Dublin: Encyclopedia II - Dublin - Government

Dublin - Government

Dublin - City Government

Dublin City is governed by Dublin City Council (formerly called Dublin Corporation) which is presided over by the Lord Mayor of Dublin, who is elected for a yearly term and resides in the Mansion House, which first became the residence of the Lord Mayor in 1715. Dublin City Council is based in two major buildings. Its headquarters is in Dublin City Hall, the former Royal Exchange taken over for city government use in the 1850s. Many of its administrative staff are based in the controversial Civic Offices, built on top of what had been one of the best preserved Viking sites in the world. The Corporation's (as it was then) decision to bulldoze the historic site proved one of the most controversial in modern Irish history, with thousands of people, including medieval historian Fr. F.X. Martin and Senator Mary Robinson (later President of Ireland) marching to try to stop the destruction. The destruction of the site on Wood Quay and the building of a set of offices known as The Bunkers (because of their ugly appearance) is generally seen as one of the most disastrous acts against Ireland's heritage since independence, with even Dublin Corporation admitting subsequently that it was ashamed of its action. Originally, there were to be four of these 'bunkers' built but only two were ever completed. Instead the river frontage is a less brutal office block designed by the firm Scott Tallon Walker. Completed in 1994, it boasts a leafy atrium and fine views from many of its offices. Council meetings take place in City Hall, one of Dublin's finest buildings and located on Dame Street. It was built to the winning design of Thomas Cooley. In an architectural competition, James Gandon was the runner-up with a scheme that many people favoured. Originally from England, Gandon is one of Ireland's favourite adopted sons and designed both the Four Courts and the Custom House, two of the city's most magnificent classical buildings.

Dublin - Twinned Cities

• - Barcelona, Spain
• - Liverpool, United Kingdom
• - San Jose, California, United States

Dublin - The Dublin Region

The Dublin Region³ consists of the City of Dublin and the area which was formerly known as County Dublin, and covers an area of 922 km² and contains over a million inhabitants. In 1994 County Dublin (the area excluding the city) was sub-divided into three, each new area with county-level status and its own administration, namely:

• Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown
• Fingal
• South Dublin

Administration of the Dublin Region as a whole is now co-ordinated by the Dublin Regional Authority.

Dublin - National Government

The Republic of Ireland's National Parliament (called the Oireachtas) consists of the President of Ireland and two houses, Dáil Éireann (the House of Representatives) and Seanad Éireann (Senate). All three are based in Dublin. The President of Ireland lives in Áras an Uachtaráin, the former residence of the Governor-General of the Irish Free State in the city's largest park, Phoenix Park. Both houses of the Oireachtas meet in Leinster House, a former ducal palace on the south side of the city. The building has been the home of Irish parliaments since the creation of the Irish Free State on December 6, 1922.

The Irish Government is based in the Irish Government Buildings, a large building designed by Sir Aston Webb, the architect who created the Edwardian facade to Buckingham Palace. Initially what is now Government Buildings was designed for use as the Royal College of Science, the last major building built by the British administration in Ireland. In 1921 the House of Commons of Southern Ireland met there. Given its location next to Leinster House, the Irish Free State government took over part of the building to serve as a temporary home for some ministries. However both it and Leinster House (originally meant to be a temporary home of parliament) became the permanent homes of the government and parliament respectively. Until 1990, the Irish government shared the building with the Engineering Faculty of University College Dublin, which retained use of the central block of the building, However following the building of a new Engineering Faculty at the UCD campus in Belfield, the Government took entire control, and remodelled the entire building for governmental use.

The previous old Irish Houses of Parliament of the Kingdom of Ireland is located in College Green.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Government", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki