Boyle to become first Green lord mayor of Cork city

Cork City Council has appointed its first Green Party lord mayor. Veteran councillor and former TD Dan Boyle was elected to the position and will serve for a year.

Conscious of that term, Cllr Boyle said he would hope to inject intensity into existing projects, including the provision of housing and the conversion of vacant and derelict properties for accommodation.

“I would like to think we are going in the right direction in several areas, but I would like to see us do it with a greater intensity,” Cllr Boyle told RTÉ News.

“We have many buildings that are vacant and derelict in our city centre in particular. I think they could be better used for housing. That would renew communities, it would give a customer base to our businesses,” he added.

Cllr Boyle also said he hopes to create more open and green spaces in the city.

In terms of the current contest to select a new leader for the Green Party, he felt members would be likely to be swayed by whoever had the best chance of being reelected to the Dáil.

He felt that criteria suited Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman better than Minister for State Pippa Hackett.

He noted that nominations remain open over the weekend and said party members had a good choice available to them.

Cllr Boyle claimed the Green Party performed relatively well in the local and European elections earlier this month.

He said in the European elections the party’s two Green MEPs were only marginally beaten and in the local elections, the Green Party got more votes than the Social Democrats.

“I think seats we won on the margins in 2019 we lost on the margins in 2024,” he said.

FF’s Joe Carroll elected as mayor of Cork County Council

Meanwhile, Fianna Fáil Councillor Joe Carroll has been elected as Mayor of County Cork.

He began his career in politics in 1999 when he was elected to Skibbereen Town Council and was first elected to Cork County Council in June, 2004, representing the Skibbereen-West Cork local electoral area.

He was nominated to the position of County Mayor by Councillor Séamus McGrath and seconded by Cllr Alan Coleman.

Cllr Carroll grew up in Dunmanway and has lived in Skibbereen for most of his life with his wife, Sheila, and their family.

He previously worked as a bus driver with CIE and as a publican.

“I look forward to using my time as mayor to support communities and businesses across the county,” he said.

“My key priority is ensuring that Cork County Council is adequately funded by government. I want to ensure that we can provide the services that matter most to the people of this incredible county, like our local roads that have been devastated by extreme rainfall, as well as supporting the growth of our towns and our villages.

“Another area that I am passionate about is listening to the young people of County Cork. We need to partner with other sectors to keep our young people here, supporting them to create a future of their choosing and giving them every opportunity to live and work in County Cork.”

Cllr Carroll said the promotion of tourism would also be a priority for him.

“I see the positive impact tourism has on County Cork. It is incredible to see cruise liners now calling to our wonderful harbours and coastal locations. I would like to see this expanded to even more places so that we can share our beautiful county with more people from across the globe and encourage them to return again and again,” he said.

He said he would be supportive of the campaign to have the nine per cent VAT rate restored to the tourism sector.

“I will do everything I can to help them in this endeavour,” he said..

Mayor Carroll has represented Cork County Council as a member of the Southern Regional Assembly since its establishment in 2014 and served as Cathaoirleach of the Southern Regional Assembly in 2019 when he worked on the adoption of the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy for the Southern Region.

Cllr Martin Coughlan, an independent for the Macroom Local Electoral area, has been elected as the Deputy Mayor of the County of Cork.