Ballymoney Borough Council

NI_district
district_name = Ballymoney Borough
alt_name = Comhairle Baile Bhaile Monaidh
district_

area_rank = 17th
district_area = 418
district_HQ = Ballymoney
district_iso = GB-BLY
district_ons = 95D
protestant_pc = 66.2%
catholic_pc = 31.9%
web_address =
http://www.ballymoney.gov.uk
district_MPs = Ian Paisley

Ballymoney Borough Council is a Local Council in County Antrim in Northern Ireland. It is based in Ballymoney. Other towns in the Council area include Dervock, Dunloy, Cloughmills and Rasharkin. The area has a population of nearly 27,000.

In the last local government elections on 5 May 2005, 16 members were elected. The current composition of the council is: 7 Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), 3 Sinn Féin, 2 Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), 2 Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) and 2 Independents. The current Mayor is Councillor John Finlay (DUP) (who previously served on Down District Council [ [http://www.ark.ac.uk/elections/lgdown.htm Down Council Elections 1993-2005 ] ] ) and Deputy Mayor is Harry Connolly (SDLP).

The present Council boundaries, which upon the granting of a charter in 1977 became the Borough of Ballymoney, were established in the 1973 reorganisation of local government.

In 2000 Ballymoney Borough Council twinned with the French town of Vanves. Since 2001, the Council has been a sister city of Benbrook in Texas and building on its motorcycling history, is also linked to the Borough of Douglas, Isle of Man.

Together with the neighbouring districts of Ballymena and Moyle, it forms the North Antrim constituency for elections to the Westminster Parliament and Northern Ireland Assembly.

Ballymoney is Northern Ireland's fastest growing town in terms of population. It is thought this is because it is one of the most central places in Northern Ireland, being one hour from Belfast and one hour from Derry. Another reason is as a result of high house prices in the Coleraine/Portstewart/Portrush 'Triangle' areas shifting first-time buyers to the less expensive Ballymoney area.

The Ballymoney Borough Council area has the highest life expectancy of any area in Northern Ireland, with the average male life expectancy at birth being 78.0 years and 82.6 years for females [ [http://www.csp.org.uk/uploads/documents/lifeexpectancyatbirth.xls Life Expectency] ] .

Mayor of Ballymoney

Source: Freedom of Information request to Ballymoney Borough Council

Review of Public Administration

Under the Review of Public Administration (RPA) the Council is due to merge with Coleraine Borough Council, Limavady Borough Council and Moyle District Council in 2011 to form Causeway Coast District Council, a single council for the enlarged area totalling 1796 km² and a population of 131,564. [cite web | title=Minister Foster announces decisions on Local Government Reform | work=DoE | url=http://www.doeni.gov.uk/index/local_government/minister_foster_announces_decisions_on_local_government_reform.htm | accessdate=2008-05-31] The next election was due to take place in May 2009, but on April 25, 2008, Shaun Woodward, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland announced that the scheduled 2009 district council elections were to be postponed until the introduction of the eleven new councils in 2011. [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/northern_ireland/7367253.stm "Northern Ireland elections are postponed", BBC News, April 25, 2008, accessed April 27, 2008] ]

ee also

*Local Councils in Northern Ireland

References

External links

* [http://www.ballymoney.gov.uk/ Ballymoney Borough Council]