The special meeting at City Hall was suspended for five minutes on Monday night after a verbal altercation between Mayor Níall McNelis and Galway city central councillor Ollie Crowe.
The verbal exchange took placed as the council was discussing the modular family hub to be in operation in September behind Westside library.
Mayor Nelis informed Cllr Crowe that he gone over his time in accordance with standing orders. In what was to follow Cllr Crowe told the chair to be “quiet” with Mayor McNelis asking for “a bit of respect for the chair” and for Cllr Crowe to “withdraw comment.”
After a further back and forth Mayor McNelis told Cllr Crowe “to respect the chair” to which Cllr Crowe retorted; “I am respecting the chair. Why don’t you respect me? You’re pandering to the executive.”
Mayor McNelis then informed the chamber he was suspending the meeting for five minutes.
Upon the recommencement of the meeting he told the chamber; “Councillors this is a special item [modular family hub]. I brought this to the agenda because it was signed this morning. [A council meeting] is about the chair not the person. I am trying to give time agreed by standing orders. There are families who need help. So please respect the chair. I am not pandering to anyone.”
Cllr Crowe apologised to Mayor McNelis and agreed to withdraw his comment telling the Mayor to “be quiet”.
