LIMERICK City and County Council has been prompted to seek Government funding to retain infrastructure on the city’s Northside which has “stopped murders”.
At Monday’s Metropolitan District meeting, Independent councillor Ursula Gavan and Fianna Fáil councillor Joe Pond called on the local authority to secure funding from the Department’s of Justice and Local Government to keep Moyross CCTV monitoring centre open.
Cllr Gavan told Council management the motion came on the back of a public meeting in Castleconnell where Gardaà expressed their concerns about the possibility of losing this “vital service”.
This infrastructure, she said, assists Gardaà in tackling crime and anti-social behaviour all across Limerick.
“It is critical for residents and businesses to feel secure in their community, and we just can’t be left in a situation where we were last year, where monies were secured at the final hour for that. So I’m just asking that everybody from the Mayor to the guards and this chamber advocates for the service,” she said.
Seconding the motion, Cllr Joe Pond said the proposal speaks for itself, before expressing his strong belief that the CCTV centre is essential for the city and its environs.
Social Democrats councillor Shane Hickey-O’Mara said that the setup in the centre is “incredible”.
“I just know from from working with residents and with Gardaà that there was one case where those cameras actually lead to a prosecution and to a community feeling so much safer. It is literally working. It is helping the Gardaà in their work,” Cllr Hickey-O’Mara added.
Independent councillor Maria Donoghue also supported the motion, and pointed out that the infrastructure is saving lives.
“When I worked here in the Council in 2019, there was a review of the status of the GDPR and the CCTV in the Regeneration areas in Limerick. To try and bolster the public consultation at the time, we had representatives from each of the four Regeneration areas in to discuss the benefits of the CCTV to their areas,” she recalled.
“One comment that a resident made in one of the four areas was that the CCTV had essentially stopped murders in their area. I think if the Department cannot see fit to support this mechanism that stops murders, well, then it just doesn’t make sense at all – it’s common sense.”
The Council acknowledged the importance of the Moyross CCTV monitoring centre and agreed that it assists Gardaà in tackling crime and anti-social behaviour across Limerick.
Council members were then advised that the Department of Housing has commenced a phased withdrawal from the funding of CCTV operations, based on a 25 per cent annual step-down.
“This has resulted in a  funding shortfall of approximately €440,000 in the current year, with the potential for this to increase to an annual shortfall of approximately  €880,000 over the coming years,” said the Council’s head of information systems, Alan Dooley.
“In this context, the Council welcomes and acknowledges the commitment of the Mayor of Limerick to fund the shortfall for 2026, which provides as essential short-term solution for the operation of the service.
“The long-term sustainability and certainty of the CCTV service will require the securing of sustainable multi-annual funding, and members are advised that engagement with the Department of Justice is ongoing to seek a commitment in this regard,” he concluded.
– Local Democracy Reporting Scheme