THE CEREMONIAL ROBES worn by councillors have been described by one Sinn Féin councillor as ‘a waste of money’.

Anna Marley will not be wearing the robes at the first meeting of the new council tomorrow along with two other Sinn Féin Councillors, Mairéad Farrell and Cathal Ó Conchúir.

Councillor Marley told TheJournal.ie that “It’s a collective decision made by the party collectively.

“One element of this is that the process of wearing the robes is a little outdated, we receive our authority from the people and not archaic systems of old.

“Secondly and most critically, it’s a waste of money when you consider the cost of these robes.

We feel that spending thousands of euro on robes for city councillors is out of step with the financial hardship being felt by people across the board.

It’s reported these robes cost €800-€1,000 to be made for a new councillor.

Marley added that “From those in mortgage arrears and families who find it increasingly difficult to make ends meet to the large sections of our youth who are unemployed and individuals losing their discretionary medical cards…

In our view it would be financially irresponsible at the very least for any councillor to ask the taxpayer to fork out hundreds of euro for a ceremonial robe.

When asked about the feeling of other councillors around the issue of the robes, Councillor Marley said that she’d be “doubtful others would see sense”.

Political maturity is needed here but these robes should be a thing of the past. 

She also added that the robes should be done away with altogether considering their cost.

“It’s an awful waste of taxpayers money and they don’t give any extra powers. It’s the people that matter not the robes”.

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Read: Out with the old: Supreme Court to ditch traditional robes next week>