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their cities. Fine Gael Senator Jerry Buttimer remarked last year that “strategic thinking is needed to implement change” in Cork city with a mandate provided by the people.
anytime soon, despite a large volume of calls from the parties to do so.
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“A mayor would have responsibility for making sure that the expanded city has the amenities and services needed, to help bring jobs and investment and to raise the standard of living,” he said.
“Currently all significant proposals for tackling Dublin’s difficulties require sign-off from Ministers who don’t understand the reality of life in the capital,” he said.
In 2014, every council but one voted by a large majority in favour of a directly-elected mayor.
Sinn Féin’s Eoin Ó Broin, similarly, says the party is supportive of the proposals for directly-elected mayors if the “powers, functions and costs are right”.
This won’t be happening anytime soon, though, with the Taoiseach remarking: “Dublin is going to take a little bit more work given the fact there are four local authorities involved.”
The move was met with consternation from councillors, with former Dublin City Lord Mayor Christy Burke calling it “unfair, regrettable and undemocratic”.
Wyse cited the work being done by the current CEO of Waterford city and county council Michael Walsh, and said it would need a “seriously high calibre of person” to take the reins over and handle the running of a city.
He said:
“The type of person who does this job will need to be similar to the other CEOs running the councils around the country,” the Waterford councillor said. “You’d wonder if those kinds of people would put themselves forward on the ballot.”
Within Dublin, there are Fingal County Council, Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council, South Dublin County Council and Dublin City Council.
“The majority speaks in every other rule of law for government decisions, so why does the majority not speak here? I just think it’s a missed opportunity. The only democratic way to elect a mayor is by the people, let the people speak.”
Green Party councillor Ciarán Cuffe said that cutting the “red tape and bureaucracy of the Customs House” will help to alleviate progress being stifled in the capital.
the four districts to agree to have a directly-elected mayor came very, very close on one occasion before.
Only Fingal County Council held out, effectively ruling out a plebiscite for Dubliners on if they wanted a mayor.
Former Cork Lord Mayor Cahill said that, effectively, what the person’s actual job will be is an elected chief executive to handle various aspects of the council, while the actual chief executive handles the rest.
“And we’ll call that the mayor,” he said.
Wyse agreed, and said that it would in effect be “double-jobbing” by having two similar roles, where one was directly elected and accountable to the people.
But not Dublin?
Dublin is not going to be given the option for a directly-elected mayor
Council Journal 73