MAYO COUNTY COUNCIL has expressed its “sincere regret” that a proposition to boycott holiday homeowners in the county was released “prematurely”.

Tom Gilligan, the director of services for housing at the council, called for a boycott of holiday homeowners in response to the ongoing housing crisis, the Irish Independent reported on Wednesday.

The proposal was met with astonishment by some members of the council. 

Today, Gilligan said the email containing the proposal was “an attempt to prompt internal discussion on a sensitive but relevant issue”.

He added that it was not intended for public release before council members had a chance to consider it. 

“I sincerely apologise for any concern or distress it caused. My goal has always been to find solutions through open, respectful dialogue, and I remain fully committed to working in partnership to achieve that.”

In a statement issued today, Mayo County Council said the proposal “was not a statement of any formal policy proposal or position”, but was instead contained in internal correspondence. 

The council said it was an attempt to generate discussion in the Strategic Planning Committee (SPC) about how to address issues with housing in Mayo.

The council described Gilligan’s proposal as “a controversial approach”.

The statement said the idea was not discussed or agreed by the council’s elected members “and had the correspondence not been released to the media prematurely, the matter would have been considered by the members of the SPC in the normal way and evidently would not have progressed any further”.

“Mayo County Council wishes to highlight its sincere regret for the upset that this matter has caused to the elected members, the public and in particular, owners of second homes in County Mayo,” the statement said.