Last Monday was my first full Council Meeting. The long and confusing agenda looked daunting. I thought I would never get my head around it but with a lot of help from Joan and Kieran, I think I got it.

After a long discussion on emergency motions dealing with the recent flooding in Dublin, we welcomed into the council chambers Maria Metcalf who is replacing Maureen O’Sullivan. It’s great to have another truly independent councillor on board.

The next three hours was taken up with Governance Issues – appointments to committees and council bodies (most of this sorted outside of the actual meeting).

Reports from the council officials on protected structures, disposal of properties and the granting of leases then followed. One report in particular was controversial.

A three-year lease to operate the market at the Red Stables in St. Anne’s Park, Raheny was awarded to Fingal Market Management. Previously this was held by the Irish Farmers Market.

I asked the manager to answer three questions on this

1. We are told this was the most favourable tender but we are not told Why – What were the conditions submitted that made this tender the most favourable?
2. Why is the rent – €7,200 per annum – so low? I had helped a friend run a stall at that market two years ago and the rent of a stall for one day was €75 plus each stall holder had to provide their own public liability insurance and deal with their own waste. In one day of the market (and it ran two days each weekend) they would pick up about €1,000 in rent from stall holders.

NEW COUNCIL FACES IMPORTANT TEST TODAY ON PROPOSALS TO DEAL WITH IMPACT OF RECESSION
In a statement, Cllr Richard Boyd Barrett and Cllr Hugh Lewis of the People Before Profit Alliance (PBPA), said today’s meeting (Monday 6th July) of the newly elected Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown Co. Council, now controlled by Labour and Fine Gael, faced an important test as to whether it was serious about taking action to deal with the impact of recession in the County.

PBPA has put forward a number of motions aimed at tackling different aspects of the economic crisis, as they are affecting citizens of the county, particularly in the areas of jobs, housing and those on low incomes.

The PBPA proposals include schemes to create jobs employing currently unemployed workers directly to repair boarded-up council houses and establish a council-run farm/market-gardening enterprise, as well as major expansion in the provision of allotments and community garden, so that local citizens could grow their own food.

PBPA also have two motions dealing with bin taxes, calling on the Council to cease threats and legal action against those unable to pay bin taxes and to restore the full waiver scheme for those on low incomes.

The PBPA proposals come, as it is anticipated that County Manager, Owen Keegan, will today give a financial report, suggesting significant cut-backs in Council spending. PBPA believe the focus should be on generating public enterprise and job creation rather than deflationary cut-backs.

Cllr Richard Boyd Barrett said: