Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is not rocket science. There will be an annual report. Anything that will be transferred from a county council clearly will be in the minutes of the council. What the Minister will sign is a public document, a memorandum. He must give his consent and the document will be available in the county council. I presume ministerial orders are available online and I am sure the stuff will be available in the annual report. I do not see why it should not be. This is no big deal. I have said I shall return on Thursday to discuss the matter. I do not have a problem with the provision. It is good to approach a body and say, "Listen, this is the Seanad's view on the matter; what is your view?" I do not see anything wrong with the provision, which is constructive. We know that the option is available to county councils and that a ministerial order is a public document. We also know that councils must have annual reports and that they must account for all of the moneys spent. We know that any money must be spent in the county where it was collected. There is total transparency in all of these matters.