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Cllr Deirdre Ferris on her first day as a councillor. Photo by Dermot Crean
TRALEE Municipal District has two new representatives after they were co-opted on to Kerry County Council this morning.
Fianna Fáil’s Mr Johnnie Wall was co-opted to replace former councillor, now Deputy, Norma Foley, while Sinn Féin’s Ms Deirdre Ferris was co-opted to replace former councillor and now elected TD Pa Daly.
Cllr Ferris was proposed by Cllr Robert Beasley and seconded by Cllr Cathal Foley. In her first address to the Council, she spoke of how she has been inundated with well wishes from the public and politicians across the political spectrum.
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She thanked her husband Conor and two children for their support, as well as the Ferris family, especially her sister Toireasa.
Cllr Ferris said the seat she is taking doesn’t belong to her, or Sinn Féin, rather to the people of Kerry and she promised to represent them to the best of her ability.
Cllr Johnnie Wall addressing the council. Photo by Dermot Crean
Cllr Johnnie Wall was proposed by Cllr Mikey Sheehy and seconded by Jimmy Moloney. Cllr Wall said it was a privilege to represent the people of the Tralee district area.
He said since the abolition of the Tralee Town Council six years ago, the focus on the county capital had diminished and he would like to see this corrected. He cited housing and the creation of high-end tech jobs and the environment as his main priorities over the coming years.
Both councillors represent the Tralee Electoral Area and the Tralee Municipal District. The new councillors were welcomed to the Chamber by the Cathaoirleach, Niall Kelleher, other councillors, and council Chief Executive, Moira Murrell.
