Brady expresses concern as public toilets remain locked and litter bins overflow on Bray Seafront

Bray Sinn Féin Councillor John Brady has expressed concerns about the negative impact the Government's overtime and recruitment ban is having on Wicklow, its public amenities and the potential damage its inflicting on tourism. He expressed his concerns following the Easter Bank Holiday weekend which seen the litter bins overflowing on Bray Seafront and the public toilets remaining closed on Friday, because no one from the council was available to open them.

Cllr Brady said "Over the weekend i had been contacted by a number of business people and members of the public in relation to the seafront area of Bray. On Good Friday the public toilets on the seafront remained closed all day long. When i contacted the council i was informed this was down to staffing issues. I informed them that it was not acceptable that they remain closed and i asked them to ensure they were opened for the remainder of the weekend. A substantial refurbishment of the toilets was recently carried out and to have them closed when the seafront is packed with both local people and visitors to the town sends out all the wrong signals".

He went onto say "The problems in the area were further compounded on Monday when the bins in the area were left overflowing and were not emptied until Tuesday morning. The rubbish was blowing all over the area and many people were left with a negative impression of the seafront and of the town".

"Normally the area is kept to the highest of standards by the council outdoor staff. Everyone that visits Bray always have nothing but good to say about the seafront. I am concerned however that the overtime and recruitment ban that the government have in place is having a negative impact on the excellent work that's carried out in the area. Overflowing bins and locked public toilets don't portray a good image and it has the potential to damage the area as an attraction for tourists" continued Brady.

Cllr Brady concluded "I am calling on both the government and the council to ensure that the proper resources are put into maintaining our public amenities and to ensure the overtime ban is lifted to ensure that areas like the seafront in Bray get the staff that are needed to maintain it at critical times such as weekends and Bank Holiday's. We need to be doing everything possible to sell the town in a positive light to exploit its tourist potential, the solution to this problem is simple and i urge the Government TDs to use their power to ensure the crazy overtime ban is lifted to ensure we don't have a re occurrence of weekends such as this".