Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for being with us to discuss the concept of a directly elected mayor for Dublin. The citizens assembly did a lot of work on this and produced a comprehensive report after many Saturdays and weekends of deliberation. Despite this, it is very difficult to sum up the vision of a directly elected mayor for Dublin in a report. Ms Graham hit the nail on the head for me when she said she assumes it is responsibility for public transport that is being recommended for transfer because it is not clear in the report. The report sets out a vast array of functions that will potentially transfer from different Departments and local authorities to the office of a directly elected mayor for Dublin. It is our job to try to figure out, based on the recommendations of the citizens' assembly, what that would look like in practical terms and how we would arrive at a straightforward question to put to members of the public in Dublin in a plebiscite. Is the only practical way to interpret the report that it is public transport that we are speaking about?

My second question relates to the points Ms Graham made about the greater Dublin area transport network and how it does not just stop at the Dublin electoral area boundaries. I represent Dublin Mid-West, which includes Lucan, a town bordering County Kildare, and Brittas, which borders County Wicklow. I am familiar with the trains and buses from Lucan to Leixlip, Maynooth and so on. On the far side of the town, the No. 65 bus route serves Baltinglass, Ballyknocken and Ballymore Eustace. I am aware that we cannot have public transport stopping at the periphery of Dublin. The NTA is responsible for the whole greater Dublin area. When this committee meets, representatives from Wicklow, Kildare, Laois and lots of different places on the wider commuter belt attend. If responsibility for public transport in Dublin were to be transferred to a particular entity that only had responsibility for Dublin, does Ms Graham believe that would have a negative knock-on effect on the area just outside of Dublin, the Pale, if you like?