Connacht Tribune
Funding ‘sweetener’ needed if Galway councils are to merge
The proposed merger of Galway City and County Council is in tatters – unless the Government come up with a multi-million euro ‘sweetener’ between now and the end of March.
The authors of a report recommending the amalgamation of the two Councils into a single Greater Galway Authority have been told that it can only happen if there is a commitment to substantial additional funding.
Earlier this week the advisory group established to look into the amalgamation of both authorities met with TDs and councillors and received much the same response from all in attendance.
The Expert Advisory Group, who were appointed to consider the merger of both authorities, have concluded that the establishment of a Greater Galway Authority is “technically and administratively feasible”.
However, they concede that there will be no cost saving as both authorities are already under-resourced.
There are also no details on budget or on how many councillors would be elected to this new authority; there are currently a total of 57 councillors between the City and County Councils.
Galway West TD Noel Grealish attended this week’s meeting and said that there was little point in talking about amalgamations when there was no mention of how it would be funded.
“Galway County Council is already strapped for cash and Galway City Council are also under-resourced and if there is no commitment to additional funding, then this is dead in the water.
“This is no criticism of the authors of the report as they are doing their job but if the Government want amalgamation then they are going to have to ensure that a new authority will be adequately resourced,” Deputy Grealish added.
Galway and Cork are the only two counties in which there are two local authorities in existence – every other county has just one – but there are efforts to implement amalgamations in both are being strenuously resisted.
The great fear in Galway is that the county will lose out to the city in terms of funding and the provision of essential ‘day to day’ services. Only a handful of the 39 members of Galway County Council see merit in such a move.
Galway East TD Sean Canney, who was also present at this week’s meeting, said that if there was a firm commitment towards the provision of additional funding, then the prospect of an amalgamation might have some hope.
“We have two major issues that have to be dealt with. First of all the Galway County Council budget has been continually eroded and there is nothing to suggest that the authority will get, say, an additional €10 million to carry out its day to day provision of services.
“Secondly, the five Municipal District Councils which were established within the Council area are not being funded and simply do not have any power or influence. This also has to be addressed,” Deputy Canney added.
The views expressed by the Oireachtas members and councillors will be articulated in the report which will be presented to Government at the end of March when the amalgamation proposal will be the subject of a vote in the Dail.
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
