Government receives report on whether Westmeath should annex part of Roscommon

A report examining the suggestion that part of Roscommon be subsumed into Westmeath has been submitted to the Government.
According to our sister paper, The Westmeath Independent, the report is expected to either recommend or reject the suggestion that Westmeath’s boundary should be extended to take in Monksland and other areas of South Roscommon. 
A spokesperson for the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government, Simon Coveney, confirmed to the Westmeath Independent that the Minister has received the report of the Athlone Boundary Review committee. 
“The report has been received and is under consideration,” said the spokesperson this week. 
When asked if there was any indication as to when or if the report will be published, he replied, “not yet”. 
Just under 28,000 submissions were made by members of the public to the three-person boundary review committee at the beginning of the year. 
Westmeath County Council has argued that extending its boundary westwards would “further strengthen” Athlone economically. 
However, the three TDs in the Roscommon-Galway constituency, including Communications Minister Denis Naughten, have all said they firmly oppose any change to the county boundary.