Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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1169.To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the details of his Department’s engagement with Galway City Council with regard to the council’s plans to relocate its offices to Crown Square; the terms of the relocation agreement; to provide a copy of same; if any of Galway City Council’s services will remain in the existing offices or site on College Road; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33250/24]

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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1170.To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government the amount of Exchequer funding that has been provided to Galway City Council to date for the relocation of its offices to Crown Square; the amount of this funding that has been provided by way of a loan; if further requests for funding have been made; the expected total cost of the project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33251/24]

Catherine Connolly (Galway West, Independent)
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1171.To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government if Ministerial approval was required for the relocation of Galway City Council’s offices to Crown Square; if Ministerial approval was sought; if so, when it was sought; if Ministerial approval was granted, if so, when it was granted; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33252/24]

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1169, 1170 and 1171 together.

The acquisition of land or property by, and the provision of offices for the operation and administration of, a local authority are functions of local government which are recognised in statute:

Section 11(7) of the Local Government Act 2001 (as amended) provides that a local authority shall be “a body corporate with perpetual succession and power to sue and be sued in its corporate name and to acquire, hold, manage, maintain and dispose of land or any interest in land...”

Section 65(2) of the 2001 Act provides that functions conferred on a local authority include “the provision of offices, equipment or the doing of anything else which is necessary for or related to the general operation, organisation or administration of the authority”.

Ministerial approval is not required for the relocation of Council offices as this is a matter for the local authority concerned.

In accordance with Section 106 of the Local Government Act 2001, as amended, the decision to borrow is a reserved function of the elected members of the local authority concerned, who have direct responsibility in law for all reserved functions and are accountable for all expenditure by the local authority.

Section 106 of the said Act also provides that local authorities must obtain the consent of the appropriate Minister to undertake borrowing. In this context, Galway City Council informed my Department of their proposed plans to borrow in advance of submitting an application for borrowing sanction. In September 2022, Ministerial sanction was conveyed to Galway City Council to raise loans of €45.5m to purchase a new purpose-built office building. No further applications for borrowing for the re-location of the Council’s offices have been received by my Department and it is my understanding that no Exchequer funding has been provided to the Council in relation to this project. I have no additional function in relation to this matter.

Local authorities are entirely independent corporate entities having full responsibility under law for the performance of their functions and the discharge of their governance and other responsibilities. Under Section 149 of the Local Government Act 2001, the Chief Executive of a local authority is responsible for the executive functions of the local authority, and for that purpose to manage and control generally, the administration and business of the authority, subject to law.