The first report was not well received in Cork City and now, it seems, the local view has prevailed with the second report and recommendation much more in line with local demands. Note the essence of the recommendation with this quote from yesterdays McKinnon Report. “The Group has concluded that Cork would be best served by a City Council that is focused on the development of the city and its immediate hinterland…with the potential to drive the development of the city region, and a County Council that is focused on the needs of county towns and rural parts of Cork.”
Now cast your mind back to the Aylward Report in 2012 which
recommended a merger between Waterford City Council and Waterford County
Council. This recommendation too was very badly received in Waterford generally
and in both Councils which had unanimously rejected it. It is interesting to note the difference
even in tone of the recommendation to merge both Councils in the Waterford Report with the
following quote. “Whilst proposing one local authority for Waterford City and
County, the Committee notes the major concerns of those opposed to amalgamation
voiced in the submissions and outlined at the beginning of this section. For
the merger to deliver the proposed benefits and savings, and at the same time
respond to the concerns raised, it is the Committee’s view that merger must be
accompanied by a number of other initiatives relating to sub county structures
of government, political representation and the status of the City, rating and
deficit issues, and Waterford’s Gateway status. These issues are elaborated in
Section 4, and it is the Committee’s view that these issues must be addressed
for merger to be successful.”
The Waterford committee seems to have been very taken at the
time with an IDA submission in favour of the merger, even quoting it in their conclusions, saying “the proposed restructuring of the local
authorities in Waterford, combining the City and County Councils is welcome.”
One might assume from this that the IDA saw the merger as a positive selling
point for their efforts to attract FDI to Waterford and you might assume
consequently that Waterford has enjoyed an increase in IDA job creation and
investment? You would be wrong. Visits to Waterford by IDA have plummeted in
recent years from a high of over 30 visits in 2015 (a uniquely high year and something of an outlier in terms of the usual number of visits) back to just
17 in 2016 and just 3 in Q1 of 2017.
Incidentally, none of the ‘other initiatives’ detailed by the Waterford committee in their report or in the accompanying Economic vision
document which were required ‘for the merger to be successful’ have happened
either.
So Waterford City has no Council focusing on the City as a
driver for the development of the region – as is recommended for Cork City and
furthermore Waterford County has no Council that is focussed on the needs of
County Towns and rural parts of the County.
But that it seems, while not good
enough for Cork, is indeed, good enough for Waterford.
But is seems we may huff and puff all we like at the injustice of it all. No one is listening. Oh you want proof? The one report which found in Waterfords' favour - to extend the boundary into South Kilkenny - was rejected by Minister Simon Coveney. For political reasons nothing to do with proper planning and development. But that's a whole other story.
And of course Minister Coveney is from Cork and cares what the electorate there think and not from Waterford.
All politics is local.
