News
‘Projects will suffer’ if city cuts Property Tax
City councillors could find themselves in a ‘damned if they do and damned if they don’t’ situation on Wednesday when they vote on a reduction proposal for the Local Property Tax.
Sinn Féin are pressing for a ‘one swoop’ 15% reduction in the Local Property Tax that goes into the coffers of the City Council for the provision of local services and amenities.
But some councillors fear that if such a cut is made to the income of the City Council, important sports and amenity projects will end up once again going on the long finger.
“There isn’t a councillor in the city or indeed across the country who wouldn’t favour a 15% cut in the property tax, but I’m afraid that the reality of this will be, that some major sporting and amenity projects will suffer,” said Cllr. Billy Cameron.
He said that in the past he had seen the juggling and effort involved on the part of the City Council where adjustments of around €250,000 had to be made – if the full 15% cut was to be made, schemes would be impacted upon.
Cllr. Cameron said that while the 15% cut might be a populist stance for Sinn Féin to adopt, the Council would have to look at the implications for projects such as the St. James’ GAA club development, phase two of the Corrib Park amenity project and the provision of the artificial playing surface at Cappagh Park.
However Sinn Féin councillor, Cathal Ó Conchúir, told the Galway City Tribune, that the issue had to be looked in a national perspective and in the context of the whole principle of the tax.
“We will be seeking the full reduction in the local property tax. This has been an unjust tax based primarily on people’s debts as they struggle to pay off mortgages.
“We really are a people that are at exhaustion level with taxes. We have the pensions levy, the universal social charge, PRSI and we just threw another €150 million into consultants to set up Irish Water. It’s well time to shout stop,” said Cllr. Ó Conchúir.
A spokesman for the City Council said that there was a statutory obligation on the local authorities to take a decision on any alteration to the Local Property Tax rate before September 30.
“At the City Council meeting on Wednesday, we will be setting out in detail the implications of any changes in the Local Property Tax rate. We will have a ready-reckoner guide for councillors to indicate how any change in the rate will impact on our finances,” said the spokesman.
Earlier this month, Environment Minister Alan Kelly, outlined that 10 local authorities, including Galway City Council, would be able to implement the full 15% tax reduction and still retain a surplus.
From 2015, local authorities will receive 80% of the Local Property Tax directly, with the remaining 20% to go into an ‘equalisation fund’ aimed at propping up ‘poorer’ Councils.
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.
On the eve of completing his 150th marathon, an odyssey that has taken him across 53 countries, Loughrea’s Marathon Man has announced that he is planning to hang up his running shoes.
But not before Jarlath Fitzgerald completes another ten races, making it 160 marathons on the occasion of his 60th birthday.
“I want to draw the line in 2026. I turn 57 in October and when I reach 60 it’s the finishing line. The longer races are taking it out of me. I did 20 miles there two weeks ago and didn’t feel good. It’s getting harder,” he reveals.
“I’ve arthritis in both hips and there’s wear and tear in the knees.”
We speak as he is about to head out for a run before his shift in Supervalu Loughrea. Despite his physical complaints, he still clocks up 30 miles every second week and generally runs four days a week.
Jarlath receives injections to his left hip to keep the pain at bay while running on the road.
To give his joints a break, during the winter he runs cross country and often does a five-mile trek around Kylebrack Wood.
He is planning on running his 150th marathon in Cork on June 4, where a group of 20 made up of work colleagues, friends and running mates from Loughrea Athletics Club will join him.
Some are doing the 10k, others are doing the half marathon, but all will be there on the finishing line to cheer him on in the phenomenal achievement.
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.
From the Galway City Tribune – An impassioned plea for a ‘masterplan’ that would guide Galway City into the future has been made in the Dáil. Galway West TD Catherine Connolly stated this week that there needed to be an all-inclusive approach with “vision and leadership” in order to build a sustainable city.
Deputy Connolly spoke at length at the crisis surrounding traffic and housing in Galway city and said that not all of the blame could be laid at the door of the local authority.
She said that her preference would be the provision of light rail as the main form of public transport, but that this would have to be driven by the government.
“I sat on the local council for 17 years and despaired at all of the solutions going down one road, metaphorically and literally. In 2005 we put Park & Ride into the development plan, but that has not been rolled out. A 2016 transport strategy was outdated at the time and still has not been updated.
“Due to the housing crisis in the city, a task force was set up in 2019. Not a single report or analysis has been published on the cause of the crisis,” added Deputy Connolly.
She then referred to a report from the Land Development Agency (LDA) that identified lands suitable for the provision of housing. But she said that two-thirds of these had significant problems and a large portion was in Merlin Park University Hospital which, she said, would never have housing built on it.
In response, Minister Simon Harris spoke of the continuing job investment in the city and also in higher education, which is his portfolio.
But turning his attention to traffic congestion, he accepted that there were “real issues” when it came to transport, mobility and accessibility around Galway.
“We share the view that we need a Park & Ride facility and I understand there are also Bus Connects plans.
“I also suggest that the City Council reflect on her comments. I am proud to be in a Government that is providing unparalleled levels of investment to local authorities and unparalleled opportunities for local authorities to draw down,” he said.
Then Minister Harris referred to the controversial Galway City Outer Ring Road which he said was “struck down by An Bord Pleanála”, despite a lot of energy having been put into that project.
However, Deputy Connolly picked up on this and pointed out that An Bord Pleanála did not say ‘No’ to the ring road.
“The High Court said ‘No’ to the ring road because An Bord Pleanála acknowledged it failed utterly to consider climate change and our climate change obligations.
“That tells us something about An Bord Pleanála and the management that submitted such a plan.”
In the end, Minister Harris agreed that there needed to be a masterplan for Galway City.
“I suggest it is for the local authority to come up with a vision and then work with the Government to try to fund and implement that.”
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
