Jennifer Murnane O'Connor (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the witnesses. It is great to see them all together. It is like everything: we are all working for the improvement of our own counties and towns, which is so important. I have to agree with the previous speakers. The loss of town councils has been a disaster, in particular in places like my home town of Carlow. To me, it has been the nail in the coffin of most local authorities because funding has been cut across the board and everybody is losing out. Councillors themselves have experienced cuts while having larger areas to cover. In the past, one had nine or ten town councillors for a town and then one had one's county councillors. We do not have that in most areas and I cannot express the extent to which that has devastated areas.

I sat on a Leader board for years and it did good work in the sense that a lot of community groups received funding. However, the biggest issue, which continues to be an issue with LCDCs and Leader companies, was that a lot of community groups could not apply for funding because they could not come up with the matching funds required. It was not a requirement to match the full level of funding, but groups still had to find money. It is a massive issue. My home town of Carlow had what were previously known as disadvantaged RAPID areas and they need to come back. I sat on an LCDC for the two years before I became a Senator. Again, it is only open to the bigger groups which have the funding whereas RAPID and disadvantaged areas cannot come up with the funding. Applying for these projects is causing them hassle, but they are the ones that need the funding. These are the ones the witnesses need to look at as a priority. It is the disadvantaged and RAPID areas. I understand there is consideration of bringing them back into play. It is of the utmost importance.

I refer to the staffing of LCDCs. I worked with LCDCs and then I worked with the LEO system, which is working well with local authorities. However, the IDA is not coming down to rural counties. It is visiting Dublin, Cork and the other cities. I am all for working with Dublin and the bigger cities, but one cannot forget the rural counties. We must ensure that the IDA comes down to visit Carlow, Kilkenny, Laois and other such areas. We are there but we are not getting the same priority. That has to come from development plans and everyone working together. It is not based on looking at Dublin and putting things there. We had one official visit to Carlow from the IDA last year and we might have had one or two informal ones. That is unacceptable. We are 50 minutes from Dublin and we have a great base so why are we not being promoted in all this? These are the things with which I take issue.

The PPNs are working well but I note the bureaucracy. I sat on the LCDC for two years and it was a nightmare. Every month, I went to a meeting and it was paperwork, paperwork, paperwork. Going forward, it will be another year or two before any projects that come through, which I hope they will, are up and running. We advertised recently in my own area for certain community groups to apply for funding and all the notice they got was two weeks in the local paper. I nearly got a heart attack when I read it and had to ring straight away. They were only given two weeks. The witnesses can imagine having to get a project ready, prepare a full plan and put in an application in two weeks. That is unacceptable. While a little bit of extra time was granted in the end, one has to look at all the areas. We have to look at how long community groups are being given to apply. If it is two weeks, it is unacceptable. They need to be given at least two to three months.

We also need to know who exactly they are meeting. I am still learning, as is the LCDC. Who does one meet and how are community groups getting to know the information? I am a firm believer that a lack of information is the biggest issue we face. A lot of smaller groups are not getting the proper information. It is like anything else. It is all about promotion. I was at a meeting three months ago which had to do with the LCDC and there were a good number of people in attendance. However, a lot of them did not know what they were entitled to and how to apply. Going forward with LCDCs, PPNs and the different community groups, we are going to have to look at putting an improved process in place.

I have a plan going forward for the Tullow Road area in Carlow which has always been a RAPID area. Who decides how much funding each area gets? I know it has to go to the Department. It is one of the biggest plans because this has been a disadvantaged area for a long time. Who decides which area gets what and how much money is given out? There is nothing as bad for a local councillor as this issue. As previous speakers have said, councillors do amazing work but they are undermined in what they do. They are working with communities and giving 100% to their locality. Every councillor in every one of the 31 local authorities will be fighting to ensure that his or her area gets what it can. However, one sees some areas getting a few million more. I ask that every local authority and area gets its fair share, no matter what big projects go to the Department.

It is sad that there is no one from the Department here today because it is crucial. The buck will stop with the Department. I want to ensure that fair play is given by LCDCs to all the rural counties. While I have no problem with Dublin, we all need an equal share. I ask the witnesses to keep that in mind. It is great to see everyone here. It the first time I have met with the groups since I became a Senator. I am delighted to welcome them here.