8 February 2001 Edition
Councillors walk out of meeting
Sinn Féin councillors walked out of a meeting of Armagh district Council on Monday night, 30 January, in protest at the handling of the issue of the striking of the local rate.
Sinn Féin councillors Sean McGirr and Noel Sheridan refused to `rubber stamp' the council's proposed 5.2% rise in rates along with the regional rate of 8%. The argument arose when the Sinn Féin councillors proposed an deferment of the decision for one week to allow them time to analyise the proposals and the council's figures for estimated expenditure for the coming year. The Sinn Féin councillors complained that as the relevant figures had only been presented to them at the meeting they had not received sufficient time to see if any amendments could be put forward with a view to easing the rate burden on local ratepayers.
Unionist and SDLP councillors who recommended that the rate increase be adopted without any further consultation rejected this proposal. Speaking after the meeting Sinn Féin Councillor Noel Sheridan said, ``The crux of the problem is that as Sinn Féin is excluded from the influential policy and resources committee by both the unionists and SDLP we were then being asked to rubber stamp a proposal into which we had no input. It was only fair that we were allowed time to study the proposals and where applicable make amendments, which hopefully would have been of benefit to local ratepayers.''
Sinn Féin councillors Sean McGirr and Noel Sheridan refused to `rubber stamp' the council's proposed 5.2% rise in rates along with the regional rate of 8%. The argument arose when the Sinn Féin councillors proposed an deferment of the decision for one week to allow them time to analyise the proposals and the council's figures for estimated expenditure for the coming year. The Sinn Féin councillors complained that as the relevant figures had only been presented to them at the meeting they had not received sufficient time to see if any amendments could be put forward with a view to easing the rate burden on local ratepayers.
Unionist and SDLP councillors who recommended that the rate increase be adopted without any further consultation rejected this proposal. Speaking after the meeting Sinn Féin Councillor Noel Sheridan said, ``The crux of the problem is that as Sinn Féin is excluded from the influential policy and resources committee by both the unionists and SDLP we were then being asked to rubber stamp a proposal into which we had no input. It was only fair that we were allowed time to study the proposals and where applicable make amendments, which hopefully would have been of benefit to local ratepayers.''