The Cathaoirleach of Kilkenny County Council is now also the President of the Association of Irish Local Government.
At its AGM in Carlow yesterday, Thursday, the Castlecomer Municipal District Councillor Pat Fitzpatrick was unanimously elected to head up the AILG which represents the close to 1,000 councillors elected to local authorities around the country.
Cllr Fitzpatrick, who just last week finished his reign at the helm of the Kilkenny Joint Policing Committee, says his new position is a “Very important role, it’s the role of councillors, the 949 councillors, right across Ireland, each year the AILG selects its President for the following year and I was selected and delighted and very, very deeply humbled and honoured”.
He’s been telling KCLR News that the appointment will give him a higher profile to push local issues; “It will give us access to departments, more access to Government, more access to the CCMA which is the County Manager’s Association but more importantly it’s representing the 949 councillors right across this country”.
And he adds that he’ll spend the next year campaigning to give more power back to local representatives like himself after their role was reduced under reforms brought in by former Minister Phil Hogan; “Since the reform of local government maybe I would contend that the local councillors have lost quite a bit of power and I’m certainly trying to address some of that but look it there has been great work done by the previous presidents and indeed the executive and members of AILG and I want to build on that work”.
