Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am delighted to be here today to bring the Local Government (Mayor of Limerick) and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2023 before the House. The main aim of this Bill is to establish a new office of directly elected mayor for Limerick City and County Council and to provide for the public to directly elect a person to that office.

The Bill provides that most but not all executive functions currently performed by the chief executive of Limerick City and County Council will transfer to the mayor. Some functions, in terms of what was put to the people at plebiscite, are retained with the CEO. There will be new functions for the office of mayor and structural changes for governance of the area of Limerick City and County Council are provided for.

The Bill delivers a programme for Government commitment and the democratic will of the people of Limerick to have Ireland's first directly-elected mayor. It provides the mandate, structures and means to deliver on the ambition of the office of mayor of Limerick. It provides a key opportunity to develop service delivery and accountability locally, and to add value for Limerick people. The Government has decided that the first election of a mayor of Limerick will take place with the local and European elections in early June. This is one of the biggest local government reforms since the foundation of the State. In addition, the Bill will allow for plebiscites to be held by other local authorities on the question of whether an office of directly elected mayor should be established in their administrative area.

I will go through the main provisions of the Bill. It is divided into eight Parts, with three Schedules.

Part 1 contains standard provisions covering Title, citation, commencement, definitions, etc. Section 5 provides for the Local Government Act 2001 to be applied to Limerick in line with modifications in Schedule 3. Section 7 provides for a review of the operation of the Act after three years so that any necessary or desirable legislative enhancements can be made.

Part 2 is the substantive Part of the Bill. It provides for the establishment of the office of the directly elected mayor, with the date to be set by ministerial order. The mayor will be elected by the public and will hold full-time office for a five-year term in line with the local electoral cycle. A mayor may hold office for two terms. The mayor will be executive head of the local authority, with responsibility for most executive functions currently performed by the chief executive. These include matters of housing, planning, environmental services, climate and enterprise at a policy level. The mayor will also take on the representational and civic functions of the cathaoirleach outside of the council chamber.

A new priomh chomhairleoir will chair the council. The functions to remain with him or her are set out in Schedule 1 of Part 1. In mentioning the CEO, I should have referred to the director general. Functions to remain with the director general, formerly the chief executive, are set out in Schedule 1 of Part 2. These include HR and staffing matters, Accounting Officer responsibilities, administration of schemes and grants, and enforcement measures. This was set out in the plebiscite to the people, specifically, that these particular functions would be retained by the director general. This is what the people voted on.

This Part also provides that the mayor shall be an ex-officiomember of the council with voting rights. The mayor may be questioned by the council in relation to the performance of his or her functions. The mayor may attend municipal district meetings, although he or she cannot vote, and will also chair the corporate policy group.

This Part further sets out eligibility to run and hold office and procedures for when the mayor is not in office. During the Bill's passage through the Dáil, I introduced amendments so that Members of Dáil Éireann, Seanad Éireann and the European Parliament may run as a candidate in mayoral elections, subject to the candidate ceasing such membership if elected mayor.

Importantly, the Bill provides for a budget to support the mayor’s functions, in particular his or her mayoral programme. It provides for a mayoral salary that is equivalent to that of a Minister of State and for the office’s staffing arrangements, including the appointment of a special adviser.Following discussions in the Dáil, I have ensured that the mayor will be consulted in the appointment of these staff. The special adviser will be external. The mayor may wish to appoint someone internally. The other four staff will come from within the local authority.

Part 3 provides that there will no longer be the positions of cathaoirleach and leas-chathaoirleach in Limerick. There will instead be new offices of príomh chomhairleoir and leas-phríomh chomhairleoir. The príomh chomhairleoir and leas-phríomh chomhairleoir will continue to be elected by the council. The roles of chief executive and deputy chief executive will be replaced by director general and deputy director general, with the main purpose of the director general role being to support the mayor. The mayor may delegate functions to the director general, who is accountable to the mayor in performing those functions.

Part 4 establishes new structures centrally and in Limerick to support the role of mayor. These structures include the establishment of a Limerick mayoral and Government consultative forumat ministerial level to facilitate engagement between the mayor and national government in relation to Limerick. It will be chaired by the Minister and meet at least twice a year. There are options for when it can meet. It will make recommendations on the evolution of the role, including new and additional functions, and funding for the assignment to the mayor and also review and advise on how the new structure is operating. The forum can meet at additional times during the year at the request of the Government or mayor. There will be the preparation of a mayoral programme for local government in Limerick, setting out key priorities for the mayor's term.

The mayor will establish a Limerick mayoral advisory and implementation committeeto prepare and implement the mayoral programme. The committee will also examine major issues affecting Limerick City and County Council, including economic, tourism, social and cultural matters, employment, co-ordinating initiatives, services and funding to support rural areas and town regeneration. The mayor will launch and chair the Limerick Project Ireland 2040 delivery board to focus on the implementation of the national planning framework and national development plan in the Limerick area, the county development plan and the Limerick-Shannon metropolitan area strategic plan. The board may establish subgroups as required. The Bill establishes a defined subgroup, namely, the Limerick delivery transport subgroup, again chaired by the mayor, which will focus on transport in Limerick in line with key strategies. The mayor can set up other groups, but the Bill defines that there must be a specific subgroup on transport.

Government Departments must consult the mayor, on request, on national policy or legislation that may impact Limerick. The mayor will have statutory powers to bring all stakeholders together and statutory rights in regard to consulting the Government. These are key changes. Furthermore, the mayor will be a member of the local community development committee and an ex-officiomember of the Southern Regional Assembly.

Part 5 makes legislative amendments to allow for mayoral elections and plebiscites. It also sets expenditure limits for the Limerick mayoral election and provides for the reimbursement of election expenses and disclosure of donations and election expenses.

Part 6 provides that a local authority may hold a plebiscite on the question of having a directly elected mayor with executive functions for a single administrative area. A plebiscite may be proposed in three ways: by a council-approved recommendation from the corporate policy group; by a petition signed by more than 15% of the electorate and certified by the chief executive; or by ministerial direction. On Report Stage in the Dáil, I reduced the percentage of the electorate required from 20% to 15%. Where a plebiscite result is in favour of a mayoral election, the Minister must make legislative proposals to the Oireachtas within two years to give effect to that result. An Coimisiún Toghcháin will publish and distribute information on the plebiscite proposal to the electorate, incorporating material which the Minister shall provide.

Part 7provides for removal of the mayor on certain grounds. The removal of a democratically elected individual is a serious consideration and so this is a robust and fair three-tier process. This came after intensive work with the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel to the Government and the Office of the Attorney General. In summary, the council may adopt a proposal to remove the mayor on stated grounds. A public meeting of the council will be held, with support from at least three quarters of councillors required for a motion to pass. Where a motion passes, the Minister may establish an independent panel to make a recommendation on the removal. Finally, if the Minister accepts the recommendation, a resolution to remove the mayor must be made by both Houses of the Oireachtas before it can take effect.

Part 8 contains minor miscellaneous provisions which do not relate to mayoral matters and were introduced in the Bill on Report Stage in the Dáil. These provisions extend eligibility for an affordable dwelling purchase arrangement and provide for consultation with the Public Appointments Service, PAS, in setting out the required qualifications for certain posts in the local government sector. I intend to bring forward a number of further miscellaneous but important amendments on Committee Stage in this House relating to funding of the Housing Finance Agency and the Land Development Agency.

Schedule 1 sets out the provisions which will not transfer to the mayor. Part 1 lists the functions of the current cathaoirleach that will remain with the príomh chomhairleoir in Limerick. Part 2 lists functions currently performed by local authority chief executives that will remain with the director general of Limerick, in line with the general scheme. I intend to bring forward a small number of minor additions on Committee Stage to complete this schedule. I may also bring forward some amendments on the substantive areas of the Bill.

Schedule 2 provides the electoral code for holding an election for the position of mayor of Limerick. It covers matters such as the appointment of a returning officer; the manner of voting; the nomination process; arrangements for the poll; and arrangements for the counting of the votes.

Schedule 3 provides for modifications to how the Local Government Act 2001 is to be read in relation to the revised structures in Limerick.

I look forward to working with colleagues in this House in the coming weeks to pass this Bill and pave the way for the mayoral election in Limerick. Limerick City and County Council will be unique compared with other local authorities. The mayor will be a champion for Limerick city and county, have a place-making role for the county and region and serve as a blueprint for greater local democracy in Ireland. The Bill is something new and a reforming measure for local government. More particularly, it is something for which the people of Limerick voted by way of plebiscite. I commend it to the House.