Council Meetings to resume virtually following introduction of new regulations

4th May 2020

PLEASE NOTE: This article is over 1 year old and may not contain the most up-to-date information.

Fermanagh and Omagh District Council will hold its first full Council meeting since restriction of movement was introduced in response to the Covid-19 pandemic in March this year.

The meeting, which will take place on Wednesday 6 May 2020 at 7.00 pm, will take place virtually following the introduction of the Local Government (Coronavirus) (Flexibility of District Council Meetings) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2020 legislation announced on 30 April by the Minister for Communities, Deirdre Hargey MLA and which came into effect on 1 May 2020.

The Regulations make provision to enable district councils to hold meetings remotely by telephone conferencing, video conferencing, live webcast and live interactive streaming. The Regulations apply to all councils and all council meetings including committee or sub-committee meetings, executive meetings and meetings of joint committees of two or more councils.

The Chair of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council, Councillor Siobhán Currie said:

“I am delighted that the introduction of these regulations will enable us, as elected representatives, to resume making decisions in relation to normal Council business on behalf of the residents of the district.

The last few weeks have been extremely challenging for everyone, however, I am proud of the way the Council has risen to meet the challenges presented by this unprecedented crisis and the manner in which it has been able to deliver critical services with minimal disruption. The Council has also been able to deliver limited non-essential services by the facilitation of over 200 staff working remotely and the redeployment of staff to support the delivery of critical services. I would like to pay tribute to the staff, who have shown tremendous dedication and commitment to continue to deliver services under such difficult circumstances.”

The meeting agenda and associated reports are available to view on Fermanagh and Omagh District Council’s website.

The virtual Council meeting is open to a limited number of members of the public. Members of the public wishing to attend should email their request to the Council at democratic.services@fermanaghomagh.com no later than 3 pm on Tuesday 5 May 2020.