Mayo County Council has this evening released a statement apologising for comments made proposing to boycott holiday home owners in the county.
Director of Services Tom Gilligan sent an email to councillors on Sunday night calling for a community-led boycott of holiday homes in order to bring high numbers of vacant properties back into use to help combat the housing crisis.
Mr. Gilligan said that the proposal was sent to the members of the Housing Strategic Policy Committee (SPC) and is not the official policy of the county council.
In a statement released by Mayo County Counci this evening, the council official said, “the email circulated was an attempt to prompt internal discussion on a sensitive but relevant issue and it was not anticipated to be released before members had the opportunity to consider it fully and I sincerely apologise for any concern or distress it caused.”
Notwithstanding the clarification issued by Mayo County Council that the contents of the internal communication in respect of holiday homes circulated to members of the Housing Strategic Policy Committee (SPC) of Mayo County Council did not reflect the policy of Mayo County Council, a lot of confusion and disquiet remains evident according to the statement.
Mayo County Council, therefore wishes to again emphasise that the content of the email correspondence was not a statement of any formal policy proposal or position of the Council but was an attempt to generate further discussion within the SPC in respect of housing, that is not used as a principal place of private residence, by raising for the first time a draft of a more controversial approach for consideration by the SPC.
Any formal policies are developed in Strategic Policy Committee meetings and if agreed by the members of the SPC are thereafter subject to the approval of the full body of elected members in an open and transparent way at a Plenary meeting of Mayo County Council.
The proposition contained in this correspondence was not discussed or agreed by the Elected Members at either SPC level or by the Plenary Council or by other Council Management and had the correspondence not been released to the media prematurely the matter would have been considered by the members of the SPC in the normal way and evidently would not have progressed any further.
Mayo County Council wishes to highlight it’s sincere regret for the upset that this matter has caused to the Elected Members, the public and in particular, owners of second homes in County Mayo .
Director of Services, Tom Gilligan has stated: “”I am deeply committed to addressing the complex housing challenges facing Mayo and to working collaboratively with councillors, stakeholders, and the community in doing so. The email circulated was an attempt to prompt internal discussion on a sensitive but relevant issue and it was not anticipated to be released before members had the opportunity to consider it fully and I sincerely apologise for any concern or distress it caused. My goal has always been to find solutions through open, respectful dialogue, and I remain fully committed to working in partnership to achieve that.”
