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[Press Release: January 19th, 2005] Greens delighted with funds going to Order of MaltaThe three Green Party Councillors were delighted with last nights decision to give 5,000 euros to the Order of Malta organisation and 5,000 euros to the Chamber of Commerce towards a St. Patrick's Day Parade. The Budget for the town for the coming year was discussed at length at last week's meeting, and at last nights meeting various sections were hotly debated until 1 a.m. in the morning.Green Party Councillor, Caroline Burrell, stated that "We were delighted to see funds being provided for the Order of Malta organisation, who to date had received no monies from the Council, which provides an invaluable voluntary service to the town. We were very disappointed to see that a large percentage of the budget returns to Wicklow County Council for various services rendered and that the Budget did not state clearly where funds were available - as in one instance where funds put forward was actually for funds already spent and were being used to pay back a loan. We were also pleased to see that 20,000 euros has been allocated for the Removal of Rubbish and we were assured that the majority of this funding will be used to clean up O'Byrne Lane which is long overdue". The Green Party had put down a number of amendments to the Budget including funds for the Order of Malta, the Chamber of Commerce to help finance a St. Patrick's Day Parade, a proposed Airshow, the Bray Jazz Festival, Development plans for the SAAO for Bray Head, Removal of Rubbish, School Environmental Projects and a Tree Planting Programme to replace trees that were burnt down on Bray Head last year. Green Party Councillor, Ciaran O'Brien stated that "It is about time that funds were allocated towards a St. Patrick's Day Parade as we have had none since 2000. I received numerous requests from the public that as a large town we should have our own Parade rather than having to travel into Dublin or down to Greystones. There are plenty of community groups out there who are willing to get involved." The funds available after being allocated for roads, planning, lighting, maintenance, environmental protection, recreation & amenities was a mere 32,500 euros. These funds were looked at, debated on and the final decision included funds for the Order of Malta organisation, the Chamber of Commerce for a St. Patrick's Day Parade, a Heavy Goods Collection, the Fassaroe Community Centre, the Twinning Committee, a Business Development Programme, the Waiver Waste Bags Scheme, Self-Help Scheme, and a reduction in the Rates percentage. Deirdre de Burca stated that "We are very concerned with the new "Pay by Use" scheme which we feel will encourage more dumping of bulky items such as fridges, furniture, and TV's onto public roads and derelict sites in the town. We argued for a lot more funds to be made available for the Heavy Goods Removal Service but unfortunately only an extra 9,000 euros could be found. We also satisfied with the 8,000 euros that the Fassaroe Community Centre will receive, which will help provide for badly needed resources in the area."
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