Mayor of Limerick appeals for 'donations' from public to support his programme

MAYOR John Moran has appealed for donations to support the delivery of his programme.

In a message posted to his website, he wrote: “It is important to me to remain a non-party political mayor. If you can spare a little, it would help me a lot.”

“Being Independent creates difficulties and hurdles battling large parties, lobbyists and vested interests who do not want the DEM (directly elected mayor) reform to succeed or the vision of Limerick I support to be delivered,” he added.

The mayor’s page includes options to donate fixed sums between €25 and €500, as well as a custom amount.

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Mayor Moran said any money would be lodged in a campaign account and used to support delivery of his programme “or to help more generally the fight for reform of local Government in Ireland and the adoption of elected mayors by other counties.”

The mayor said such arrangements are subject to rules set by the Standards in Public Office Commission, which regulates political donations and sets limits and reporting requirements. He added that “small and often” is the best approach to contributions under those guidelines.

“They say money makes the world go round. Perhaps not exactly so, but it certainly makes a fight for change and reform much easier,” he stated.

He also appeared to criticise Government, writing they “could have chosen to support the mayor like they do other full-time politicians and ministers but they did not.”

Mayor Moran, who did not return a request for comment, said the legislation governing his role does not provide support for what he described as his “political battles”, including constituency clinics, developing press relationships and funding political research.

The first citizen became Ireland’s only directly elected mayor in 2024, and his time in office has been marked by a number of public disagreements with council members.

Limerick Live has contacted the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage for a response to his comments on national support.

Since his election, Mayor Moran has received approximately €25m in funding to support his office and its programme. 

According to council records, almost €300,000 has been spent on consultants from Grant Thornton for the provision of business and ICT consulting services.

This is specifically for the More Healthy Limerick pillar of the mayoral programe.