Long known as one of Galway City's most colourful councillors, Padraig Conneely has now taken the reigns at Galway City Council and is busy preparing for his year as Mayor.

Originally from Clifden, Conneely grew up listening to 'Today at the Dáil' with his father, following the "rough and tumble" antics of Sean Lemass and James Dillon. This early exposure, combined with his father's involvement in the local scene, meant that Conneely always had a keen passion and interest in politics. However, it would be much later on in life that he would come to the fore of local government.

On leaving Clifden in 1969, Conneely decided to move into Galway City and work in the insurance business. Over the years, he worked his way up through the ranks, running a successful insurance business before branching into brokering. Throughout this time, he had also kept active locally in politics and had become fascinated by the public relations aspect of it.

He then decided to take a career departure, moving into the PR industry with ease. Always a loyal Fine Gael member, Conneely then began working with the party, staying for 21 years to become the longest standing member of the Fine Gael National Executive.

"Working with the national executive gave me a great insight into how politics works. I worked in public relations with the likes of Bill O Herlihy, Ted Neilan and Pat Heneghan and learned a lot about how things operate. I could see any move coming a mile off and figure out how to turn it into a story."

However, Conneely still harboured a desire to get into the thick of the action and provide the public with a service. Due to the fact that he was situated in the West Ward and Angela Lupton had been the long-running Fine Gael representative in the area, Conneely had to wait a little longer than he planned to enter local politics but when Lupton retired in 2004, Conneely was elected to Galway City Council for the first time.

"I have this itch and desire to help people. My attitude to things is always 'why not?' I have a serious difficulty taking no for an answer. If someone tells me 'no', then I want ten different explanations for why that's the case. If I get stuck into anything, I pursue it to the bitter end."

"What pleases me most about my position is when I can help somebody. When I get a call from City Hall about a job that I wanted done, I can't wait to call the client and let them know. I get great satisfaction from that. Calling an elderly woman and being able to tell her that City Hall are going to fix her range after her waiting for years is the best part of the job," he adds.

Conneely quickly developed a reputation as a fiery and unpredictable addition to the council chamber, calling city officials to task on numerous issues concerning the city, most notably the Eyre Square Development. He will no doubt be keeping an even closer eye from now on, after being elected Mayor at a meeting of Galway City Council last week.