County Manager
Encyclopedia
In local government in the Republic of Ireland
Local government in the Republic of Ireland
Local government functions in the Republic of Ireland are mostly exercised by thirty-four local authorities, termed county or city councils, which cover the entire territory of the state. The area under the jurisdiction of each of these authorities corresponds to the area of each of the 34 LAU I...

, the Council Manager is the chief executive of the local authority of a county
Counties of Ireland
The counties of Ireland are sub-national divisions used for the purposes of geographic demarcation and local government. Closely related to the county is the County corporate which covered towns or cities which were deemed to be important enough to be independent from their counties. A county...

 or city. Whereas the county council
County council
A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries.-United Kingdom:...

 and city council
City council
A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...

 are elected officials who formulate policy, the manager is an appointed official who manages the implementation of policy.

The County or City Manager performs the executive functions of the County or City Council. He or she supervises, co-ordinates, manages and pays the employees and officers of the Council. He or she also makes contracts on behalf of the Council and affixes the official seal of the Council on documents. Section 144 of the Local Government Act 2001
Local Government Act 2001
The Local Government Act, 2001 was enacted by the Oireachtas of the Republic of Ireland on 21 July 2001. Most of the provisions of the Act came into operation on 1 January 2002....

) states that 'For every county and city there shall be a manager to be known as "the ....... County Manager" or "the ....... City Manager"'. However, a recent report commissioned by the Government suggests reducing the number of county managers from 34 to 24.

History

The first local authority in the then Irish Free State
Irish Free State
The Irish Free State was the state established as a Dominion on 6 December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty, signed by the British government and Irish representatives exactly twelve months beforehand...

 to have a manager was Cork city
Cork (city)
Cork is the second largest city in the Republic of Ireland and the island of Ireland's third most populous city. It is the principal city and administrative centre of County Cork and the largest city in the province of Munster. Cork has a population of 119,418, while the addition of the suburban...

, under the Cork City Management Act, 1929. This was extended to all councils by the County Management Act, 1940. Initially, some smaller counties shared a manager. On several occasions, the Minister for the Environment has suspended a fractious elected council, leaving the manager to run its affairs until the next local elections.

The current legislation governing County and City Managers is the Local Government Act 2001
Local Government Act 2001
The Local Government Act, 2001 was enacted by the Oireachtas of the Republic of Ireland on 21 July 2001. Most of the provisions of the Act came into operation on 1 January 2002....

.

Deputy manager

As well as the County or City Manager, some counties and cities also have Assistant/Deputy County or City Managers. After consultation with the Cathaoirleach
Cathaoirleach
Cathaoirleach is the title of the chairman of Seanad Éireann, the sixty-member upper house of the Oireachtas, the legislature of Ireland. The current Cathaoirleach is Senator Paddy Burke...

 (or Mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

) of the local authority, the County or City Manager may appoint a Deputy Manager to act on their behalf while they are on leave or absent. In situations where the post of Manager becomes vacant, Section 148 of the Local Government Act 2001 requires the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government to appoint someone to the Manager's post temporarily. This temporary appointment will continue until a permanent appointment is made. It may however, be terminated at any time.

Rules

County or City Managers in Ireland are recruited through a competitive recruitment process organised by the Public Appointments Service. Once appointed, the County or City Manager will remain in office for a term of 7 years (although this can also be extended by an additional three years). The retirement age for County or City Managers is 65.

If a Council wishes to suspend or remove a County or City Manager, a resolution must be passed by the Council. At least two-thirds of the Councillors must vote for the resolution after 7 days notice. The Minister then sanctions the removal of the County or City Manager.

Delegation of manager's functions

It is normal practice in Ireland that the County or City Manager of a local authority will delegate some functions to other staff in the local authority. The elected county or city council must be notified of any delegated functions. However, the County or City Manager still remains responsible for the acts of the delegate and can take back (i.e., revoke) a responsibility that has been delegated. As the chief executive, the County or City Manager has the ultimate responsibility for ensuring the local authority operates smoothly and for carrying into effect policy decisions of the elected council.
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