Meet the 33-year-old '90s baby' aiming to reshape DCC as Lord Mayor

Lord Mayor Daryl Barron spoke to Dublin Live about a zero-tolerance crackdown on scramblers, making the city cleaner, and why he won't falter on pursuing the divisive bin bag ban

News Stephen Holland Local Democracy Reporter 12:02, 13 Jul 2026 Updated 12:23, 13 Jul 2026 View 2 Images Lord Mayor Councillor Daryl Barron (Image: Stephen Holland)

The new Lord Mayor Daryl Barron has outlined his support for a zero tolerance approach to illegal scramblers and calls for extra resources for garda “hamstrung” in their ability to deal with minors.

Two weeks on from his election as the 359th Lord Mayor of Dublin , Fianna Fáil Councillor and Donaghmede native Barron sat down with Dublin Live in the Mansion House. He outlined his plans for a term characterised by actionable change through his ‘Our Dublin’ agenda and spoke on issues of anti-social behaviour, the housing crisis, and waste management.

As the fourth youngest Lord Mayor since the title’s inception in 1665, the 33-year-old representative aims to be a voice for younger people in politics and stresses the importance of implementing their views at a local and national level. Lord Mayor Barron joked that he’s “the first ‘90s baby” to take up the role.

“For democracy, it’s so important that we have younger people voicing their concerns and are able to articulate issues and points. To shoot from the hip on that,” he said.

While Lord Mayor Barron has youth on his side, he said this does not equate to a lack of experience as his association with Fianna Fáil dates back to his teenage years doing apprenticeships alongside TDs including training with former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern. At 24, he campaigned to be President of Ógra Fianna Fáil, and at 26 he was elected to Dublin City Council in the 2019 local elections.

View 2 Images Lord Mayor of Dublin Daryl Barron with his wife Orla and son Niall (age 1) accompanied by Peter Hendrick ADC to the Lord Mayor. (Image: Conor McCabe Photography)

His association with the council runs even deeper than this, as his late father Donal worked within DCC’s Housing Department for four decades and his grandfather served as a park ranger within the Park’s Department. “It’s in my DNA,” he said, stating he was always drawn to politics and wished to be politically active.

“I saw day-in day-out my father taking calls from councillors when he worked in the North Inner City in areas like Ballymun and Ballyfermot,” he said. “I always saw his commitment to local democracy and the local authority - that always stuck with me.”

Running four clinics per week, Lord Mayor Barron believes he’s tuned in to the pulse of his constituency and says the everyday issues he hears from Donaghmede residents act as a microcosm for all the major points of concern across Dublin city. He views his clinics as a “thermometer to see what's going on” and revealed “housing is the number one issue that comes up”.

While he believes DCC have been committed to upped their housing stock and addressing homelessness figures, Lord Mayor Barron said he comes from a generation where so many people feel they have no choice but to emigrate. “It’s important we give this generation hope. We have to be mindful that some people have nowhere to go and they’re still living in the box room. That, fundamentally, is a failure of the State,” he said.

Lord Mayor Barron’s North Central Area has seen its fair share of issues when it comes to housing, as residents in social and cost-rental homes in De Verdon Place on the Malahide Road and Burnell Place in Northern Cross have outlined their fears around anti-social behaviour to Dublin Live. Overall though, he believes DCC and the Approved Housing Bodies have been “robust” in addressing problems such as these, but that stronger garda presence and extra supports are needed for community policing and address core issues.

“There’s work to do from a visibility point of view. I believe we need to continue to resource An Garda Síochána more and ensure they can do their job effectively. It’s very important that they have the resources available to deal with the issues at hand in the city centre,” he said.

“We’ve seen recently about e-scooters. I’m sick to death of scramblers in my area. Speaking with the superintendent, the amount of scramblers we are trying to seize is colossal .”

He calls for stricter laws around their usage, a ban of their use for under 16s, and more attention to be paid to the parents who allow minors to access these vehicles. “It’s not a ten year old going in to buy an e-scooter. It’s mammy and daddy,” he said.

“They are the ones that need to be looked at and need to have conversations with. I think if a child under 16 is caught with an e-scooter it needs to be seized straight away. They have not done any level of road worthiness, there’s no insurance, there’s no accountability.

“I’ve driven down the Malahide Road coming back from council meetings some nights and they are going 80km per hour. These guys are dressed all in black, there’s no lights, it’s not safe. If he falls or hits something, they’re dead.”

Another hot topic as Lord Mayor Barron enters his term is waste management across the city . As DCC prepares to enact their new waste management strategy, which includes the banning of plastic bin bags on city streets, there has been major pushback in areas like Stoneybatter and Phisborough, as residents say the alternatives are not workable.

“I’ve been involved in discussions over the past few weeks and it’s important we have buy-in from the local area. We’re going to do more public consultation on that , open-door clinics and public clinics where people can come in and talk. We’re going to engage with all the residents’ associations again,” he said.

However, Lord Mayor Barron also wants to be very clear that there are directives from the European Union around the removal of plastic bags and stresses “we need to get rid of bin bags in the city”. “That’s something we need to see the end of very soon, and for me for I am very much committed to continuing to push on that,” he said..

The new Lord Mayor wants his terms to be characterised by “tangible results” and said making Dublin cleaner is “the big one”. “I want to really make sure I have an impact these next 12 months. There’s a simplicity to what I’m trying to do, but if we get it right, the people of Dublin will appreciate it in the long run,” he said.

Lord Mayor Barron admits he’s “acutely aware” he does not have control powers on bodies like An Garda Síochána and that this is very much a civil, honorary role. But, as the husband of a garda with long-standing associations across the public sector, he believes he can effectively highlight the big issues affecting the city.

Honouring those who quietly make Dublin tick is another key initiative of his mayoral term. Citing ceremonies like the Lord Mayor’s Awards , Barron is committed to honouring the “unsung heroes” who keep the city going. “There’s so many people who have been running a local football club for 30 years or sweeping the streets with Tidy Towns for 25 years,” he said.

“Those people don’t go chasing accolades, but they’re the heartbeat and fabric of the city. I want my message of ‘Our Dublin’ to respond with the people of our city, our communities. I want to make sure the City Council is embedded in our communities.”

Lord Mayor Barron must also balance his political career with another important new role, as he’s father to a one-year son named Niall. “He’ll dictate to me, he’s the real boss, “ he said, stating he intends to balance his time between the Mansion House and their family home in Donaghmede.

Speaking of his predecessor, former Lord Mayor Ray McAdam , he said “I hope to have as much energy as him” and plans to get to as many events as possible. “I intend to get out everywhere I can. I am very much community oriented and I intend to talk to as many people as possible,” he said.

One aspect driving him is a desire to highlight the many unseen things that Dublin City Council are doing to make the city better. “I think we need to become better visual storytellers because people don't know the half of what the council does.

“There’s teams out at two and three in morning road sweeping. There’s people power hosing Talbot Street at 4am. I think we need to highlight them.”

Lord Mayor Barron said that “Dublin always gets bashed” but that the city is also contending with higher footfall than anywhere else in Ireland. “There are a lot of issues, but we are improving. I expect over the next 12 months to really get stuck into them,” he said.

This content is funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme

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