Cllr. June Murphy, has been elected the new chairperson of the Northern Committee of Cork County Council.

Mitchelstown-based councillor June Murphy, has been elected the new chairperson of the Northern Committee of Cork County Council, succeeding fellow Fermoy Municipal Authority member, Cllr Ian Doyle.

Cllr Murphy was proposed for the position at a meeting in Mallow this week by Cllr Timmy Collins, himself the newly elected chairperson of the Mallow/Kanturk Municipal Authority, and was seconded by Cllr Frank O’Flynn.

In his outgoing address, Cllr Doyle thanked both his fellow elected representatives and council staff and executives for their work over the last 12 months, saying it was for him, a privilege to represent the people of North Cork on Cork County Council.

“The northern division comprises the municipal districts of Fermoy and Mallow/Kanturk and I think, as a municipal district area and as a northern division area, we’re working very well.”

Cllr Doyle said a more negative side of the last 12 months has been the ‘complete lack of progress on the M20’ which is proposed to link the cities of Cork and Limerick and would travel through the northern part of County Cork.

“I think it’s the single biggest structural project that is needed for the northern division,” adding that it is ‘vital’ that the route, which has not been finalised, takes in Mallow, Buttevant and Charleville.

Once in the hot-seat, Cllr Murphy thanked her fellow public representatives for proposing and ratifying her election as chairperson. “I hope I can do ye justice over the next number of months and of course I will try to follow on the work that Cllr Doyle has done in the previous year,” she said.

Cllr Bernard Moynihan was elected as the new vice-chairperson.