LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1002/j.1099-162X.1955.tb00080.x |
| Published date | 01 January 1955 |
| Date | 01 January 1955 |
| Author | R. R. Stokes |
LOCAL
GOVERNMENT
IN
THE
REPUBLIC
OF
LRELAND
LOCAL GOVERNMENT IN
THE
REPUBLIC
OF IRELAND.
27
By. R. R. Stokes, District Officer, N. Rhodesia.
FOR those officers who are engaged in
the
exciting task of assisting in
the
development of a system of local government in
the
African colonies from
the
old conception of administering local affairs through the machinery of native
authorities, the
study
of local government institutions in more highly developed
countries is
both
stimulating
and
instructive.
It
is natural
that
the
first field
of
study
should be in England towards which
the
inhabitants of
the
colonies
normally look for advice
and
inspiration in developing their institutions
and
administrative machinery,
and
from whence
the
majority of their advisers
and
administrators are drawn.
But
it is essential in
the
early stages, when
local government is being newly introduced,
that
as
many
as possible of
the
established systems should be examined, so
that
the
best features of all of
them
may
be available for reference.
The best opportunity
that
can be afforded to a people to develop local
government institutions in accordance with their own genius is when
that
people achieve national independence,
and
it is for this reason
that
the
Irish!
system of local government is of especial interest.
The Irish Free
State
was established following
the
Anglo-Irish
Treaty
of
1921,
and
the
twenty-six counties of Ireland, which to-day constitute
the
Republic of Ireland, were
then
free to determine their own forms of national
and
local government. Before this the English model
had
been followed.
The years which followed
the
national uprising of 1916
had
been troubled
and
disturbed. Many of
the
existing English-type local authorities had,
not
unnaturally, been more involved in
matters
connected with
the
struggle for
national independence
than
in
the
administration of local services. Transport
facilities were poor,
and
the
members of local authorities were unwilling to
risk life
and
limb more
than
was strictly necessary in order to
attend
to local
government affairs during days of armed rising
and
civil war,
and
local
government became unworkable in
many
parts
of the country. At
the
same
time, some of those who were interested in local government affairs
had
come
to
the
conclusion
that
the
old system required urgent reforms,
and
that
when
the
Irish National Government gained control of affairs an
attempt
should be
made to revise
the
basic structure of the system which had been fixed in 1898
and
which approximated to
the
English form.
Up to 1922
the
system of local government in Ireland
had
followed
that
of
England very closely. In Ireland as in England there were representative
councils in counties, county boroughs, boroughs,
and
urban
and
rural districts.
Boards of guardians functioned in poor law unions. All these bodies
had
powers similar to those of corresponding bodies in England.
The local services, excepting police
and
education (other
than
technical
education) were much
the
same as those in England,
and
local
taxation
was
based on
the
annual value of land and buildings as determined by a government
department.
1Note.
The
term
"Irish"
in this article refers to
the
Republic of
Ireland
only.
The
system
of local
government
in
Northern
Ireland
is similar to
the
English system,
and
is,
therefore, outside
the
scope of
these
remarks.
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