Budgetary issues around the county discussed by Council members

Offaly environmental campaigner says hedges are crucial for the ecosystem

placeholder image — Offaly environmental campaigner says hedges are crucial for the ecosystem

Funds for hedge cutting have gone from €3,000 to €25,000, Vincent Dwyer, head of finance, advised members at the annual budget meeting.

He also noted that "public lighting is a major energy cost to us and we've had to increase that by €100,000 (22%) to €584,423 to keep up with inflationary demands."

He said the budget for road transport and safety has increased by 10% in terms of the local roads budget and that the 2024 roadworks programme won't be announced until February.

He said there is an overall reduction in insurance but due to covid credits last year from IPB Insurance, it's actually a slight increase.

Cllr Enda McGloin noted that the budget for the CIS scheme has dropped and asked for an update on that.

He also said that he understood that the existing footpath network is not funded but "extensive funding for new footpaths, particularly around smarter travel." He asked that, within the budget, "is there any source of funding to deal with that."

Story continued in next week's Leitrim Observer...