Ringfence funding for upkeep of cemeteries in Mayo

MONEY needs to be ringfenced for the upkeep of cemeteries in Mayo.

With plots costing €800, Councillor Paul McNamara believes the council should be giving some of that income back to burial ground committees.

Currently, committees rely on GMA funding allocated by elected members, which would come in at between €1,000 to €2,000 each year.

However, this is nowhere near enough for the works that need to be done, such as new footpaths or wall repairs, and Mayo County Council should be ringfencing money to support the voluntary committees, Councillor McNamara told a Westport-Belmullet Municipal District meeting.

Committees need to be supported or burial grounds will be falling into a poor state.

Councillor McNamara was supported by his elected colleagues.

District head Padraig Walsh said what Councillor McNamara was suggesting would require a policy change by the council's environment section.

He would make their views known to the people who deal with policy and budgets.