Border tensions
The redrawing of the boundaries of Mayo’s electoral areas is likely to cause much political upheaval over the summer months News Feature Michael Duffy WE are often told that ‘all politics is local’ and judging by the response to the Electoral Area Boundary Committee’s plea for public submissions that statement would seem to hold true.
On January 8 last, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Mr John Gormley, announced that he had established two of these committees to review local electoral areas. He believed the review was needed to take account of the changes in population that have taken place since the last similar review in 1998. The committees are required to report to the Minister not later than June 20 and their reports will be considered as the basis for a revision of the local electoral areas for use at the local elections to be held in 2009.
Pleas for submissions from the public in relation to the review were made earlier this year and the closing date for receipt of submissions passed on March 14 last. A total of 16 submissions were received with regard to Mayo’s seven electoral areas and it is easy to decipher that there are genuine fears, particularly in Belmullet and Ballinrobe, that their political influence could be adversely affected if certain changes are made. The only electoral area which seems guaranteed not to be affected is Swinford, with not one of the 16 submissions even referring to the area currently represented by councillors Jimmy Maloney, Joe Mellett, Eugene Lavin and Gerry Murray.
The terms of reference for the review set the alarm bells ringing in Ballinrobe in particular, as it appears three-seater electoral areas will only be allowed by John Gormley in exceptional circumstances, while recent Census statistics revealed that Belmullet is now over-represented and Castlebar under-represented, causing concern in those area also.
All concerned parties were aware of the terms of reference before making their submissions but what becomes clear on studying the submissions is that the final rulings are unlikely to be to everyone’s satisfaction. Here is a summary of the arguments out forward in the contentious electoral areas:
TWELVE of the 16 submissions dealt in some shape or form with Ballinrobe and it does appear that the consensus of those resident in the burgeoning south Mayo town is that a re-amalgamation with the Claremorris area would be ‘disastrous’.
In an ideal world, those who made submissions would be happy with the status quo but knowing the Minister is unlikely to leave the area as a three-seater, most feel attempts should be made to include townlands on the outskirts of the town which are currently in other electoral areas.
Local businessman and former Fine Gael councillor, Michael Burke, feels any extension should include the Tourmakeady and Finney areas as residents of these areas already use the council’s local area office in Ballinrobe – but are not represented by the local representatives of Ballinrobe.
“The areas mentioned are a natural hinterland of Ballinrobe like Cong, Cross, The Neale and Kilmaine and these would be best represented by being included within the Ballinrobe Electoral Area Boundary,” said Mr Burke in his submission.
However, it would appear that the people of Finney and Tourmakeady are happy to remain in the Castlebar Electoral Area and they even go further by suggesting that Castlebar should now be made into a seven-seater electoral area.
“Despite being on the periphery of the electoral area, our communities have enjoyed excellent service from Castlebar representatives for many generations. We strongly oppose any proposal for an enlargement of Ballinrobe Electoral Area which would include our District Electoral Divisions (DEDs),” states the submission signed by ten residents of the Tourmakeady and Finney areas.
Other submissions from the Ballinrobe Fianna Fáil comhairle ceantair, from the Ballinrobe Community Development Council, from Mr Michael Varley from Cong and Mr R Kelly from Glencorrib/Kilroe Development Council all stress the need to maintain a Ballinrobe Electoral Area in some shape or form.
Whereas the Census revealed that the Castlebar area is currently under-represented due to its growth in population, it also revealed that due to the falling population of the Erris area, it could now be argued that Belmullet is over-represented.
However, those who made submissions on behalf of this area were at pains to suggest that, due to the unique character of the area, a four-seater electoral area needs to be maintained.
Mr Michael J Deane of Glenamoy suggests that some of Westport’s DEDs should be transferred into the Belmullet region to allow it maintain its four councillors, but in his submission, Cllr Frank Chambers disagrees, as he is looking for both Newport West and Shramore to be transferred back into the Westport area from Belmullet.
Cllr Chambers believes these areas are too far (69km) from the administrative centre of the Belmullet Electoral Area. He suggest that the DEDs of Ballycastle Area, Kilfian West and Kilfian be transferred from the Ballina area to Belmullet.
However, former councillor, Paraic Cosgrove, made the most groundbreaking suggestion of all 16 submissions, when he suggested that the Erris/Belmullet area be given its own ‘compact’ three-seat electoral area. He said this move would go some way towards ‘redressing that imbalance which has left the area without a Local TD since 1973, bearing in mind that we elected two TDs in the old North Mayo constituency in 1954’.
Finally, Cllr Frank Chambers also makes a point in his submission with regard to the terms of reference of the whole review, which he suggests are ‘strictly based on population criteria, with no reference to the traditional hinterlands of towns and villages where people traditionally gravitate to’.
If the review committee make all their decisions based ‘strictly on population criteria’, then the likelihood is that final decisions will not be to the liking of many of those who have made submissions.
On the face of it, the review is a very complex process and the committee have an unenviable task but the reality is their final decisions will have a huge bearing on next year’s local elections and may even deter some candidates from putting their name on the ballot paper.
Of course, what happens to Ballinrobe is likely to impinge on the Castlebar Electoral Area, but from the submissions received it does appear that residents of four DEDs (Portroyal, Burriscarra, Newbrook and Roslee), which were transferred to the Ballinrobe Electoral Area in the late 1990s, would prefer a return to Castlebar.
Mr Sean Hallinan observes that the parish of Ballintubber/Burriscarra was split in two as a result of the changes and that the people resident in these communities ‘have a natural affiliation with west Mayo and Castlebar in particular, regarding shopping, entertainment, education, schools and social outlets’.
Mr Hallinan’s views are backed up by community organisations in the Carnacon area whose submission was similar to that of the Finney/Tourmakeady submission, in that it suggested the re-joining of the four previously mentioned DEDs with the Castlebar Electoral Area.
