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Dual Mayors for Limerick

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    #2
    IsaacWunder
    Registered Users Posts: 398 ✭✭IsaacWunder


    Apparently the councillors voted for the change to reduce confusion. They've done the exact opposite.

    The old setup made perfect sense: the Lord Mayor was a traditional title bestowed on the chairperson of a city council, whereas cathaoirleach was the chairperson of a county council.

    With the merging of the two councils the Mayor of Limerick should have been the chairperson of the new joint authority (no need for ancient titles like lord) and the chairperson of the city municipal district should have been called the chair of that district: the same as every other council district.

    But instead the chairperson of the city and county council is the Mayor of the City and County of Limerick and the chairperson of the city district of the council is the Mayor of Limerick - a situation that is actually confusing.


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    #3
    Special Circumstances
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,569 ✭✭✭Special Circumstances


    So it's not like a tag team wrestling thing? Disappointing. I thought one could tag the other in so they could briefly combine their powers and pull some serious combo moves in times of dire need.


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    #4
    limklad
    Registered Users Posts: 1,980 ✭✭✭limklad


    Special Circumstances wrote: »
    So it's not like a tag team wrestling thing? Disappointing. I thought one could tag the other in so they could briefly combine their powers and pull some serious combo moves in times of dire need.
    I though the idea of combining the councils would combine the upper levels too, like the county and city manager became one. I would have expected the council members be combined as well as the Mayor positions. In reality they reduce the council numbers on a token measure. Councillors have no real power. The council manager (CEO) have all of the power. Councilors can only pass bylaws and those laws and decisions by the council can be easily over turn by the council manager i.e the CEO of the council by simply going to the dept of the environment.


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    #5
    SpaceTime
    Closed Accounts Posts: 9,088 ✭✭✭SpaceTime


    The Duelling Mayors of Limerick ...

    Now that would be cool!


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    #6
    the dark phantom
    Closed Accounts Posts: 772 ✭✭✭the dark phantom


    1 council, 2 mayors = dumb taxpayers


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    #7
    jbkenn
    Registered Users Posts: 919 ✭✭✭jbkenn


    the dark phantom wrote: »
    1 council, 2 mayors = dumb taxpayers

    Too true, and to think these 40 pillocks will cost us €2,424,000 this year.


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    #8
    steveon
    Registered Users Posts: 3,905 ✭✭✭steveon


    More pen-pushers more waste of money, more idiotic ideas and they wonder why people have had enough and are finally taking a stand against water charges...


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    #9
    Cookiemunster
    Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 11,845 Mod ✭✭✭✭Cookiemunster


    the dark phantom wrote: »
    1 council, 2 mayors = dumb taxpayers

    In reality there's only one actual mayor though. That's the former Cathaoirleach of the city and county which is the only position with executive powers. The mayor of the metropolitan area is just a title with no executive powers. It's the same level as the chairmen of the 3 rural council areas.


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    #10
    squonk
    Registered Users Posts: 8,583 ✭✭✭squonk


    Maybe it's a Captain Planety type thing. When their powers combine they sumon a superhero to sort out any nasty city problem in 20 minutes! :)


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    #11
    zulutango
    Registered Users Posts: 3,903 ✭✭✭zulutango


    The amalgamation seems to be a bit of a **** up, doesn't it? No surprise there given that Phil Hogan was involved, I guess.

    I see the sense in having a regional authority covering the whole Midwest, and then having a urban authority representing the Limerick City metropolitan region.

    Realistically, counties Limerick and Clare should have been amalgamated. Call it a different name, i.e. The Midwest Regional Authority, or somesuch, to protect sporting sensitivities, and the city should have been given a boundary extension to take in the suburbs.


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    #12
    Cookiemunster
    Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 11,845 Mod ✭✭✭✭Cookiemunster


    zulutango wrote: »
    The amalgamation seems to be a bit of a **** up, doesn't it? No surprise there given that Phil Hogan was involved, I guess.

    I see the sense in having a regional authority covering the whole Midwest, and then having a urban authority representing the Limerick City metropolitan region.

    Realistically, counties Limerick and Clare should have been amalgamated. Call it a different name, i.e. The Midwest Regional Authority, or somesuch, to protect sporting sensitivities, and the city should have been given a boundary extension to take in the suburbs.

    Areas like Westbury and Shannon Banks should have been brought under the control of the city years ago as they are already defacto part of the city. But the minute it was mentioned the GAA BS started up. I agree thought that the smaller countries around the country should be amalgamated into regional authorities, but again the GAA BS would kick off if it was tried.


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    #13
    zulutango
    Registered Users Posts: 3,903 ✭✭✭zulutango


    I think the way to get around the GAA crap is to just give the regional authorities different names that aren't contentious. The GAA can continue to divide along the traditional Anglo-Norman lines if they wish.


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    #14
    stefanovich
    Registered Users Posts: 5,490 ✭✭✭stefanovich


    steveon wrote: »
    More pen-pushers more waste of money, more idiotic ideas and they wonder why people have had enough and are finally taking a stand against water charges...
    Not sure how this relates to water charges!


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    #15
    washman3
    Registered Users Posts: 3,646 ✭✭✭washman3


    the dark phantom wrote: »
    1 council, 2 mayors = dumb taxpayers

    = very dumb voters...;)


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    #16
    Silentcorner
    Registered Users Posts: 6,187 ✭✭✭Silentcorner


    You have to bear in mind the locally elected political figures are merely an expensive puppet show, politically impotent and devoid of policy....a lot like Senators...their only purpose is to cement the National Party infrastructure on the unsuspecting voter...

    The farcical nature of this debacle is underlined by the fact that it is actually an improvement on what we had before...

    I have to say the amalgamation and realignment of the local government infrastructure has had a been a largely positive impact, tourism is up, I have never seen as many FDI jobs from as many different sources as we are currently seeing, I also believe that the impact of LCOC has really given the city the spring back in its step, just my opinion.

    I believe that the Dept of Environment did not go as far as they should have, but it is an improvement nonetheless...but I won't be happy until I see regional government with power and accountability and a motorway linking Waterford /Cork/Limk/Galway/Sligo.


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    #17
    limklad
    Registered Users Posts: 1,980 ✭✭✭limklad


    SpaceTime wrote: »
    The Duelling Mayors of Limerick ...

    Now that would be cool!
    There is currently two Sheahan Mayors in Limerick, hopefully they reconsidered and put one Mayor only in place and put the City Mayor over all of the council to continue the tradition of unbroken Mayorship of Limerick for a local propaganda and tourism and show that two positions was combined for a more powerful mayor to deal with more local problems that is similar to to improve services for more employments.

    When I heard that they were going to amalgamate the city and county Councils. I though the City Mayor become Mayor of all Limerick and each council area will have a chairperson to bring issues to the CEO of the Council. I though that the new amalgamate council will just be "Limerick Council". Having "Limerick City and County Council" as the official name is plain stupid and over worded in my opinion.

    What they put in place is far worst and bloated the amalgamated council. I though it be condensed further since local politicians have very little power or say in the new Councillor power structure, which has been diminished further since Independence, therefore we still have too many Councillors for the power that they have.

    The CEO/city/county mangers have too much power for the council to be considered a bastion of local democracy. In reality, the Council elected officials are just a wallpaper, to cover the dictatorship of the main power house of the council. No wonder people go to TD's to deal with local issues such as potholes.

    Also I love to get each Council meeting put up a opened channel on the Internet (rather than TV) for the public to see the standard of our elected officials, just like the Dail have camera and an internet channel, maybe youtube perhaps, where past meeting can be reviewed. Also the CEO could use it and advertise what they are doing locally for the people of Limerick. They do not need a zoom channel just static set of cameras with connections to the microphones in the chambers. This way people can see the sh*te and repeat Sh*te they come up with, so it can be held against them in the next local election. Also they will be mocked into increase their standard of oral and understanding of the issues and improve their representation of the people in chambers.

    I also love to have the CEO/city/county mangers under more scrutiny and held more accountable to local Councillors.

    P.S. I do not meant to degrade the CEO/city/county mangers work, for who the most part do a good job and it is restrained by law. The worst they can do is overspend on big projects like the water treatment scheme over the last 2 decade. It is still however a dictatorship installed by the National Government into local council power, like the appointment of the lord lieutenant of Ireland under British control of Ireland.
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lord_Lieutenant_of_Ireland


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    #18
    lockman
    Registered Users Posts: 550 ✭✭✭lockman


    It gets even better:
    http://www.limerickleader.ie/news/limerick-will-have-five-mayors-from-june-1-6666203


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    #19
    Special Circumstances
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,569 ✭✭✭Special Circumstances


    poisson.jpg


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    #20
    IsaacWunder
    Registered Users Posts: 398 ✭✭IsaacWunder


    lockman wrote: »
    It gets even better:
    http://www.limerickleader.ie/news/limerick-will-have-five-mayors-from-june-1-6666203

    April fool my arse. It'll be giving them notions.


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    #21
    Iranoutofideas
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,083 ✭✭✭Iranoutofideas


    We should have only one mayor and they should be elected by the people.

    40 people on the council is absurd and a gigantic waste of money.

    Cut it down to 10 at the most. I'd be in favour of scrapping all the councils entirely to be honest. Have 4 regional councils instead.


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