This article is from page 78 of the 2008-07-01 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 78 JPG
WEST Clare councillor Bill Cham- bers (FF) has been elected deputy mayor of Clare for the second time in a row.
The Cooraclare man has held on to the position for the coming year and is the only man in Clare to have dep- utised for two lady mayors. He was elected unopposed after being nom1- nated by PJ Kelly, seconded by Pat Daly and supported by Joe Arkins.
With 23 years in Clare County Council he is more than up to the challenge of the coming year and is already looking forward to going on the hustings next year.
Cllr Chambers was first elected to the council in 1985, and during the same year he began serving on the Mid Western Health Board.
When the health boards were dis- banded, the Fianna Fail councillor was elected to the HSE Forum West.
The change between the two sys- tems was very significant for the councillor. “In the HSE forum you have no power. You cannot make any decisions, just recommendations,’ he said.
The health services have always been a priority for the Cooraclare councillor, as he maintains that the future of Ennis General Hospital is one of his political priorities.
“T would like to see the €39 mil- lion spent on it very soon, they say it is ring fenced but I would like to see it in use,” he said.
With one year left in the lifetime of this council, Cllr Chambers said he would like to see work begun in the sewerage schemes in Cooraclare, Carrigaholt and Labasheeda. “They have been waiting so long, it is time it was done,” he said.
Cllr Chamber said he is looking forward to the year as deputy may- or, having enjoyed last year. “I like meeting people,” he said.