I move that the Bill be now read a Second Time.
The Bill comes before the House as a consequential measure arising from the Local Government Provisional Order Confirmation Bill, 1965, which proposes to authorise a substantial extension of the municipal boundary of Cork. Having regard to the substantial increase in the area and population of the county borough which the boundary extension will bring about, this Bill proposes to increase by ten members the present membership of the county borough council. I hope that in this way it will be practicable to secure effective representation on the council for all sections of the population of the enlarged municipal area.
The council established by the Cork City Management Act, 1929, consisted of 21 members. At the time the Act was passed Cork county borough had a population of 78,490 and occupied an area of 2,685 acres. A boundary extension in 1955 added 835 acres and a population of 15,364. The Provisional Order which has now been submitted for confirmation will add to the county borough 6,278 acres—disregarding approximately 800 acres of tideway—and a population, on the basis of the 1961 Census, of 33,641 persons. If the Provisional Order dealing with this projected boundary extension is confirmed by the Oireachtas, the population of the enlarged county borough will be 111, 621 persons. This comprises 56,202 persons within the old 1929 boundary, 21,778 in the area added in 1955 and, as I have said, 33,641 persons in the areas now being added.
An increase from 21 to 30 members would be sufficient to preserve the ratio established by the 1929 Act between the population and the number of members of the Cork County Borough Council. In general, however, an uneven number of members—as in the case of the other county boroughs councils—is preferable. For this reason the Bill provides for 31 members, a membership which would be justified by reference to the ratio of population to members in the case of Limerick and Waterford County Borough Councils.