FOUR hours into a special meeting on Tuesday evening (February 10) on Limerick City and County Council’s Corporate Plan 2025-2029 and the Dooradoyle chamber was still mired in stalemate as behind-closed-doors negotiations continued into the night.
Developed through an inclusive, organisation-wide approach, the plan was first prepared to take into account the mayoral programme and policies and objectives set out in other plans. Tailored to the specific corporate needs of the Limerick Council, it was designed to adapt to emerging international and national challenges, changing priorities, and the reallocation of resources throughout its duration.
An epic seven-hour special meeting was held this week to try and drill down through the document to make sure all parties were happy to move forward in unison with the strategic framework, which will map the local authority’s course for the next four years.
At the outset, party leader for Fine Gael’s elected members, Cllr John Sheahan pointed to the fact they were “very behind schedule” with the corporate plan – with the passing of the plan having been put back previously from December 2024. He said it was important that business now gets done as it had lots of ramifications for the workings of the Council.
Fianna Fáil’s party leader in Limerick Council, Cllr Michael Collins, was equally disappointed in delays and claimed there had been a serious lack of consultation.
“We tried to go down the route of consultation and we also looked for mediation and some professional help and, for some reason, we were blocked,” Cllr Collins told the chamber.
Most of the hammering out of the finer details were carried out in private, out of the media’s gaze, in the Dooradoyle Council chambers between Mayor John Moran, party leaders, and members of the executive.
As evening drew into night, the patience of management, councillors, and onlookers alike was tested as the prolonged affair saw one adjournment after another. And not everyone was happy, in particular the Independent councillors.
Cllr Ursula Gavan hit out that not everyone was included in the process and took the view that amendments called for by the Independent group were overlooked. She claimed that much of the finer details had been agreed on “behind closed doors” between Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, and the Mayor, without the involvement of the elected Independents.
Fine Gael councillor John Sheahan told Cllr Gavan, who was attending the meeting online, that “it is advisable to get into the chamber and make your voice heard”.
“If you want input into this, you have to roll up the sleeves and get in here and get into the action.”
After another adjournment so councillors could take a look at the amendments before them, elected representatives were ready to consider the corporate plan – over seven hours after the meeting first commenced.
Before a vote took place, Fianna Fáil councillor Bridie Collins reminded Council members that Limerick City and County Council was the only local authority in Ireland that did not currently have a corporate plan. She pleaded with her colleagues to get it over the line so that the executive and councillors can carry on with their full function.
“We have failed so far in our remit and I include everyone in this to bring it over the line,” Cllr Collins commented.
It would turn out to be just after 11pm when the marathon meeting finished, and the Corporate Plan 2025-2029 was passed 26 votes to 8, incorporating the mission, vision, and values of the Council for the coming years.
– Local Democracy Reporting Scheme