New Tipperary cathaoirleach says late father ‘looking down’ on her on proud day
Labour Party councillor Fiona Bonfield has been elected unanimously to serve as first citizen of Tipperary for the coming year.
The Newport native will serve as the cathaoirleach of the county council after she was proposed by party colleague Louise Morgan Walsh and seconded by Michael ‘Chicken’ Brennan at the annual general meeting of Tipperary County Council.
This will be Cllr Bonfield’s first time holding the cathaoirleach role after she was elected to Tipperary County Council in 2014.
Cllr Bonfield’s priorities for the coming year will be delivering more affordable housing across the county, building connected communities, and tackling vacancy and dereliction across the county.
Speaking after her election, Cllr Bonfield said it was a proud day for her and her family, and that she hoped to do her late father Martin Bonfield proud, who passed away in 2020.
“It is a privilege of a lifetime to stand before you as the newly-elected cathaoirleach of Tipperary County Council, and I am deeply humbled by the trust you placed in me,” she said.
“Today is a historic day for this chamber as I take up this role as a Labour female chairperson of our united county council.
“I also carry an immense pride standing here as a lifelong member of the Labour Party. As a woman in local government I know the barriers that have historically kept underrepresented voices from the decision-making table,” Cllr Bonfield said.
The incoming-cathaoirleach added that she takes the responsibility of working for every community across Tipperary very seriously, and said that strong communities don’t happen by accident.
Speaking to the Irish Independent after her election, Cllr Bonfield said that she felt her father was looking down on her in her political career.
Cathaoirleach Fiona Bonfield and leas-cathaoirleach Micheál Anglim. © Katie O’Donovan
“I lost my dad in 2020 and when I put my name forward to run for the council in 2014, he was one proud man that day. My mum said ‘what in the name of God are you doing?’ but my dad was always into politics.
“This is a very proud day for me and I know he’s looking down on me and he would be so, so delighted that I got this honour here today,” she said.
The Labour councillor also explained that accelerating the delivery of affordable housing for the county would be one of her key focuses for the coming year.
“We’re doing a good bit of work with social housing, but to me the biggest issue at the minute is affordable housing. Day in and day out, the number of calls I’m getting from people that are just above the threshold for social housing and they don’t qualify for it, so they’re the people that I’m hoping to give a real focus on,” she said.
“I know we’re starting to roll out affordable housing but we need to do it a lot quicker and I’m looking forward to working with the executive and the other bodies involved to see can we get this done quicker.”
The newly cathaoirleach said that she would also look to focus on bringing life back to empty buildings all over the county.
“It fries me when I see buildings lying idle and nothing going on in them. A lick of paint would go a long way, but if you drive into every town and village in Tipperary, it has some vacant and derelict buildings, and I think it’s an issue that we need to focus on.
“It would improve the area, it would provide much-needed housing for individuals as well, so there’s a lot of work to be done on it,” she said.
The cathaoirleach position will be staying within the Nenagh Municipal District area, with Cllr Bonfield taking over from district colleague Cllr John Carroll.
“Cllr John Carroll was a magnificent chair, we had a couple of difficult days last year in the chamber, but he handled them.
“He was a great leader, and if I’m as good as John, I’ll do a good job,” she said.
The Newport-based councillor said that she was looking forward to getting straight to work for the people in her community, and all the communities across Tipperary after her election.
Fianna Fáil councillor Micheál Anglim was elected as leas-cathaoirleach for the coming year, after he was proposed by party colleague Cllr Kieran Bourke, and seconded by Thurles-based councillor Sean Ryan.
Speaking after his election, Cllr Anglim said that he will do all he can to support Cllr Bonfield in her role for the coming year.
“Cllr Bonfield, you’re solid and genuine, and that’s what I’ve known of you since 2014. My job as the Leas-Cathaoirleach is to work alongside you and do anything I can to assist you,” he said.