Wexford County Council Comhairle Contae Loch Garman | |
|---|---|
 | |
 | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| History | |
| Founded | 1 April 1899 |
| Leadership | |
Joe Sullivan, FF | |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 34 |
 | |
Political groups |
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| Elections | |
Last election | 7 June 2024 |
| Motto | |
| Latin:Exemplar Hiberniae "An example to Ireland" | |
| Meeting place | |
| County Hall,Wexford | |
| Website | |
Official website | |
Wexford County Council (Irish:Comhairle Contae Loch Garman) is thelocal authority ofCounty Wexford,Ireland. As acounty council, it is governed by theLocal Government Act 2001. The council is responsible forhousing and community, roads andtransportation,urban planning and development, amenity andculture, andenvironment. The council has 34 elected members. Elections are held every five years and are bysingle transferable vote. The head of the council has the title ofCathaoirleach (chairperson). The county administration is headed by achief executive, currently Eddie Taaffe. Thecounty town isWexford.
Wexford County Council was established on 1 April 1899 under theLocal Government (Ireland) Act 1898 for theadministrative county ofCounty Wexford.[1][2][3] It succeeded the judicial county of Wexford, with the addition of the part of the town ofNew Ross which was formerly inCounty Kilkenny.[4] The first meeting of the council was on 22 April 1899.[5]
From 1899 to 1920, meetings of the county council were held in the Grand Jury room of the old Wexford Courthouse on Commercial Quay.[6] After the old courthouse burnt down in theIrish War of Independence, a new courthouse was established on the site of the old jail in Hill Street in 1930.[6][7] The county council relocated to the site in Hill Street at the same time.[8][9] After the condition of the properties in Hill Street proved inadequate, the county council moved to a modernCounty Hall in Carricklawn in September 2011[9] and a moderncourthouse was opened on Belvedere Road in 2018.[10]
In 2014, thetown councils ofEnniscorthy,Gorey andNew Ross and the borough council ofWexford were dissolved under theLocal Government Reform Act 2014. Their jurisdiction was transferred to the county council.[11]
Wexford County Council has three representatives on theSouthern Regional Assembly who are part of theSouth-East Strategic Planning Area Committee.[12][13]
TheLocal Government (Ireland) Act 1919 introduced theelectoral system ofproportional representation by means of thesingle transferable vote (PR-STV) for the1920 Irish local elections.[14] County Wexford was divided into 4 county electoral areas to elect the 19 members of the council.[15] This electoral system has been retained, with 34 members of Wexford County Council now elected for a five-year term of office from 6 multi-memberlocal electoral areas (LEAs).
| Year | FF | FG | Lab | SF | Aon | WIA | PBP | Ind. | Total | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 9 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 34 | ||||||||
| 2019 | 12 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 1 | N/a | 0 | 8 | 34 | ||||||||
| 2014 | 11 | 9 | 2 | 5 | N/a | N/a | 1 | 6 | 34 | ||||||||
| 2009 | 5 | 10 | 4 | 0 | N/a | N/a | 0 | 2 | 21 | ||||||||
| 2004 | 6 | 7 | 1 | 3 | N/a | N/a | N/a | 4 | 21 | ||||||||
| 1999 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 0 | N/a | N/a | N/a | 3 | 21 | ||||||||
| 1991 | 8 | 8 | 1 | 0 | N/a | N/a | N/a | 4 | 21 | ||||||||
| 1985 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 0 | N/a | N/a | N/a | 3 | 21 | ||||||||
County Wexford is divided into LEAs, defined byelectoral divisions, for elections to the council.[16][17] These are grouped into borough and municipal districts for the local exercise of the powers of the local authority. The municipal district which contains the administrative area of the former borough of Wexford is referred to as a borough district.[18]
| Municipal district | LEA | Definition | Seats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enniscorthy | Ballindaggan, Ballycarney, Ballyhoge, Bree, Castledockrell, Enniscorthy Rural, Enniscorthy Urban, Ferns, Kilbora, Killoughrum, Kilrush, Kiltealy, Marshalstown, Moyacomb, Newtownbarry, Rossard, St. Marys, The Leap and Tombrack. | 6 | |
| Gorey–Kilmuckridge | Gorey | Ardamine, Balloughter, Ballybeg, Ballyellis, Ballylarkin, Ballynestragh, Coolgreany, Courtown, Gorey Rural, Gorey Urban, Huntingtown, Kilcomb, Kilgorman, Kilnahue, Limerick, Monaseed, Rossminoge and Wingfield. | 6 |
| Kilmuckridge | Ballycanew, Ballygarrett, Ballyhuskard, Ballymore, Ballyvaldon, Bolaboy, Cahore, Castle Ellis, Castle Talbot, Edermine, Ford, Kilcormick, Killenagh, Killincooly, Kilmallock, Monamolin, The Harrow, Tinnacross and Wells. | 4 | |
| New Ross | Adamstown, Ballyanne, Ballyhack, Barrack Village, Barronstown, Carnagh, Carrickbyrne, Castleboro, Clonleigh, Clonroche, Dunmain, Fethard, Horetown, Inch, Kilgarvan, Killann, Killesk, Kilmokea, New Ross Rural, New Ross Urban, Newbawn, Old Ross, Oldcourt, Rathroe, Rochestown, Rosbercon Urban, Templeludigan, Templetown, Tintern, Whitechurch (in the former Rural District of New Ross), Whitechurch (in the former Rural District of Wexford) and Whitemoor. | 6 | |
| Rosslare | Aughwilliam, Ballymitty, Bannow, Bridgetown, Clongeen, Duncormick, Harperstown, Harristown, Kilcowan, Killag, Killinick, Kilmore, Kilscoran, Ladys Island, Mayglass, Newcastle, Rosslare, St. Helens, Tacumshin, Taghmon and Tomhaggard; and those parts of the electoral divisions of Drinagh and Rathaspick not contained in the local electoral area of Wexford. | 5 | |
| Borough District ofWexford | Wexford | Ardcavan, Ardcolm, Artramon, Carrick, Forth, Glynn, Kilbride, Killurin, Kilpatrick, Wexford No. 1 Urban, Wexford No. 2 Urban, Wexford No. 3 Urban, Wexford Rural; and those parts of the electoral divisions of Drinagh and Rathaspick to the north of a line drawn as follows: Commencing at the boundary between the electoral divisions of Rathaspick and Wexford Rural at the N25 and then proceeding in a south-easterly direction along the N25 to the roundabout at the junction of the N25 and the R730, and then proceeding along an easterly projection to the boundary between the electoral divisions of Drinagh and Rosslare. | 7 |
| Total | 34 | ||
The following were elected at the2024 Wexford County Council election.
| Party | Seats | |
|---|---|---|
| Fianna Fáil | 9 | |
| Fine Gael | 8 | |
| Wexford Ind. Alliance | 5 | |
| Sinn Féin | 3 | |
| Labour | 2 | |
| Aontú | 1 | |
| Independent | 6 | |
This list reflects the order in which councillors were elected on 7 June 2024.[19]
| Council members from2024 election | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Local electoral area | Name | Party | |
| Enniscorthy | Cathal Byrne[a] | Fine Gael | |
| Aidan Browne | Fianna Fáil | ||
| Barbara-Anne Murphy | Fianna Fáil | ||
| John O'Rourke | Independent | ||
| Jackser Owens | Independent | ||
| Pat Kehoe | Fine Gael | ||
| Gorey | Donal Kenny | Fianna Fáil | |
| Nicky Boland | Wexford Ind. Alliance | ||
| Joe Sullivan | Fianna Fáil | ||
| Darragh McDonald | Fine Gael | ||
| Anthony Donohoe | Fine Gael | ||
| Fionntán Ó Súilleabháin[a] | Sinn Féin | ||
| Kilmuckridge | Mary Farrell | Independent | |
| Pip Breen | Fianna Fáil | ||
| Oliver Walsh | Fine Gael | ||
| Paddy Kavanagh | Wexford Ind. Alliance | ||
| New Ross | Pat Barden | Wexford Ind. Alliance | |
| Michael Sheehan[b] | Fianna Fáil | ||
| John Fleming | Fianna Fáil | ||
| Marty Murphy | Wexford Ind. Alliance | ||
| Bridín Murphy | Fine Gael | ||
| John Dwyer | Independent | ||
| Rosslare | Jim Codd | Aontú | |
| Ger Carthy | Independent | ||
| Frank Staples | Fine Gael | ||
| Lisa McDonald | Fianna Fáil | ||
| Aoife Rose O'Brien | Sinn Féin | ||
| Wexford | George Lawlor[a] | Labour | |
| Robbie Staples | Fine Gael | ||
| Garry Laffan | Fianna Fáil | ||
| Leonard Kelly | Independent | ||
| Tom Forde | Sinn Féin | ||
| Raymond Shannon | Wexford Ind. Alliance | ||
| Catherine Walsh | Labour | ||
| Party | Outgoing | LEA | Reason | Date | Co-optee | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sinn Féin | Fionntán Ó Súilleabháin | Gorey | Elected to34th Dáil forWicklow–Wexford at the2024 general election | 16 December 2024 | Craig Doyle[20] | |
| Labour | George Lawlor | Wexford | Elected to 34th Dáil forWexford at the 2024 general election | 16 December 2024 | Vicky Clancy Barron[21] | |
| Fine Gael | Cathal Byrne | Enniscorthy | Elected to27th Seanad at the2025 Seanad election | 31 January 2025 | Patricia Byrne[22] | |
| Name | LEA | Elected as | New affiliation | Date | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Sheehan | New Ross | Fianna Fáil | Independent | 4 November 2024[23] | ||