Call for IWAK rates to be reinvested into the airport

A Mayo councillor has called on the local authority to reinvest any rates received from Ireland West Airport back into the airport.

Cllr Gerry Murray made the comments at a recent meeting of Mayo County Council. He said he understands that the airport has received a rates bill of close to €1 million.

The Charlestown councillor urged Mayo County Council to sink the airports rates back into the facility.

The council’s head of Finance Peter Duggan said he could not comment on the rates bill as he understands it might be under appeal.

Meanwhile, a Castlebar councillor says he feared a major funding announcement could be a ‘gimmick.’ Two projects in Mayo have secured combined funding of over €11 million under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF).

Ballyhaunis Community Vision project and Ballintubber Abbey Culture and Heritage Visitor Centre have secured receive €5,285,070 and €5,842,678 respectively.

However, Fianna Fail councillor Blackie Gavin remained unconvinced.

“I welcome the funding for Ballintubber but is it an election gimmick? I think it is a gimmick. It is great to get €5 million for the Castlebar MD but I am awfully afraid we will never see it along with the other projects. We are banging our head against the wall and it is time a lot of the capital projects are rolled out in this county,” said Cllr Gavin.

He pointed to funding announcements for other project in Castlebar which remain undelivered.

Cllr Gerry Murray said he feared the matched funding requirements for major projects places an unfair burden on local authorities like Mayo County Council.

“The local authorities along the east coast can easily come up with the 25% while down here we struggle to come up with it because we have a much lower revenue stream coming into this county. It is absolutely outrageous and the department and government know the borrowing capacity for rural local authorities isn't infinite,” Cllr Murray commented.