Local government in the Republic of Ireland
| Local government in the Republic of Ireland |
|
|---|---|
 |
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| Category | Unitary state |
| Location | Ireland |
| Number | 26 County Councils 3 City Councils 2 City and County Councils |
| Populations | 43,229 (County Leitrim) – 527,612 (Dublin city) |
| Areas | 39 km² (Cork city) – 7,468 km² (County Cork) |
| Government | Council government |
| Subdivisions |
Municipal district, Local electoral area |
In Ireland, local government functions are mostly exercised by thirty-one local authorities, termed County, City or City and County Councils. The principal decision-making body in each of the thirty-one local authorities is composed of the members of the council, elected by universal franchise in local elections every five years. Irish Local Authorities are the closest and most accessible form of Government to people in their local community. Many of the authorities' statutory functions are, however, the responsibility of ministerially appointed career officials termed Chief executives.
The area under the jurisdiction of each of the authorities corresponds to the area of each of the thirty-one Local administrative unit (LAU 1) Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics (NUTS) areas for Eurostat purposes. The competencies of the city and county councils include planning, transport infrastructure, sanitary services, public safety (notably fire services) and the provision of public libraries.
Local government in the state is governed by Local Government Acts, the most recent of which – the Local Government Act 2001 – established this two-tier structure. The Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898 is the founding document of the present system. The Twentieth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland (1999) provided for constitutional recognition of local government for the first time in Ireland.
The Local Government Reform Act 2014 changed the existing structure, in line with reforms announced in October 2012 by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government. These included the abolition of all town councils and the merger of some county councils. The reforms came into effect in 2014, to coincide with that year's local elections.
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