-          Notice of Motion 13.18 from Cllr. John Naughten

-          Notice of Motion 14.18 from Cllr. Tony Ward

-          Notice of Motion 15.18 from Cllr. Ivan Connaughton

Local Improvement Schemes

13.18 Notice of Motion from Councillor Naughten

“That Roscommon County Council re-open the Local Improvement Scheme for new applications”

The Meetings Administrator read the following reply:

Roscommon County Council currently has an additional 72 Local Improvement Scheme applications on hand totalling in excess of €1million. These will be dealt with in line with the Scheme of Priority as agreed by the Strategic Policy Committee subject to additional funding allocated from the Department of Rural and Community Development. It was also agreed by the SPC that no new applications would be accepted or the Local Improvement Scheme be re-advertised until the current backlog of applications is cleared. 

In 2018 Roscommon County Council received €820,000 in LIS funding from the Department of Rural & Community Development that was allocated to 91 scheme applications.

Cllr. Naughten thanked the Meetings Administrator for the reply and acknowledged the significant funding received but said that a number of the schemes might not go ahead and there are still many roads with a lot of houses in need of the scheme.  The Council should reopen the scheme and be in a position if additional funds come through to have adequate schemes to take up this funding. He agreed that the existing applications be dealt with first.

Cllr. Ward proposed an amendment that the LIS scheme needs to be changed to allow applications whereby if there is only one home owner/landowner on a road they not be excluded from the scheme.

On the PROPOSAL of Cllr. Naughten

             SECONDED by Cllr. Ward

It was AGREED that Roscommon County Council, through the SPC, reopen the Local Improvement Scheme for applications in early 2019 and to write to the Minister to amend the scheme to allow roads that have only one householder/landowner be included in the scheme.

HSE Funding for Sacred Heart Hospital

14.18 Notice of Motion from Councillor Ward

“I am calling on the Minister for Health, Mr. Simon Harris T.D., and the Government and the Health Service Executive, to provide the necessary funding to build new 50 bedded CNU on the site of the Sacred Heart Hospital in Roscommon”

The Meetings Administrator read the following reply:

This Notice of Motion requires a Resolution of the Council.

Cllr. Ward informed the members that he has raised the question regarding the funding for the CNU on many occasions with the HSE and it was confirmed to him that the sum of €9m was ring-fenced. At the last meeting of the HSE forum he was taken aback to hear that the funding is not ring-fenced and the project pushed out to 2024.

On the PROPOSAL of Cllr. Ward

             SECONDED by Cllr. Kilduff

It was AGREED to write to the Minister for Health Mr. Simon Harris to get confirmation that the Community Nursing Unit proposed for on the site of the Sacred Heart Hospital in Roscommon is included in the Capital Plan and the €9m cost is ring- fenced for this project.

Cllr. Ward asked that all Roscommon Oireachtas members highlight this matter.

Public Sector Employees Working Christmas Day

15.18 Notice of Motion from Councillor Connaughton

I call on the Minister of Finance responsible for Budget 2020, to include a provision whereby all employees in the Public Sector who work on Christmas Day on any year avail of full exemption of tax payable for duties performed on that day including PAYE, PRSI & USC.

Reply:

This Notice of Motion requires a Resolution of the Council.

On the PROPOSAL of Cllr. Connaughton

              SECONDED by Cllr. Mulligan

It was AGREED to write to theMinister of Finance responsible for Budget 2020, to include a provision whereby all employees in the Public Sector who work on Christmas Day on any year avail of full exemption of tax payable for duties performed on that day including PAYE, PRSI & USC.

Letter to be circulated to all Local Authorities.