Mr. John Treacy:

The DDDA council, which is being replaced by this consultative forum, was in a position to work closely with the board and to understand the context of decisions. It had a much more specific consultation process - everything from agenda writing to seeing the minutes from the board.

There needs to be a little more substance regarding what that will look like. The new representative structure is being renewed. While there will be more representatives from business and employers, we are a little worried about how this will feed into Dublin City Council representation regarding the north side and south side. It is still a little unclear, so we would like to have a greater understanding. With regard to powers, the influence on the budget and the mix of expenditure across the areas of jobs, education and culture must be borne in mind.