Editorial: Talking to communities makes more sense than keeping Kilkenny in the dark

Councillors are right to flag concerns around a lack of consultation with them and with local communities regarding locating new populations in their areas.

As one councillor noted, not engaging with existing communities is leading to mistrust, distrust and fear. The information vacuum is leading to fear-mongering and mistruths being spread, causing division between people and neighbours.

Councillors are to write to Minister for Integration  Roderic O’Gorman to express their  concern and disappointment regarding the lack of consultation with local communities. Under the current regulations, there is no provision within the statutory instruments for the public to make submissions or for public consultation.

The council executive say they are receiving requests from local communities all over the county with genuine concern in relation to some developments that are being proposed and they are doing their best to brief them.

Anytime there is a significant increase in the population of a particular area, there should be a corresponding increase in the provision of local services there. Engaging with communities to let them know what the plan is makes sense rather than keeping everyone in the dark.

Ireland and Kilkenny are playing their part in taking in refugees and asylum applicants, but common sense and consultation would go a long way.

TOP DESTINATION
It’s no surprise to see Kilkenny ranked number one in a new tourism minibreak list by Betway.

The top 12 beautiful towns in Ireland were  index score created using figures from Google rating, Trip Advisor and Instagram. They are based on the number of hashtags and views each  has racked up on Instagram, as well as Trip Advisor rankings - with the lower the overall index score the higher the ranking.

It’s no secret Kilkenny is a great place to visit - and the more people realise it, the better!