Lack of clarity from the government on when funding will be provided to implement the recommendations of the Dublin City Taskforce is disappointing, but hardly surprising, according to Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon.
Deputy Gannon, who represents Dublin Central, said:
“Having neglected Dublin city centre for 14 years in government, Fine Gael suddenly developed a new-found interest in the regeneration of our capital city – just weeks ahead of last November’s general election.
“In a blatant display of electioneering, Simon Harris was happy to use O’Connell Street as a backdrop for his photo-op announcement, which I described at the time as a deeply cynical move.
“I warned that while there were some worthy recommendations put forward by the taskforce – such as the proposal to renovate all city centre social housing within five years – the report would be meaningless unless these measures were budgeted for.
“Similarly, incentivising frontline workers to live in the inner city is another good idea – but where is the funding for it?
“More than six months after the election, Dublin city councillors have expressed frustration at the lack of clarity on ringfenced funding for many of the taskforce’s key initiatives.
“Decades of neglect by successive governments has resulted in Dublin suffering from creeping dereliction, creating an environment where the city feels unloved and unsafe.
“We can’t even get the simple stuff right. Only today we learn that Dublin’s north inner city fared badly in the latest Irish Business Against Litter (IBAL) survey, with the area deemed to be ‘seriously littered’.
“At every level, our capital city continues to suffer from a lack of political leadership. I have little confidence this will change anytime soon under another FF/FG government.”
June 16, 2025