Laytown/Bettystown... Cllr Elaine McGinty.

New cathaoirligh take the reins at municipal district councils

Municipal councils around Meath have new faces at the helm as the annual meetings and election of Cathaoirligh takes place in the county's six municipal districts.

Five new Cathaoirligh or chairpersons have been elected so far, while the Mayor of Navan will be elected tomorrow Wednesday.

Cllr Padraig Fitzsimons (Fianna Fail) is expected to be elected first citizen of Navan as part of the Mayoral pact which includes Fianna Fail, Sinn Fein and Independent, Francis Deane. Cllr Tommy Reilly (FF) is expected to be elected Deputy Mayor.

Meanwhile, Cllr Mike Bray has been elected as the Cathaoirleach of the Kells Municipal District.

The 30-year-old from Fordstown said, “I am humbled and honoured to be elected as cathaoirleach for the local area and I look forward to working on behalf of the local communities in Athboy, Kells, Oldcastle, North Meath and the surrounding areas.”

“This is an important year for our community as we are entering a positive place in our long battle against this awful pandemic.

“As cathaoirleach I want to make sure all that can be done will be done by the local authority to support businesses and community groups as they begin to further reopen their services again over the coming months.

“Businesses, especially those in the hospitality and retail trade still face a challenging period and we need to support them, and this will be the focus for me in the coming months."

In Laytown/Bettystown, Cllr Elaine McGinty (Labour) was elected chair with the support of all councillors, except Cllr Paddy Meade.

"My focus remains on supporting effective, accessible, affordable housing, built with communities in mind where access to school places and childcare are no longer an issue, where working from home and all its challenges are supported within the community, where local shops and business can be supported, access to public transport, bicycle lanes, sport and leisure facilities are no longer an afterthought, a place where communities, not developments, are built and thrive," she said.

Cllr Suzanne Jamal was elected cathaoirleach in the Ashburne area with the support of her Fine Gael colleague, Alan Tobin, Cllr Conor Tormey (FF) and Amanda Smith (Ind).

"I am looking forward to the year ahead. I hope it will be a better year for everybody. and I'm looking forward to meeting with people and groups such as Pride of Place and Tidy Towns."

In the Ratoath electoral area, Cllr Nick Killian was unanimously elected chairman. "It is an honour to be elected cathaoirleach and I look forward to working with my Council colleagues over the next 12 months.

Cllr Joe Fox was unanimously elected in the Trim electoral area.