Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023: Committee Stage
Seanad Éireann — 2024-02-08
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Alice-Mary Higgins (IND), National University of Ireland

If it is okay with the Minister of State, I will contribute now for efficiency. Regarding my colleague’s amendment and the two years to three years, there are certain aspects we will come to later in the Bill that I am concerned may need a review, particularly the Schedule and the number of powers that are out of reach of the mayor. I think issues with the curtailment of powers for the mayor due to the excessive number of items on the Schedule that are still given to the director general will arise earlier than two years, frankly. We want to avoid public disappointment as mayors endeavour to do areas and are told it is the director general’s remit. The earlier we identify a problem such as that and address it, the better. We want to make sure that new legislation, if required, is in place before the next round of mayoral elections.
Amendment No. 6 is important. I hope this is an oversight. I genuinely hope the Minister of State will be able to accept this amendment.
We see people who go forward in good faith and who want to be local councillors and to contribute but who find that they hit a wall and come up against limits in terms of their powers, including their financial powers. They feel that they are in a position where they are failing, not through their own fault, but through the limitations placed on them to deliver what they know is needed for their local communities. We have seen the frustration of many councillors regarding that issue, and we have also, sadly, seen many brilliant, capable people leaving local councils because they felt that they could not deliver as they would like to.
There is a step forward in having a mayor but it is happening within the context of a locally elected council. In terms of amendment No. 6, I again genuinely hope that this is a matter of oversight and can be addressed. Amendment No. 7 is a little bit more ambitious but I believe we should be more ambitious. I hope the Minister of State might also consider supporting it.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2024-02-08/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:52:38+00:00
Sitting date: 2024-02-08