Murtagh elected Longford cathaoirleach

The new Cathaoirleach of Longford County Council, Cllr Garry Murtagh has vowed to work tirelessly for the betterment of County Longford and bring his valuable experience of community work to his new role. The Fine Gael man was elected to the role of Cathaoirleach at the council AGM which took place last Friday, June 20. He replaces Cllr Mark Casey who held the role of Cathaoirleach for the past year. Cllr Niall Gannon was elected Leas Cathaoirleach of Longford County Council for the year ahead.

Cllr Murtagh was joined in the council chamber by a large gathering of friends, family and supporters from North Longford and he noted that it was “a great day of celebration” which he would always remember.

The new Fine Gael Cathaoirleach noted a number of top priorities for the year saying, “It is a huge honour for me to be elected as the new Cathaoirleach of Longford County Council. I will work tirelessly to ensure that a number of projects are delivered during my tenure including turning the sod on the new IDA development for County Longford, the Thrive application for the Connolly Barracks and the development of The Mall as well as the development of active travel projects in North Longford and Ballymahon.”

Cllr Murtagh praised the outgoing Cathaoirleach Cllr Mark Casey for this stewardship and leadership over the past year.

Cllr Murtagh was proposed for the role of Cathaoirleach by Cllr Paul Ross who praised his colleague’s strong work ethic and track record in community development.

The proposal was seconded by Cllr Gerry Hagan who also noted that Cllr Murtagh had secured the highest voter ever achieved in County Longford in the local elections and he praised the new Cathaoirleach as a “very genuine man who cared deeply about the betterment of his county.”

Longford County Council Chief Executive Paddy Mahon said, “This is a huge honour for Cllr Murtagh and his family, and it is a great opportunity to build on the notable work being undertaken in the county. Cllr Murtagh has set out a number of challenges for the year ahead and I can assure him that the council executive and staff will work with him to ensure that we can achieve as much as possible under his tenure.”

Cllr Niall Gannon was elected the new Leas Cathaoirleach for the year ahead and this was proposed by Cllr Paul Ross and seconded by Cllr Gerry Hagan.

Outgoing Cathaoirleach Cllr Mark Casey was praised for his strong work ethic over the past year and described as having represented County Longford with great pride and distinction at a local, national and international level. Cllr Casey thanked his fellow county councillors, council executive and staff for their assistance over the past year.