Search Results for 'public services'

There is something quietly beautiful about the idea of being able to live, work and raise a family in the place you call home. To know the people behind the counter in the local shop, to meet a neighbour on the street, to see a town square filled with life rather than watch another building fall silent. These are not grand ambitions. They are the simple ingredients of a community. And yet, somewhere along the way, we have allowed so many of our small towns and villages to become places we sleep in, rather than places we truly live.

Uncollected litter and cheerful schoolchildren enjoying a surprise day-off swirled through Galway’s windblown city centre on Wednesday, as the country braced for its first major, public sector strike in two decades.

When strike action brings a country to a standstill, it is easy to take sides. We focus on closed schools, disrupted services, missed appointments and the inconvenience caused to ordinary people. Yet, in doing so, we risk losing sight of the bigger picture. The argument over who is right and who is wrong may simply be masking the truth: we are all in the same boat, struggling to make ends meet.

Budget 2027 is broadly to be welcomed. The Government has committed €9.4 billion to housing next year, and it is investing in the water, roads and planning capacity that decide whether homes get built at all. That deserves to be applauded.

Galway City Council is calling on national Government to reexamine the outdated funding model for local authorities, to reduce significant gaps in service delivery and public infrastructure across the Galway Metropolitan Area.

Galway City Council has won the Digital Services, Payments and Transactions Award at the 2026 Ireland eGovernment Awards for its innovative and inclusive approach to parking payments in Galway City.

“PEOPLE have to behave if they are getting public services and houses; there are rules. There’s a housing shortage and if they don’t behave there are other people who need those houses.”

Eight projects led or supported by Galway County Council have been shortlisted for this year’s Chambers Ireland Excellence in Local Government Awards, the highest number of nominations secured by the council since the awards began.

The Galway City Local Community Safety Partnership (LCSP) is inviting residents, community groups, businesses and organisations across the city to take part in a series of public consultation events to help shape Galway City’s first Community Safety Plan.

South Connacht Citizens Information Service (SCCIS), which recently published its annual report for 2025, has reported continued high levels of demand for its services. The rising cost of living and the increased move of public services online were two of the main reasons people contacted the service.