Cork County Council elects new mayor

Every seat was filled in the chamber of County Hall today at the first sitting of the new Cork County Council which has elected a new mayor for the coming 12 months.

West Cork Fianna Fáil councillor Joe Carroll will take the hotseat with Macroom Independent councillor Martin Coughlan as his Deputy Mayor.

Also in the running for the chain of office was Fine Gael’s Anthony Barry but a vote of 28 to 21 with six abstentions in favour of Cllr Carroll saw Cllr Barry defeated.

In his first address as County Mayor, Cllr Carroll praised outgoing mayor Cllr Frank O’Flynn, saying he often went “longer than the Duracell Bunny” such was the great energy he put into his duties as mayor.

The new mayor then laid out a number of his key priorities, starting with ensuring that Cork County Council is adequately funded by central government, something he said is currently not the case.

“I want to make certain that we can provide the services that matter most to the people of county Cork, like restoring our roads to their proper standard, as well as supporting the growth of our towns and villages,” said Cllr Carroll.

Tourism and hospitality were other key priorities for the Skibbereen representative who said he will do everything he can to support the campaign to have a 9% VAT rate reinstated for the hospitality sector.

“I seriously believe that this will be dealt with in the upcoming budget,” he said.

Other areas of concern mentioned the new mayor were outdoor staffing numbers available to Cork County Council, and the “dire situation” faced by young people in county Cork whose earnings are too high to qualify for social housing and not high enough to qualify for a mortgage.

“We must remember that we bailed out these banks and it’s about time they were called to order,” said the mayor.

Congratulating Cllr Carroll on his election as Mayor of the County of Cork, Fianna Fáil councillor Seamus McGrath joked that he empathizes with Cllr Carroll’s wife Sheila, who he said would have a “tough job keeping you in check” over the coming year.

“I know you have a very strong family behind you with Sheila, your daughter Linda, and your son Ciaran, and I know you will work as a team over the coming 12 months,” said Cllr McGrath.