IRELAND’S FIRST DIRECTLY elected mayor has spoken out about his experiences, accusing some Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil councillors in Limerick of doing “all they can” to ensure his “term as mayor cannot be successful”.
In a post on his website, John Moran said he believes that there is a plot to make the role “unbearable” so that he will “walk away” rather than continue serving in the historic office.
Moran was elected as an Independent in 2024 to serve as Limerick’s directly elected mayor in the first vote of its kind in Ireland, giving greater powers to the mayor’s office.
The council is led by a coalition of Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil councillors who hold 23 out of its 40 seats.
Councillors from Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil declined to comment when contacted but, speaking off the record, pushed back heavily against Moran’s claims and said they did not agree with his characterisation of the dispute.
Moran claimed in his article that he has been met with a “pattern of resistance” from a group within the ruling majority of councillors.
He wrote the piece following disputes last week in the council chamber over a corporate strategy for the local authority, which he said was met with “extensive amendments” by councillors from Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil.
“Since my election, a small minority of councillors within the two “ruling” parties have consistently opposed almost every significant initiative I have brought forward,” Moran said.
While he said this is not the majority of councillors and that “many across the chamber engage constructively,” he said a small group has “chosen a different path” during his term.
Moran added:
I have long suspected that the strategy of some has been to make the role unbearable — to create sufficient pressure that I might simply walk away.
He said that if this is the case then it’s “profoundly disappointing” as the “people of Limerick voted clearly for reform” two years ago.
“They did not vote to continue the old order or to return to it. In choosing an independent mayor with the experience I brought to the election, they voted decisively for a break from the past,” Moran said in his post.
Moran claimed there have been “repeated procedural obstacles” placed in his way, along with all too quick dismissals of housing and zoning plans.
“These are not the actions of people seeking collaboration. They are the tactics of those determined to resist change and do all they can to ensure my term as mayor cannot be successful,” he said.
Green Party councillor Seán Hartigan told The Journal he was firmly supporting Moran in the row, arguing that the reason behind the dispute lies in a “loss of power” faced by the two largest parties on the council.
The Independent would not face such challenges if he was a member of Fianna Fáil or Fine Gael, Hartigan claimed.
“They want somebody in there who will attend events and sign whatever is put in front of them and not challenge anyone,” Hartigan said.
