Decision to approve Directly Elected Mayor in Limerick a transformative opportunity for local Government
The Labour Party has welcomed the recent news that a Directly Elected Mayor (DEM) election could be held for Limerick City and County Council as early as October. The vote in Limerick showed that there is the appetite among the public to have a local Government with real decision making powers. The Labour Party want to see this measure extended to other cities such as Dublin.
Speaking about the decision Limerick Cllr Conor Sheehan said:
“The Directly Elected Mayor is a unique and potentially transformative opportunity for Limerick and for local Government. Limerick needs a strong voice to tackle the myriad of issues affecting the city and the wider Midwest region.
“For far too long, too much power has even in the hands of too few and by electing a strong DEM Limerick must show that it can take charge of its own destiny and chart its own path as a strong counter pull to Dublin and the Eastern region.
“The Government need to keep their end of the promise and ensure that the Mayor will have meaningful responsibilities in the areas of transport, environment, policing, urban regeneration, housing and health.”
Cllr Dermot Lacey, Chair of the Association of Labour Councillors said:
“The Labour Party wants to see stronger local Government at all levels and the key to this working is to ensure there is a strong Council to whom the Mayor is accountable to. Labour continues to call for local Government reform at all levels with independent finance raising powers.”