Limerick mayor John Moran has called out some local councillors for not respecting “healthy democratic practice” and being “hostile” towards him.
Mr Moran released a statement on his own website on Monday evening, sharing details of what happened at a seven-hour-long meeting last Tuesday, during which he took ill.
This comes as councillors had gathered at County Hall in Dooradoyle to finalise the corporate plan, a strategic framework detailing what the local authority aims to achieve over a five-year period.
The blueprint was due to be adopted in December 2024, but because of disagreements inside the council chambers, the plan was delayed for 12 months.
Five hours in, Mr Moran had to leave the meeting after feeling unwell, following a hospital visit for cardiac tests earlier that day.
Despite his absence, councillors resumed the meeting and passed the plan – even though some suggested the meeting should be delayed and resume once Mr Moran had a chance to view the plan.
In a statement, Mr Moran called the meeting “one of the lowest points since my election”.
“We should have been debating how the organisation should implement the political priorities for Limerick — particularly taking account of the views of all of the elected councillors as well as the new electoral mandate reflected in the Mayoral Programme. Instead, it became something very different,” said Mr Moran.
He described how since he got elected, a small minority of councillors from two “ruling” parties have “consistently opposed almost every significant initiative” he has brought forward.
He named a few projects such as housing initiatives “dismissed as unsuitable dog boxes”, the purchase of a land in Patrickswell, and proposals to build on zoned housing land.
“More seriously, I have been accused publicly of “breaking the law” — a grave charge made without evidence,” said Mr Moran.
He claimed “tactics” are being used to ensure his “term as mayor cannot be successful”.
“We have to be asking more questions now of those who keep resisting change from the old status quo – what right do they have to keep opposing reform? The people of Limerick voted for change in principle at the DEM plebiscite in 2019. They chose again in 2024, this time for change in practice too when they chose not to have a mayor from either Fianna Fail or Fine Gael (FFG) who they might have suspected would form the majority in the council chamber.
“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. I have been told directly that such a strategy was openly discussed,” he said.
Mr Moran emphasised how major discussions should be “circulated in advance” and how recorded debates should be accessible to the public.
He also addressed his departure from the meeting due to illness, after noting he informed councillors of the situation at the meeting.
“I did not leave because I was annoyed. I did not leave in protest.
“Earlier that morning, I had attended hospital for cardiac tests. That is a fact. At a critical point in the proceedings, I advised those present that I was experiencing symptoms that concerned me — symptoms consistent with why I had been in hospital hours earlier”, he said.
Referring to claims of a “culture of fear” inside the council chambers, Mr Moran added: “There is a difference between robust debate and personal hostility. When disagreement becomes dismissive or mocking — when serious health concerns are reduced to trivial language and not accommodated — it diminishes the very institution itself.”