Michael Fitzmaurice (Roscommon-Galway, Independent) | Oireachtas source

Councils cannot even fill potholes in places, never mind cut grass or clean streets. The amount of work that people in every little village are putting in might not seem like much to those in certain parts of the country, but they have pride in their places. Despite this, we are telling them that they must comply with the usual health and safety regulations in what they do.

During the heavy snow a few years ago, we went along our roads with our fertiliser spreaders. Later, we found out that doing so had been against the law and that we were not covered by our insurance. Finally, however, the penny dropped after one of the storms down south and the State indicated that farmers who went out to do that work were covered by insurance because they were doing a public good. Can the same not be done in respect of Tidy Towns groups? I am not stating that people should be able to stand in the middle of the road waiting for a car to hit them, but if we are telling people who are cutting the verge with a lawnmower that they must erect a sign 600 m down the road, something is wrong. There must be some indemnity for those individuals.

I agree with the Chairman. I thank him and his staff for arranging this meeting. We need the delegates to put their heads together. I do not want a talking shop that lasts for months, as the ball is being dropped in many villages and towns and people are sick to the teeth of being handed rules and regulations. They will walk away.