Councillors agree Council budget of €389m for 2025
Councillors last night agreed Fingal County Council’s 2025 budget of €389m which is a 7.5% increase on last year.
The increased budget will allow Fingal County Council to continue providing a high level of service to its 330,506 residents and represents an expenditure of €1,181 per head of population.
The overall objective of the 2025 Budget is to sustain and enhance quality services and to increase the funding to deliver the required infrastructure projects in the county. The budget has been prepared against the backdrop of challenging international geopolitical and economic uncertainty which Ireland, as an open economy dependant on international trade, is particularly exposed to.
The Housing budget has increased by €18.5m to €135.7m and this includes €16m of additional expenditure on housing delivery through Approved Housing Bodies and long-term leasing. The funding for housing adaptation grants has increased by €1m and the Council’s contribution to the Dublin Regional Homeless Executive has also increased by €1.5m.
The Operations budget has risen by €1.4m to cover increased expenditure on road maintenance, public lighting, recycling centres, parks, pitches, open spaces, public conveniences and burial grounds.
Capital projects in community centres, libraries, heritage properties and corporate buildings will see an increase of €1.25m in funding.
An additional €500,000 has been allocated towards the detailed design and planning of a swimming pool in Balbriggan. Increased funding will be required in future budgets to fund the construction and operation of a pool.
The library book fund has been increased by €325,000 which will bring the spend per head of population to €4 in line with the national target.
There is also an additional €150,000 allocated to funding of events run by community groups while an additional €240,000 will be spent on the development of the arts within Fingal.
At the Council meeting in October councillors voted to retain the rate of Local Property Tax at minus 7.5% for 2025 which provided €3.5m for housing, operations, community, and libraries.
The Mayor of Fingal, Cllr Brian McDonagh, said: “This is the first budget passed by the new Council and it is extremely positive that we have been able to increase it by 7.5% at a time when there are a lot of challenges. It will ensure that the Council continues to deliver a high-quality service to the residents and businesses of Fingal.”
Fingal County Council Chief Executive AnnMarie Farrelly said: “I want to thank the elected members for passing the 2025 budget. We have worked with them over the past few months to come up with a budget that ensures we sustain and enhance the delivery of services while, at the same time, maintaining a prudent approach to how we manage our finances.”
The budget includes allocations to the following key areas:
€136m - Housing & Building (35%)
€44m - Road Transport & Safety (11%)
€19m - Water Services (5%)
€36m - Development Management (9%)
€55m - Environmental Services (14%)
€74m - Recreation & Amenity (19%)
€2m - Agriculture, Education, Health & Welfare (1%)
€23m - Miscellaneous Services (6%)
Councillors also agreed to leave the Annual Rate on Valuation (ARV) unchanged for 2025.
The Budget comes on the back of Fingal’s three-year, €1.57billion Capital Programme which was approved by Councillors in October and consists of 331 projects.