Councillors' Voting Record on Clamping

HOW OUR COUNTY COUNCILLORS VOTED ON CLAMPING

County's Coastal Towns to Suffer - Trade Down, Businesses Closing

COASTAL AREAS OF THE COUNTY

John Bailey, Fine Gael, Dún Laoghaire, NO
Jane Dillon-Byrne, Labour / Lucht Oibre, Dún Laoghaire, NO
Cormac Devlin, Fianna Fáil, Dún Laoghaire, NO
Gene Feighery, Green / Comhaontas Glas, Dún Laoghaire, YES TO CLAMPING
Mary Mitchell-O’Connor, Fine Gael, Dún Laoghaire, NO
Tom O’Higgins, Fine Gael, Dún Laoghaire, NO
Maria Bailey, Fine Gael, Ballybrack, NO
Gareth Crowe, Fianna Fáil, Ballybrack, NO
Tom Kivlehan, Green / Comhaontas Glas, Ballybrack, YES TO CLAMPING
Dónal Marren, Fine Gael, Ballybrack, NO
Denis O’ Callaghan, Labour / Lucht Oibre, Ballybrack, NO
Carrie Smyth, Labour / Lucht Oibre, Ballybrack, NO
Marie Baker, Fine Gael, Blackrock, YES TO CLAMPING
Niamh Bhreathnach, Labour / Lucht Oibre, Blackrock, NO
Nessa Childers, Green / Comhaontas Glas, Blackrock, YES TO CLAMPING
Barry Conway, Fianna Fáil, Blackrock, YES TO CLAMPING

INLAND PART OF THE COUNTY

Louise Cosgrave, Fine Gael, Stillorgan, YES TO CLAMPING
Gerry Horkan, Fine Gael, Stillorgan, YES TO CLAMPING
Geróid O’Keefe, Independent / Neamhspleách, Stillorgan, YES TO CLAMPING
John Byrne, Fianna Fáil, Glencullen, YES TO CLAMPING
Tom Joyce, Fine Gael, Glencullen, YES TO CLAMPING
Lettie McCarthy, Labour / Lucht Oibre, Glencullen, Abstained
Aidan Culhane, Labour / Lucht Oibre, Dundrum, Abstained
Ciáran Fallon, Green / Comhaontas Glas, Dundrum, YES TO CLAMPING
Tony Fox, Fianna Fáil, Dundrum, YES TO CLAMPING
Pat Hand, Fine Gael, Dundrum, YES TO CLAMPING
Trevor Matthews, Fianna Fáil, Dundrum, YES TO CLAMPING
Jim O’Leary, Fine Gael, Dundrum, YES TO CLAMPING

Litter Pollution Act, 1997

For the purposes of information it has come to the attention of the Community Association that persons associated with the "Anti-Bin Tax Campaign" have advised residents that the following sections of the Litter Pollution Act, 1997 provide, in their view, the legal basis upon which householders may lawfully place household refuse in the back of the Council’s Bin Lorries.

However, please note that the Community Association is not currently in a position to ascribe such a broad meaning to these sections and therefore, it continues to advise residents to refrain from such direct action.

Litter Pollution Act, 1997

SECTION 3

3.—(1) No person shall deposit any substance or object so as to create litter in a public place or in any place that is visible to any extent from a public place.

(2) No person shall—

( a ) deposit any thing that is commercial, household, industrial or municipal waste in any place for collection by or on behalf of a local authority or by another person, or

( b ) load, transport, unload or otherwise handle or process any thing or carry on a business, trade or activity in such circumstances as to create litter or lead to litter in any public place or any place that is visible to any extent from a public place.

(3) No person shall place municipal waste into or near a litter receptacle.

(4) No person shall move or interfere with a litter receptacle that has been provided by a local authority or other person unless the movement or interference is authorised by the local authority or other person.

(5) For the purposes of subsection (3), "municipal waste" has the meaning assigned by section 5 of the Waste Management Act, 1996 .

(6) A person who contravenes any provision of this section shall be guilty of an offence.

SECTION 5

5.—Nothing in section 3 shall be construed as prohibiting—

( a ) the deposit of waste in a receptacle or place provided for the purpose of such waste,

( b ) the deposit in any place of a receptacle containing any commercial, household, municipal or industrial waste for collection by or on behalf of a local authority or by another authorised waste collector within the meaning of the Waste Management Act, 1996 , or

( c ) the deposit of waste at a civic waste facility, within the meaning of section 38 of the Waste Management Act, 1996 ,

provided that reasonable care is taken to prevent the creation of litter.

EUROPEAN NEIGHBOURS DAY

On Tuesday 27th May 2008, communities throughout the European Union will mark "European Neighbours Day" with social events and fairs aimed at promoting social inclusion and at encouraging communities to tackle loneliness, especially amongst our senior citizens in our neighbourhoods. The Community Association warmly welcomes suggestions for possible local initiatives on the lines of "European Neighbours Day". For further information please checkout the website:- http://www.european-neighbours-day.eu/

UNWELCOME DEVELOPMENTS IN THE "BIN TAX" DISPUTE

There is much disquiet and general concern at recent developments in the long-running “Bin Tax” dispute which have been brought to the attention of the Community Association by residents in the Cross Avenue area.

Following an incident on Monday 12th May 2008 in Desmond Avenue involving local residents and unidentified “officials” of the County Council, the Chairperson of the Community Association was requested by a number of residents, mainly elderly, to investigate the incident.

It is alleged by the local residents that a number of unidentified men rushed into Desmond Avenue seeking to prevent some of the local residents placing their refuse bags directly into the County Council’s bin lorry. They described the incident as frightening and extremely intimidating causing considerable distress to older residents, many of whom, had only one or two tiny plastic bags of household refuse.

The placing of refuse bags directly by local residents into the County Council’s bin trucks and thus avoiding the need to purchase “Bin Tags” was a central part of an initiative directed and implemented by persons associated with the countywide “Anti-Bin Tax” campaign.

Irrespective of the justification or otherwise of the so called “Bin Tax” the Community Association has consistently advised residents against this form of direct action as it could clearly lead to injury and, depending on circumstances, to legal action been initiated against those involved. Advice to the residents from some quarters to the effect that they have some "legal right" to place their bin bags directly into the Council's bin trucks is not supported by the Community Association.

On Friday 16th May 2008 a photocopy of a notice purporting to have been issued by the County Council’s Environment Department was delivered to each household in the Cross Avenue area of central Dún Laoghaire.

Residents, especially the elderly, were alarmed at the perceived threatening tone of this notice and, once again, contacted the Chairperson of the Community Association.

The text of notice is as follows:

TO OWNER/OCCUPIER,

It has come to the attention of the Council that some residents are leaving bags of rubbish for collection by the Council on the public footpath/roadway without proper labels. It should be noted that this constitutes littering and is in breach of the litter Pollution Acts for which fines/prosecutions may be initiated. Only bags of household rubbish with prepaid Council labels should be presented for collection by the Council. The green bags for recyclables, which are provided and collected by Oxigen, should only contain items for recycling.

Some residents have also been placing their bags of rubbish directly into the Councils bin trucks themselves. This practice is both illegal and dangerous. No member of the public is allowed to deposit rubbish in Council bin trucks.

The Council will take all steps necessary which may include use of CCTV to address this illegal practice.

Please note that bag collection labels can be purchased at the Council offices on Marine Road, Dún Laoghaire and Dundrum.

Environmental Services Department
DLR CO CO

(Council Logo etc)

(END TEXT)

As the County Council can very easily obtain the names and addresses of each purchaser of “Bin Tags” from own its records, the Community Association views this type of general notice to be unnecessarily provocative and, in many ways, counter-productive.

Individually addressed letters should have been sent to each household which has not purchased “Bin Tags” asking for assurances as to their lawful disposal of household waste and, if necessary, proof thereof. In response to the County Council claims of local illegal dumping of black bags, this course of action was suggested to the County Council over a year ago by the Community Association.

The threat to install CCTV in the small streets with terraced houses and no gardens in the Cross Avenue area is regrettable and may, in fact, represent a direct, unwarranted and possibly unlawful invasion of the privacy of the citizens residing in these streets. The question as to whether such a draconian measure would ever be considered by the County Council for any areas other than those with social housing has been raised several times by local residents.

In the hope of an early and amicable resolution, the Community Association urges the County Council to reconsider its course of action in respect of this on-going dispute.

"TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION - A BLUNT INSTRUMENT OF FEAR"

Dún Laoghaire Community Association

Press Release

21st April 2008

Details obtained by Cllr. Denis O’Callaghan on the numbers of County Council parking meters operative in each of the Electoral Wards in Dún Laoghaire Rathdown has generated considerable anger amongst residents and businesses in the Town of Dún Laoghaire.

Coming on the back of the recent disastrous decision by the County Councillors to approve the introduction of Car-Clamping by 14 votes to 11, this new information has the potential to bring the whole decision making process of the County Council into serious disrepute.

The coastal areas of the County including Blackrock, Dún Laoghaire, Dalkey and Ballybrack account for 245 of the 291 Pay-and-Display parking meters operated by Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council. Dundrum has merely 27, Glencullen 19 and Stillorgan surprisingly has not a single County Council parking meter.

The concentration of the parking meters in the coastal areas, overwhelmingly in the residential streets adjoining the town centres of Blackrock, Dalkey and especially, Dún Laoghaire, indicates that the area is nothing but a large municipal car-park.

With 165 meters in the Dún Laoghaire Ward alone, residents and visitors to the Town of Dún Laoghaire are wholly justified in describing the Pay-and-Display system as a local taxation measure penalising those living in the Town and actually driving business out of the Town.

The overwhelming majority of the County Councillors representing the coastal areas of the County were vehemently opposed the introduction of Car-Clamping because it would adversely and solely affect their electorates in Blackrock, Dún Laoghaire and Dalkey and, in fact, inflict serious damage on business and thereby, destroy local jobs.

But they were outvoted by County Councillors from the rest of the County representing areas wholly untouched by the Council’s Pay and Display scheme. This is simply “taxation without representation” imposed by County Councillors who will never have to face the ire of the electorate which has been forced, by their vote, to bear the brunt of this unnecessary and draconian measure aimed at protecting the revenues generated by the County Council’s vast municipal car-park.

The Pay and Display scheme is a locally imposed tax on vehicle owners residing, visiting or doing business in the Town of Dún Laoghaire and Car-Clamping is a blunt instrument of fear imposed to ensure the collection of this unjust and iniquitous local tax.

The Community Association calls on Minister Gormley to intervene immediately and to order an independent examination of the imposition, against the wishes of the electorate as expressed by their public representatives in Dún Laoghaire, of this local taxation and the blunt instrument of enforcement and fear – Car-Clamping.

The manner in which Car-Clamping was introduced has ensured that the festering divisions in the County of Dún Laoghaire Rathdown have suddenly become more entrenched. The civic cohesiveness, much desired and loudly trumpeted by the County Council itself, has been rendered meaningless and foolishly sacrificed for the sake of Car-Clamping.

COUNTY COUNCILLORS VOTE FOR CLAMPING

At the meeting of Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council held on Monday 14th April 2008, fourteen County Councillors voted for the introduction of Car-Clamping, eleven voted against with two abstentions. The County Manager is now free to introduce Car-Clamping bringing this county into line with Dublin City. The Community Association and the Dún Laoghaire Business Association strongly opposed the introduction of this measure as it would seriously damage business activity in the Town. Local jobs may now be lost as a result of the needless introduction of such draconian traffic management measures. Five of our six Ward Councillors - John Bailey, Cormac Devlin, Jane Dillon-Byrne, Mary Mitchell-O'Connor and Tom O'Higgins voted against the introduction of Car-Clamping with the sixth Ward Councillor, Cllr. Gene Feighery, voting for the motion. An Cathaoirleach, Cllr. Denis O'Callaghan, was also strongly opposed to Car-Clamping and pointed out the negative impact this measure would have on business and local jobs. Unfortunately, the issue of whether this proposal was in the interest of the community as required by Article 28A.1. of Bunreacht na hÉireann was not raised. Most certainly a very bad day for the local community, local business and especially, local jobs.

VOTE NO TO CLAMPING

Cumann Phobail Dhún Laoghaire
Dún Laoghaire Community Association

Press Statement
12th April 2008

COUNTY COUNCILLORS TO DECIDE FATE OF LOCAL JOBS

On Monday 14th April 2008 County Councillors in Dún Laoghaire Rathdown are to be asked to vote for the introduction of Car-Clamping as a measure to combat illegal parking and the non-payment of parking fines.

Residents and businesses are united in their total opposition to the introduction of this unnecessary and utterly draconian measure by the County Manager.

Dún Laoghaire has become a large and very expensive municipal car-park since the introduction of the pay-n-display system in 2002. Originally intended to free-up and rotate the existing parking spaces in the Town Centre, it now deters shoppers and frightens off visitors to the Town. It’s now nothing short of a municipal tax on vehicle owners and ultimately, a stealth tax on business.

With high parking fees and over eager Traffic Wardens ready to pounce, shoppers are going elsewhere and local businesses are suffering as a result. Residents are forced to purchase parking permits for themselves and for anybody visiting their homes wishing to park on the street outside. Once proud citizens of the Town many residents now simply describe themselves as living in a vast municipal car-park and merely customers of the County Council.

Dún Laoghaire currently has in excess of thirty vacant retail units on and around its main street, George’s Street. Undoubtedly this number will greatly increase as the existing shoppers, already very resentful of the excessively high parking fees, will not risk falling prey to private contract clampers and simply shop elsewhere.

Local jobs, already under extreme pressure from the existing parking regime, will most certainly be lost on the introduction of car-clamping. This alone shows the absolute folly of this proposal from the County Manager as any fines and penalties recovered will be miniscule in comparison to the loss to the Council in commercial rates through business closures.

Dún Laoghaire Community Association urges all of our County Councillors to protect local jobs by VOTING NO TO CLAMPING and by demanding that the County Manager give an explanation as to how his proposal on car-clamping is in the interest of the community as required by Article 28A.1 of Bunreacht na hÉireann.

Michael Merrigan
Chairperson
Dún Laoghaire Community Association