Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Minister of State is welcome to the Chamber to listen to this debate. I hope he will be able to put some actions in place in respect of the issues we are all raising. As a proud former member of a town commission, before it became a town council, I am very grateful for the start that local government gave me in political life. I was not necessarily political at the time but I saw the town commission as a way to improve conditions for families in the town I live in, Newbridge, and I got a very good basic grounding in local government and how important it is to all of our citizens, no matter where they live.

I sometimes get the sense that local government is undervalued. That concerns me greatly because local government has a plethora of responsibilities ranging from housing to housing adaptation grants, libraries, which are the heartbeat of many of our communities, fire services, roads, footpaths, maintenance, retrofitting and, of course, the arts, leisure and amenities, to name just a few. To look at the people charged with carrying out these functions, the executive has a very important role but those who are elected every five years do excellent work. It is fair to say that local government has gone through a lot of change over the past few decades but one thing remains.The local councillor is the first port of call regarding so many issues, challenges and concerns. People consult them when they need advice about how to go about resolving an issue in their own area, on a range of public services. For communities and towns around the country to achieve their full potential, they need representatives who want to make a difference. The councillors I know are certainly very focused on getting things done and working towards a positive vision for their home area, rather than just being involved in either protest or populist politics.

Councillors receive great support from the Association of Irish Local Government, AILG, which caters for the 949 councillors, and the Local Authority Members Association, LAMA. I commend the work they do. The commitment I have spoken about is needed now more than ever because having strong and vocal councillors is very important, both in terms of making a case and also in holding the executive to account, which is an important function. Councillors can help families get a house or secure a home. They work on local development plans, set rates, support local businesses and ensure the necessary investment is made in roads and footpaths. These decisions play a significant role in supporting the local economy in our communities and towns and, ultimately, the country.

We will have elections next year. There are a number of issues that are important for councillors. One of these is the issue of the gratuity. There is no other profession in the country where people would get a gratuity based on a previous pay scale. This is hugely pertinent and important. We need to have a timescale for resolving this matter. As public representatives, we have all been subjected to concerns about our security. A scheme has been brought in for Oireachtas Members. That needs to be introduced for local authority members also. I am glad the AILG is contributing to the task force regarding this matter. I was pleased to work with the Minister of State's predecessor to ensure maternity leave for councillors, which is very important.

I raised my next point as a Commencement matter this week. It is to do with the financing of local government. Kildare is fifth out of 31 local authorities in terms of population. It is seventh out of 31 in terms of local property tax, LPT generation. It is tenth out of 31 for its overall budget. However, it is 31st out of 31 in terms of expenditureper capitaand that has been on an ongoing basis. It is not good enough. The scale of the underfunding is such that if Kildare was to come up to 30th place, we would need an extra €5.4 million. To have the same funding as the county in 28th place we would need over €26 million. Kildare is a great county, full of great communities. We need to have more funding.