Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council

Last updated

Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council
Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council logo.svg
Type
Type
History
Founded1 April 2015
Preceded by Antrim Borough Council
Newtownabbey Borough Council
Leadership
Mayor
Councillor Mark Cooper, Democratic Unionist Party
Deputy Mayor
Councillor Rosie Kinnear, Sinn Féin
Structure
Seats40
UK Antrim and Newtonabbey Borough Council 2023.svg
Political groups
 Executive (20)
  DUP (13)
  UUP (7)
Opposition (20)
  Sinn Féin (9)
  Alliance (8)
  Independent (2)
  SDLP (1)
Elections
Last election
 18 May 2023
Meeting place
Mossley Mill and Antrim Civic Centre (alternately)
Website
antrimandnewtownabbey.gov.uk OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council is a local authority that was established on 1 April 2015. It replaces Antrim Borough Council and Newtownabbey Borough Council. [1] A statutory transition committee was established in 2013 to prepare for the merger. The first elections to the authority were on 22 May 2014 with 73 candidates standing for 40 seats. The authority acted in shadow form until the formal creation of the Antrim and Newtownabbey district on 1 April 2015.

Contents

Transition committee

The statutory transition committee was established in 2013 with a membership of eight councillors each from Antrim Borough Council and Newtownabbey Borough Council. [2] The purpose of the committee was to ensure that the new council would be ready to operate from 1 April 2015; to plan for the period up to and after the election of the shadow council; to arrange the first meeting of the shadow council; and to appoint a chief executive. [3]

Borough status

A new local government district was created on 1 April 2015 and is formally called the Antrim and Newtownabbey District, while the council is the Antrim and Newtownabbey District Council. Both of the previous authorities merged into it had borough status, which entitled them to be known as borough councils and the districts to be known as boroughs. The 2013 corporate plan of the statutory transition committee indicated that the new council was expected to retain this status. [3]

Mayoralty

Mayor

FromToNameParty
20152016Thomas Hogg DUP
20162017John Scott Ulster Unionist
20172018Paul Hamill DUP
20182019Paul Michael Ulster Unionist
20192020John Smyth DUP
20202021Jim Montgomery Ulster Unionist
20212022Billy Webb Alliance
20222023Stephen Ross DUP
2023PresentMark Cooper DUP

Deputy Mayor

FromToNameParty
20152016 John Blair Alliance
20162017Noreen McClelland SDLP
20172018Vera McWilliam Ulster Unionist
20182019John Smyth DUP
20192020Anne Marie Logue Sinn Féin
20202021Noreen McClelland SDLP
20212022Stephen Ross DUP
20222023Leah Smyth Ulster Unionist
2023PresentRosie Kinnear Sinn Féin

Councillors

For the purpose of elections the council is divided into seven district electoral areas (DEAs). [4] [5]

AreaSeats
Airport5
Antrim6
Ballyclare5
Dunsilly5
Glengormley Urban7
Macedon6
Threemilewater6

Seat summary

PartyElected
2014		Elected
2019		Elected
2023
DUP 151413
UUP 1297
Alliance 478
Sinn Féin 359
SDLP 441
TUV 200
Independent 012

Councillors by electoral area

This list reflects the order in which councillors were elected at the 2023 Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council election.

Current council members
District electoral areaNameParty
Airport Matthew Magill DUP
Anne-Marie Logue Sinn Féin
Maighréad Ní Chonghaile Sinn Féin
Paul Michael Ulster Unionist
Andrew McAuley Alliance
Antrim Lucille O'Hagan Sinn Féin
Neil Kelly Alliance
Paul Dunlop DUP
John Smyth DUP
Roisin Lynch SDLP
Leah Smyth Ulster Unionist
Ballyclare Jeannie Archibald DUP
Helen Magill DUP
Vera McWilliam Ulster Unionist
Lewis Boyle Alliance
Michael Stewart Independent
Dunsilly Henry Cushnihan Sinn Féin
Annie O'Lone Sinn Féin
Linda Clarke DUP
Stewart Wilson Ulster Unionist
Jay Burbank Alliance
Glengormley Urban Alison Bennington DUP
Eamonn McLaughlin Sinn Féin
Paula Bradley DUP
Mark Cosgrove Ulster Unionist
Julian McGrath Alliance
Rosie Kinnear Sinn Féin
Michael Goodman Sinn Féin
Macedon Taylor McGrann Sinn Féin
Matthew Brady DUP
Robert Foster Ulster Unionist
Billy Webb Alliance
Ben Mallon DUP
Stafford Ward Independent
Three Mile Water Mark Cooper DUP
Tom Campbell Alliance
Stephen Ross DUP
Julie Gilmour Alliance
Sam Flanagan DUP
Stephen Cosgrove Ulster Unionist

Population

The area covered by the new Council had a population of 138,567 residents according to the 2011 Northern Ireland census. [6]

The population of Antrim and Newtownabbey was 145,661 at the time of the 2021 census. [7] An increase of 5.1% since the 2011 Census.

Christmas in the Borough

In September 2018 the council cancelled the Christmas tree and lights switch on for the town of Crumlin. The move, to reduce the budget allocation for Christmas across the borough, was the result of a rate reduction for Belfast International Airport, Aldergrove, to the tune of £1,000,000. Crumlin was to be the only town in the borough without a Christmas tree or lights in 2018, and the only town in Northern Ireland without council funding for Christmas. [8] The initial proposals on Christmas funding came before the council in November 2017, when an amendment to the motion was moved to include Crumlin, but the vote was tied at 18-18, and the Mayor used his casting vote against it. [9]

However, a number of Christmas events took place across the Borough in 2018. Community groups received funding from the council to organise Christmas switch on events, and there were street markets at the switch on events at Antrim, Ballyclare, Glengormley, and Randalstown.

The Enchanted Winter Garden returned to Antrim Castle's Gardens from 7 to 17 December. An Evening of Inclusive Enchantment was planned for 18 December, with reduced numbers, lighting, and sound levels, a sensory and quiet room, ideal for children and adults with additional needs.

See also

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. ↑ "Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Councils are merging in 2015" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 January 2014. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  2. ↑ "STATUTORY TRANSITION COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP 2013" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 January 2014. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  3. 1 2 "Statutory Transition Committee Corporate plan" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 January 2014. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  4. ↑ "The District Electoral Areas (Northern Ireland) Order 2014". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 26 November 2017.
  5. ↑ "Antrim and Newtownabbey Results". UTV. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
  6. ↑ "NI Census 2011 - Key Statistics Summary Report, September 2014" (PDF). NI Statistics and Research Agency. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
  7. ↑ "Antrim and Newtownabbey Census Data". explore.nisra.gov.uk. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  8. ↑ "Antrim & Newtownabbey Borough Council - Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council". www.antrimandnewtownabbey.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 16 November 2018. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  9. ↑ "Council meeting Nov 2017 minutes" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 November 2018. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
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