Donegal Council Cathaoirleach Martin Harley meets An Taoiseach in Government Buildings

Donegal County Council Cathaoirleach Cllr Martin Harley met with An Taoiseach and Fine Gael Party Leader, Leo Varadkar, in Government Buildings on Tuesday evening.

The Taoiseach, along with all of his senior Ministers, met with the 13 Fine Gael Councillors who have recently been elected as the first citizen of their county.

Councillor Harley, who was first elected in 2009, was elected Mayor in June, and outlined his main priorities for his term.

“Men’s health will be a big focus of mine. I want to run an event with the HSE to raise awareness on men’s health issues and get them to talk more about it and see their GP sooner rather than too late.

“I also want to promote apprenticeships in conjunction with the Donegal ETB of which I am a board member to increase the skills needed in the country at the moment.

“Another big focus for me at a council level is the Mica here in Donegal. I strongly believe addressing and resolving the issue is of paramount importance.”

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said: “I had a good two-hour meeting with Councillor Harley in Government Buildings on Tuesday evening to discuss the issues that matter to the people of Donegal. The meeting gave Councillor Harley the opportunity to raise these issues directly with me. I committed to Councillor Harley to work on these issues.

‘The need for more funding this year for local and regional road maintenance, a top up allocation for the Local Improvement Scheme and, in the coming years, funding to advance new road projects that are delayed, the urgent need to service much more land for housing were raised at the meeting. On energy security and climate, they impressed on me the need to increase aid to farmers, schools, community buildings and businesses to install solar panels and become energy efficient.’

“I look forward to working with Councillor Harley and visiting Donegal during his term as Cathaoirleach.”

Fine Gael is making a real impact in communities through the hard work of our local representatives. With 13 Mayors/Cathaoirligh across the country Fine Gael is representing stronger, safer communities in every part of the country.”

ENDS