Denise Mitchell (Dublin Bay North, Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

315. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government when the heads of legislation pertaining to directly elected mayors for local authorities will be published. [6733/21]

Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

At its meeting of 26 January 2021, Government approved the drafting of a general scheme to provide for a directly elected mayor with executive functions for Limerick city and county based on the governance structure recommended in the report of the Implementation Advisory Group established to consider the Directly Elected Mayor with Executive Functions for Limerick.

Government also approved the publication of this report, which is on my Department's website herewith:

Included in the general scheme will be an electoral code to facilitate the holding of the first direct election for Mayor in Limerick and provisions to allow for the holding of plebiscites on directly elected mayors in any other local authority area that wants one as outlined in the Programme for Government: Our Shared Future.

My officials are currently drafting the general scheme which I intend to bring back to Government as quickly as possible in the coming weeks seeking approval to draft a Bill. Subject to Government approval, the general scheme will then be submitted to the Oireachtas for pre-legislative scrutiny.