200 staff could face council transfer

Cork county councillors have insisted that their staff are kept constantly updated on any transfers to City Hall they may face as a result of the city’s proposed boundary extension.

The council has lodged a statutory proposal to the city council to cede it territory in Frankfield, Douglas, Grange and Ballyvolane.

If this is accepted by the city council, which has up to six months to decide, it will result in the transfer of approximately 211 staff from County Hall to City Hall.

However, if the Mackinnon recommendations are adopted by the government, the county council will lose jurisdiction of Cork Airport, Ballincollig, Blarney, Glanmire, Glounthaune, Little Island,and Carrigtwohill.

This would lead to far more staff having to transfer to City Hall.

In its statutory report on the boundary extension offer, senior county council officials said the 211 staff involved would be across “a full range of grades”. The report said these are matters that will have to be “the subject of further due diligence examination and, discussion with unions and staff”.

Bantry Fianna Fáil councillor Pat Murphy said he was “extremely worried” about how much time it will take to transfer even the small number that were being proposed if the county council’s offer was accepted.

Carrigtwohill Fine Gael councillor Anthony Barry said the transfer of staff was crazy as the best solution was to create one unified local authority.

He said he was also “appalled” that the city council now wanted even more territory than that which had been included in the Mackinnion recommendations and if that went through then even more county council staff would be lost to County Hall.

He was referring to a report circulated by the city council last week which extended the city boundary even further east of Carrigtwohill, down as far as Waterrock, near Midleton.

Mlr Barry said it was patently obvious it was just “another cash grab.”

He said the additional area being sought had been zoned for the development of thousands of new homes and therefore the city council would considerably profit from future local property tax.