Independent councillor James Charity has described the terms of reference to the local electoral boundary review by Minister John Phelan as wholly unsatisfactory from Galway county and city’s viewpoint.
The terms of reference indicate that one of two committees established by the Minister “may also be asked to make recommendations on the division of Cork and Galway into local electoral areas”.
Cllr Charity said: “The failure of the Government to give a clear and definitive position on something as serious as the revision of our local government structure in Galway is clearly based on its indecision as to whether both the county council and city should be amalgamated into one authority.
“This debacle has been ongoing for some time now and whether you are in favour or opposed to the idea of amalgamation, it is now abundantly evident that Galway as a whole is being held back by the abject failure of the Government to make a call one way or another.
“The people of Galway county and city deserve clarity at this stage with respect to future arrangements locally, and our omission, along with Cork, effectively leaves both counties in limbo and the only two areas of the country which will not be provided with any clarity as part of the current process.”
