‘Our town hall’ in Kilkenny ‘has been ripped out for a tourist attraction’

Senator Malcolm Noonan gave his support to the newly formed Local Democracy Taskforce and asserted that local authority was negatively affected by the abolition of Kilkenny Corporation.

“I spent 16 years on Kilkenny Corporation, that is what I call it, and then Kilkenny County Council after another Kilkenny man decided in 2014 to abolish it unfortunately,” he said, in a reference to then Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan.

“Kilkenny had a unique place in Irish history. The first minutes of Kilkenny Corporation date back to 1231, to the Liber Primus Kilkenniensis, and Kilkenny was granted city status by charter in 1609. The abolition was detrimental to urban authority.”

The taskforce has been established to finalise a programme of reform and strengthen local government in Ireland.

The group will examine things like the possibility of devolving more decision-making powers to councillors, how to strengthen the framework of Municipal Districts, and the rebalancing of power between councillors and the executive to ensure that elected officials have a right to be consulted on a greater range of decisions.

Senator Noonan outlined his thoughts on the challenges faced by local authorities and the need for reform at the meeting which was attended by Minister of State for Local Government and Planning John Cummins.

“When we look at the important future challenges facing local government, such as climate action, the nature restoration plan, active travel, public transport, community policing, sustainable drainage systems, nature-based solutions and all of these broad, big issues with which local authority members must grapple, we need that dedicated tier of urban authority, and a network of them,” Noonan said.

“Currently, our town hall has been ripped out for a tourist attraction. What happens if we decide to reinstate the city council? It is just so unfortunate, we must look at that.”