislation is for a directly elected mayor with a democratic mandate, what is more important is the executive functions - the powers - that will come with the new role. We need to see more powers being devolved to local authorities in areas such as health care, education, policing and transport.”
The Green Party TD added that he believes it is essential that the office (of the new mayor) has real powers and resources to make a difference.
"Local councils were previously responsible for significant aspects of education, water services and health. As the government became more centralised, more and more of these powers were stripped away from local councils. Currently, local government includes certain responsibilities in the areas of planning, local roads, libraries, the arts, and the environment with the local authority and the councillors acting more or less as administrators for the national government and national agencies.
“We are witnessing how centralised health services and a one-size-fits-all approach has led to poor outcomes for the Mid-West region and this is something that is manifesting acutely at the moment in Limerick.”