Local elections 2014

biko · 08-03-2014 1:33pm #1

With local elections in May, what questions will you be asking canvassers when they come calling to your door?
This thread is intended to raise the issues that are important to you and yours, so local candidates can take notice.
Boards.ie will be getting in touch with as many candidates as we can, and the aim will be for them to come onto Boards to explain their policies, and to answer the questions posted in this thread.

When that time comes we aim to use separate threads for the candidates so that those threads can be answer and policy specific. This thread is for questions/concerns only.

snubbleste · 08-03-2014 1:43pm

Are you only running as a stepping stone to national politics?
You have very little power as a councillor, how do you envisage you can effect change?

Mrs OBumble · 08-03-2014 2:21pm

During the recent storms, should the Celtic Explorer/Voyager have been in port, or out in the bay?

Cheshire Cat · 08-03-2014 3:40pm

Do you support the proposed live streaming of council meetings?

fergiesfolly · 08-03-2014 4:57pm

Do you think that councillors should live in the ward they represent?
Where do you live?
Do you find it interesting that incumbents seeking re-election only seem to appear on the ground, in their wards, only a few weeks before the election?

ErnieBert · 09-03-2014 1:18am

Do you read from the altar at your local church? If so, when did you start? Or did you only start doing this after you declared to stand in the election so that people may recognise you?

ErnieBert · 09-03-2014 1:19am

Do you live permanently in the area you intend to represent? How long have you lived at your current address?

EDIT: Just spotted post from fergiesfolly above which is similar to my post.

I know of one candidate who will fall on his sword on this one

ErnieBert · 09-03-2014 1:23am

What political party do you represent?
Have you ever been a member of another political party?

jjpep · 09-03-2014 9:58am

Where do you stand on corruption? What do you consider to be corrupt practice at local political level? How are you funding your campaign?

Iwannahurl · 09-03-2014 1:57pm

Since Councillors have only limited authority, in the form of Reserved Functions such as the adoption of the annual budget and the making of byelaws, and nearly all the power lies in the hands of unelected officials who make most of the Executive decisions regarding day-to-day operations, what exactly are we voting for?

Is local politics mainly a popularity contest, or do you see a place for leadership? If the latter, where do you intend to take the lead?

If elected, are you going to be a Councillor for the whole city and the greater good, or will you be influenced mainly by local votes and vested interests?

Will you be contactable by the citizens of this city? Will you hold clinics, answer phone calls, reply to emails and respond to letters? If you take a prominent role, such as Chairing one of the numerous committees, will you actually hold meetings and publish the proceedings?

chad!! · 10-03-2014 8:02pm

What is your stance on crony-ism?
What made you decide to put yourself forward for the upcoming elections?
If party associated, why did you become a member of that party, and do you agree with everything in their manifesto(if you have read it), if not would you publicly disagree with them?
If elected would you focus solely on issues in your constituency or would you be willing to voice your opinions regionally or perhaps nationally?

jmapell · 11-03-2014 4:56pm

fergiesfolly wrote: »

Do you think that councillors should live in the ward they represent?
Where do you live? ....

I can think of at least one candidate running in the west ward who should consider running for the County Council instead of the City one!

As for questions on the door step I want to know how the council intends to deal with what can only be described as ludicrous delays on innumerable projects across the city. Surely some of these could be expedited.

And what about repairing the prom/diving board area? The summer is fast approaching and it's one of our principle tourist attractions.

Mrs OBumble · 11-03-2014 5:53pm

Should Leisureland be repaired?

jmapell · 11-03-2014 9:02pm

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Should Leisureland be repaired?

I reckon so. Galway has 3 Swimming Clubs with a massive number of young swimmers who now have nowhere to train and are competing with members in paid gyms around the city, with smaller pools, for lane time.

Should Leisureland be revitalised and rejuvenated into a better community facility rather than just repaired might be the question that needs to be asked.

biko · 11-03-2014 10:48pm

This is not a discussion thread (and by that I mean we're posing questions for candidates and not to ourselves).
There is now a Leisureland thread, please use that for discussion.

Edward9 · 12-03-2014 3:18pm

Well I will ask What can you do for me and How much are you getting paid

Fey! · 14-03-2014 5:56pm

Do you agree with local politicians having to give up their council seats before being allowed stand for a national level seat in a general election / European election / similar higher level position, instead of having the council seat to fall back on? Obviously if you are seeking a TD position, you will not be concentrating on the position into which you were originally elected on the council, so the opportunity of a seat on the council should be there for someone with a genuine local interest to fill. I'm looking at several local councillors on that one!

Do you feel that you should be an example to others in your locality? eg if you are a cyclist, use lights, if you are a dog owner, clean up their droppings, etc.

How do you propose improving local policing?

How do you propose improving local infrastructure?

What are the top three reasons for you running for office?

If a member of the public emails/phones/writes to you/ask you in person about an issue, will you reply to them in a timely manner?

Sorry about the long list of questions.

buzz11 · 15-03-2014 4:13pm

Are all your tax affairs up to date? (do you have a tax clearance cert to prove this?)

phelixoflaherty · 17-03-2014 11:30am

Will they still be concerned about the planned Bus corridor in merlin woods?

gordongekko · 20-03-2014 11:53am

How many properties do you or your immediately family own. And how many of these properties are in receipt of a government funded payment

MadYaker · 25-03-2014 6:27pm

buzz11 wrote: »

Are all your tax affairs up to date? (do you have a tax clearance cert to prove this?)

I fail to see how that is any of your business to be honest?

jjpep · 25-03-2014 9:58pm

MadYaker wrote: »

I fail to see how that is any of your business to be honest?

Pretty much everyone who does any contract work for any state or semi state (and a good few private companies too) has to produce one to get the job. One of the reasons generally given is that they don't want to employ someone to do a job that they may get delayed in doing if they end up having to engage with revenue if their books aren't in order.

snubbleste · 31-03-2014 2:06pm

From 2015, the Council will be able to vary the property tax rate by +-15%.
Will you vote for an increase in property tax during your five year tenure? Yes or No will suffice.

Iwannahurl · 31-03-2014 3:51pm

Would you support an easing of the rates burden on local businesses?

Would you support the dedication of a proportion of LPT and rates to local improvement schemes that would benefit communities and create a more conducive urban environment that would attract more people to use shops and services?

snubbleste · 05-04-2014 5:40pm

Do you endorse the Council spending €150k to upgrade the Council chamber to accommodate three new seats?

jkforde · 08-04-2014 5:47am

public infrastructure like playgrounds are shamefully underfunded and under-maintained - will you campaign for an increase in capital AND maintenance funds for the City's playgrounds, including proper security monitoring to prevent people from abusing the playgrounds at night-time for drinking and smoking (rant: using children's playgrounds for drinking and smoking and then dumping broken glass bottles & fag butts and vandalizing infants' toys is just plain low)

Iwannahurl · 08-04-2014 10:01am

Question for current and potential Councillors: would you support a policy mandating the provision of an adequate number of secure and properly maintained playgrounds in all residential areas?

Mrs OBumble · 09-04-2014 6:19pm

Given the clear evidence that they are effective (http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/190/3/266.full), do you support installing more effective barriers at points where people commonly enter the water, in particular the bridges over the Corrib?

Ficheall · 15-04-2014 7:55am

Do you enjoy seeing other candidates' election posters stuck on lamp-posts all over the city, or having your letterbox stuffed with election material?

Iwannahurl · 15-04-2014 10:37am

Christian Figueres, Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, recently stated that the reality of global warming “requires and requests that everyone accelerate and scale up efforts towards a low-carbon world and manage the risks of climate change in order to spare the planet and its people” from the worst impacts.

If elected, how will you help to ensure that all of Galway City Council's policies, programmes and projects are fully aligned with the "major institutional and technological change" needed to urgently address the challenges of climate change?

Bubosw · 16-04-2014 12:17am

Why, if you've a child with special needs you are means tested for carers allowance, once your carers benefit has run out... If you're over the means you get nothing. The extra expenses just eat and eat into your family budget so essentially all the children of a family over the threshold suffer. Maybe someone else can explain it better for me???

Worn Out · 17-04-2014 10:57pm

Why are the 4 cars parked on the street outside our house illegal. They either have no tax, insurance or nct visible. Who is checking this and enforcing the law because as a payer of too much tax I am not getting value for money.

gordongekko · 22-04-2014 4:58pm

To the candidates that have their posters up more than the maximum 30 days allowed by the law I will be asking where do they stand on the horrible littering of our city by these posters and where do they stand on the breaking of the law regarding this action

siltirocker · 25-04-2014 11:41am

Picked this up from a comment in the journal.ie which since has been deleted and thought it should be shared here. It is in response to people saying they are not voting for person A because they were party X, or person B because they are party Y, any way it gets into Galway in the middle:

"Do party allegiances really matter in local elections? I mean obviously in the general election it is arguably the most important thing, but in local elections it really is just down to the person and what they see needed to improve their community. And most definitely not down to the face, or experience.

In Galway West, Pearce Flannery is getting a rollocking cause he's Fine Gael. But himself and Fianna Fail's David Burke are they only ones with ACTUALLY (sic) plans. I have heard both speak about un-swapping South Park, sorting out Leisureland, the community centre in Knocknacarra, ludicrous council overspending and renovating Salthill. But no one cares. . . cause of their parties. Then there are some independents/popular candidates who honestly have set out and produced NO vision or goals mentioned in any of their literature and who's manifesto from what I can gather is either: "NO to this, NO to that, NO to them, No to twat!" or "Sure I've on the council years. . ." . . .and they are loved cause of it.

First time I've taken a strong interest in it and I'm shocked. Michelle Murphy is not from or has ever lived in Galway West ward and her only policy that I can see is that she wants new bulbs in some on the promenade lights, and when I addressed her with both on my door step she had nothing to say. . . .but she'll get in because she has a pretty face. Donal Lyons hasn't made clear his plans for Leisureland, even though he is actually on the board of management there. Catherine Connolly, who I gave my first preference last time and who is, honestly, a nice person. . . did nothing with my vote. And has no plans for the next few years except to say no, no and a few more no's.

I urge people, go to your ward's candidate's webpages, read their materials, find out their plans. Don't be blinkered by whether their party has a blue, green, red or white shirt. Don't be swayed by irrelevant experience, or a youthful or pretty face on a canvas poster. Use your vote to put in the person who shares your ideas for improving your community."

Iwannahurl · 03-05-2014 7:52am

biko wrote: »

This thread is intended to raise the issues that are important to you and yours, so local candidates can take notice.

Boards.ie will be getting in touch with as many candidates as we can, and the aim will be for them to come onto Boards to explain their policies, and to answer the questions posted in this thread.

When that time comes we aim to use separate threads for the candidates so that those threads can be answer and policy specific.

Election day is 23rd May.

Any sign of the candidates showing an interest in this particular forum?

I'd be particularly interested in hearing from sitting candidates. According to a report in the City Tribune (2nd May) only five of them showed up to a special pre-election meeting organised by the Community Forum.

matchball · 04-05-2014 8:38pm

5 sitting councillors attended the meeting organised by the Community Forum last Tuesday. 17 candidates (incl sitting councillors) attended in total.

biko · 04-05-2014 11:07pm

Iwannahurl wrote: »

Election day is 23rd May.
Any sign of the candidates showing an interest in this particular forum?

Not yet afaik, I'll check with back office.

jmapell · 06-05-2014 2:29pm

I have heard that Galway Bay FM is hosting a radio debate on Wednesday evening with the West Ward candidates? Does anyone know if this is happening for definite or at what time it goes to air?

Might be a good opportunity for people to submit the questions that are being asked here.

Cheshire Cat · 06-05-2014 2:39pm

From their facebook page:

Galway Bay FM
May 4
With the elections coming up on May 23rd, we're going to be going around Galway City and county interviewing the candidates. We're starting with the Galway City West Ward this Wednesday from 6pm - 7.30pm and Athenry/Oranmore on Thursday May 8th from 6pm - 8pm

gordongekko · 06-05-2014 3:25pm

Cheshire Cat wrote: »

From their facebook page:

Galway Bay FM
May 4
With the elections coming up on May 23rd, we're going to be going around Galway City and county interviewing the candidates. We're starting with the Galway City West Ward this Wednesday from 6pm - 7.30pm and Athenry/Oranmore on Thursday May 8th from 6pm - 8pm

Why are the county candidates getting more time than the city candidates

TerrorFirmer · 07-05-2014 1:51pm

gordongekko wrote: »

Why are the county candidates getting more time than the city candidates

That's only City West, not the city.

CowboyTed · 08-05-2014 1:18am

Heard the debate this evening:
On Leisureland, I thought Lyons especially and Kane came out badly on it. They made it sound like nothing is wrong.

IMHO Winners were:
Catherine Connolly(Ind), David Burke(FF), Pearce Flannery(FG).

The main reason for them is because they had plan for the major issues. They seemed some what prepared. Finnegan grilled David Burke on issues and he seemed to enjoy the challenge and had answers for them. Catherine Connolly picked up on housing pretty well. Pearce Flannery also seemed to know what he was doing.

Will it change much? Don't know, everyone was probably stuck to the TV with the Shatter news.

jmapell · 08-05-2014 10:41am

CowboyTed wrote: »

IMHO Winners were:
Catherine Connolly(Ind), David Burke(FF), Pearce Flannery(FG).

The main reason for them is because they had plan for the major issues. They seemed some what prepared. Finnegan grilled David Burke on issues and he seemed to enjoy the challenge and had answers for them. Catherine Connolly picked up on housing pretty well. Pearce Flannery also seemed to know what he was doing.

Will it change much? Don't know, everyone was probably stuck to the TV with the Shatter news.

I agree. Flannery and Burke both shone for me. Both got quizzed hard by Finnegan and stood up to the challenge, were well prepared and got their points across clearly. Cllr. Connolly stands by issues she feels passionately about and works hard for them, not sure what she does for the Ward as a whole but she has her core voters who will elect her time and again.

Hopefully there will be a change. It's time for fresh faces in City Hall. Lyons is a Councillor since 1996, surely it's time to make room for someone new.

Iwannahurl · 08-05-2014 12:19pm

biko wrote: »

Not yet afaik, I'll check with back office.

Any progress?

Just over two weeks to election day.

siltirocker · 08-05-2014 4:29pm

I thought Flannery and Burke were the clear winners.

And I think this was down to Finnegan giving them such a hard time and them coming out intact.

Worn Out · 08-05-2014 11:09pm

I will be asking the candidates if they are able to "slam?" Reading the local papers I note how our current councillors are great at "slamming," I wouldn't want someone elected that could slam as well as the current encumbents.

Pottymouth · 09-05-2014 10:53pm

jmapell wrote: »

I agree. Flannery and Burke both shone for me. Both got quizzed hard by Finnegan and stood up to the challenge, were well prepared and got their points across clearly. Cllr. Connolly stands by issues she feels passionately about and works hard for them, not sure what she does for the Ward as a whole but she has her core voters who will elect her time and again.

Hopefully there will be a change. It's time for fresh faces in City Hall. Lyons is a Councillor since 1996, surely it's time to make room for someone new.

This my first post ever (in 61 years) on any chat board, so bear with me.

I think council should be limited to two terms maximum. Lyons and Connolly in this ward have been living off council earnings for far too long. That is the problem with lifer councillors, they end up using the chamber to fund their lifestyles and the role over time simply becomes an essential part of their income. They lose sight of the purpose of council. Always happens.

Both Lyons and Connolly epitomise this. Connolly is a nutcase with no legal career to speak of and Lyons is so far past his sell by date he smells to high heaven. Get Lyons and Connolly out is what I think. I sincerely hope whom ever is elected that the council gets a huge injection of new blood.

And no more bloody teachers and legal eagles!

10-05-2014 2:22pm

Iwannahurl wrote: »

Any sign of the candidates showing an interest in this particular forum?

I'd be particularly interested in hearing from sitting candidates. According to a report in the City Tribune (2nd May) only five of them showed up to a special pre-election meeting organised by the Community Forum.

Hi Iwannahurl,

I'm candidate Marc Anderson of Galway City West, I think there are some solid questions in this forum, some of which I heard in a recording of the city west debate on Galwaybay FM. It's unfortunate that I wasn't on that myself, they didn't call me until the day before to invite me at which point I couldn't make it. Since I didn't get a chance to get into the fray then, I'd be happy to answer questions here, although I understand this isn't a discussion forum with respect to Biko.

I'm happy to answer questions if he permits, or if you are interested in a bit of info on this dark-horse American candidate then I have some explanation in other threads of my experience in job growth by understanding the search by US companies to find a city for a site location. I also have a very high level snapshot of purpose in my press release here:
drive.google.com/file/d/0Bwxgfx6BLswmUHh0dnY3TFR1blU/edit?usp=sharing

Cheers,
Marc

PS - I think the question previously posed on tax affairs being up to date is absolutely relevant and the voters business. I was glad to hear they asked that on the radio.

David Burke · 12-05-2014 7:49am

Hi Everyone,

David Burke is my name, and I have put myself forward as a candidate in the Galway City West Ward for Fianna Fáil. I am running as a new and first time candidate in this election. I am 34 years old, a Chartered Accountant and I grew up and live at 45 Monalee Heights in Knocknacarra.

I am running in this election because I am passionate about bringing the right type of changes to the running of Galway City and the West Ward. I have extensive experience in working with bringing about change programmes during my time working as a Chartered Accountant with KPMG and subsequently, as a Management Consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers.

I will try my best to respond to your posts on this board but as I am sure you can appreciate I am pretty busy at the moment ! You have raised a number of relevant and interesting topics on this board. As part of of my campaign, I have tried as much as possible to be available in every forum to interact with people who are trying to decide which way they want to vote.

Some of my main priorities are :

Developing new and existing facilities - Knocknacarra Community Centre needs to be Community run and not privatised. The Leisureland closure needs to be addressed immediately and dealt with as a real crisi locally. We also need to develop new facilities in the area and that would be one of my main priorities

Renewal of Salthill Village - Extend the Urban Renewal scheme to Salthill to bring jobs and investment and make Salthill the leading tourism hub on the West Coast of Ireland

Transport Infrastructure - Bus Link between Knocknacarra and Salthill, increased bus shelter coverage and greater services from Bus Eireann

Local Property Tax - 10% of this tax needs to be ringfenced for local estates under a special capital scheme for local works. A first Nationally co-ordinated programme in addressing local issues

Rugby World Cup 2023 - Supporting Galway and Ireland's bid to bring the Rugby World Cup to Ireland which bring about a €500 Million boost to the Irish economy and €20 Million boost to the Galway economy. During my time as Chairman of the Salthill-Knocknacarra GAA Club, I put down the motion that GAA stadiums across Ireland should be made available to the IRFU in order to assist them make a bid for the Rugby World Cup. This was passed at the National Congress in early 2013 as a result of this motion.

I hope you will consider supporting me on Friday week and Vote No.1 David Burke. I hope to be in a position to answer some of your queries.

Thanks,

David Burke

dilallio · 12-05-2014 9:47am

What do the candidates think of the voting pact within the council, where lucrative positions are divided up between the major parties?

Mayor - €24,000 additional allowance
Deputy Mayor - €3,000 additional allowance
3 x Chair of Strategic Polic Committee - €6,000 each
2 x memberships of Galway Harbour Company
Chairperson of Galway City Development Board

?Cee?view · 12-05-2014 9:52am

David Burke wrote: »

Hi Everyone,

David Burke is my name, and I have put myself forward as a candidate in the Galway City West Ward for Fianna Fáil. I am running as a new and first time candidate in this election. I am 34 years old, a Chartered Accountant and I grew up and live at 45 Monalee Heights in Knocknacarra.

David. Where are you currently employed and for whom do you work? If elected, will your place of work Monday to Friday be in Galway?

Do you commute from 45 Monalee Heights to work?

Local elections 2014

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