SDLP politician is new council head

SDLP politician is new council head

8 June 2016

THE SDLP’s Gillian Fitzpatrick is the new chairwoman of Newry, Mourne and Down Council.

Her widely predicted appointment was confirmed at the local authority’s annual meeting last week when she succeeded Sinn Fein’s Mickey Ruane as the district’s first citizen. The new council vice-chairman is the DUP’s Garth Craig.

Ms Fitzpatrick said she was delighted to become the new council chairwoman, describing it as a “great privilege and honour” and vowed to be a first citizen for everyone across the district.

She said her key priority for the year ahead would be to promote the district as the best place to invest, work and live and to develop prosperity by developing the economy. 

“There is no doubt, that far too many of our citizens are facing hard times. We have far too many families facing crippling debt, elderly people forced to choose between food or fuel and far too many young and bright students graduating with little or no hope of finding a job at home,” she said.

“And you only have to walk down your local street to see the number of vacant retail units. We are living in tough times, maybe the toughest times in a generation.

“As civic leaders of this district, we have a duty to all work together to build a dynamic new economy. We must support new businesses and our existing businesses to help them grow and develop. We can do that by working with local trade, tourism and business representatives and our education authorities.”

Councillor Fitzpatrick highlighted the need to work together to drive the development of the economy, identify gaps and challenges and recommend measures which the local authority can put in place or lobby the locally elected Assembly for support. 

“That may mean finding the means for bringing derelict buildings back to life and supporting planning applications which have significant economic benefit. There are many ways we can improve our economy and build lasting prosperity. During my year as council chairwoman I will keep the economy at top of the agenda.

“The greatest asset our district has is its people and as first citizen I will celebrate and recognise the achievements and talents of all our people. Our local achievers are inspirational to the citizens of this district and as civic leaders we have a duty to recognise the skills and talents of those who achieve highly and raise them up to become ambassadors for the Newry Mourne and Down District.”

Councillor Fitzpatrick said another key priority will be to inspire people to play their full part in civic society, especially young citizens. She said it is “unacceptable” so many young people are forced to leave the district in search of work or a sustainable livelihood. 

“The greatest crime that this society can continue to inflict on itself is the forced emigration of our young people. The Assembly has a lot of work to do on that front but it’s critical that we build communities and a local economy that gives our young people the opportunity to stay. We need to make our district the place they and many others want to settle down in,” she added.

The new vice-chairman said he was looking forward to working with councillors and local authority staff to make “meaningful progress” on the council’s strategic objectives.

He said he would do all he can to support the new chairwoman during her year in office, highlighting the local authority’s “ambitious and exciting” corporate plan for the district.

“Last year was the merger of Newry and Mourne and Down councils and all that entailed so in many ways the past 12 months represented a year of consolidation,” Councillor Craig said.

“This year, we look forward to working with all the members and officers to deliver on the key objectives of tourism, the economy, and improving the health and well-being of our citizens. If we all put our citizens first, and keep that in focus, then we’ll not go to far wrong,” he added, thanking his DUP colleagues for nominating him for the vice-chairman’s position.

The Slieve Croob councillor has wide experience in many fields and boasts an in-depth knowledge of the area. His colleagues are delighted he accepted the nomination to be the council deputy.