Councillors appointed to new Community Safety Partnership

Seven councillors have been appointed to the Meath Local Community Safety Partnership which will replace the Meath Joint Policing Committee (JPC).

The seven councillors selected to sit on the new partnership at last week's meeting of Meath County Council are: Caroline O'Reilly, Maria Murphy, Alan Tobin, Carol Lennon, Maria White, Francis Deane and Padraig Fitzsimons.

Currently, members of local authorities sit on JPCs, but new Safety Partnerships will replace these bodies in line with the Policing, Security and Community Safety Act, which came into effect last February. The legislation is intended to implement many of the key recommendations of the Commission on the Future Policing in Ireland, which was published in 2018. However, many councillors have expressed their dissatisfaction at the proposed restructuring and felt the existing joint policing committee structure was working well. At Monday's meeting Cllr Nick Killian hit out at the move and said it was a "further dimunition" of the role of councillors and he criticised TDs in Leinster House for voting it through.

The new community safety partnerships will include residents; community representatives, including representatives of youth, new communities and the voluntary sector; business and education representatives; relevant public services in the area, including HSE, Tusla, An Garda Siochana, and the local authority; and local councillors. The LCSP will have a maximum of 30 members.

The Council invited expressions of interest from the public for the position of chairperson during the summer and this process is ongoing.

The chairperson is appointed for a three-year term.