GLOCHAMUCKA

Any wannabe councillor has a list of phrases they need to learn off by heart and repeat when they’re stuck for something to say. One of their favourites is to make some reference to a man at a desk in Dublin who doesn’t know what the rural people want or need.

This criticism could be levelled closer to home though, as this week we learn that both Cork County Council and An Bord Pleanála are fans of the historic ‘Glochamucka Public House’ on the old Kilworth road.

Last week permission was given for a site zoned for industry at Garrane, but Cloonlough is meanwhile protected as an area of ‘natural beauty’. While we’re at it, the Kilworth road is a ‘scenic route’. Will we go ahead and take this fantasy to the Nth degree and tell everyone that Kilworth Camp is actually Disneyland?

There is a real terror from bureaucracy and little coloured-in boxes on maps that impacts on economic growth and livelihood, visitor numbers and people. Councillors both new and ingrained better be realistic about what they’re up against - and don’t be afraid to confront their far-fetched promises on the doorstep.