Published: Thursday, 8th October, 2009 9:00am

Fermanagh 'should be' dominant in new merged council

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Fermanagh Councillors are determined to ensure that the location of the headquarters of the new amalgamated Council in 2011 will be in Enniskillen.

Speaking after Monday night's monthly meeting of Fermanagh District Council, SDLP Councillor Frank Britton said the new headquarters "must be in Enniskillen".

"It's imperative that councillors in Fermanagh take a stand and fight for the headquarters to be located in our county town. There are a number of reasons for this and one of the most important is Fermanagh has the largest population in the new arrangement. It has a large geographical land mass compared to Omagh and due to this we have the highest number of councillors, which is 22 compared to Omagh's 18. It also looks like Fermanagh ratepayers are going to lose out big time by having a sharp increase in their rates due to this merger and I think it is only fair that the headquarters are based here, they must be in Enniskillen," he said.

Councillor Britton said the "shotgun marriage" between the two councils was merely a political rather than practical decision.

"We never want this merger in the first place it was basically a political decision by the DUP/Sinn Fein so they would have equal control of each council. It was a completely unnatural decision," he said.

UUP Councillor Bertie Kerr described the merger and the possibility of a rates increase as a "slap in the face" for all the councillors and officers in Fermanagh that were prudent about Council spending down through the years.

"All that hard work has been lost and with all the borrowings and debt Omagh council has incurred, I think it's only right that the new council offices be in Enniskillen and we are adamant that they will be located here."

According to the Department for Environment, decisions on where council facilities will be located after local government reform takes effect in 2011 will be a matter for the new councils to decide upon and it is unlikely that this information will be available before the new councils are fully established.

Meanwhile, Fermanagh Councillors have accepted the final report by the local government boundaries commissioner which suggested the name for the new area as being "Fermanagh and Omagh District Council" however it's been claimed Omagh District Council has objected to this and opted for the council to be the named as being "The Western Council".

Environment Minister Edwin Poots is currently considering the report, including the names proposed by the Local Government Boundaries Commissioner.

He will bring it to the Executive for approval, with or without modifications. The Minister may, if he wishes, suggest district names different to those recommended by the Local Government Boundaries Commissioner.

A DOE spokesman said, "Once Executive approval is obtained, the Department will lay the Commissioner's report in the Assembly, together with a draft order to give effect to the recommendations (with or without modifications). Should a council wish to change its name after the formation of the new councils, an application can be made to do so under Article 51 of the Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 1972."