'Bring back Bertie' - Mayo councillor calls for more funds from government

INDEPENDENT councillor Richard Finn has called for a return to the Bertie Ahern era of direct local roads funding, telling a Roads Strategic Policy Committee meeting in Ballina today that county councils are being "bled dry" while money flows to NGOs and central government announcements.

"When he was Taoiseach every councillor had a distribution of money, local people in local areas could be looked after," the Claremorris based representative said.

He added that the current system favoured TDs and ministers who could make funding announcements "at the expense of local people, at the expense of councillors, at the expense of outdoor staff in county councils all across the country."

He said other councillors who served with him back in that era would agree that there was "great funding available in those days."

Chair of the roads SPC and Fianna Fáil Councillor Annie May Reape credited former minister Éamon Ó Cuív with introducing the localised funding model, noting it came alongside Clár funding for rural development.

* Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.