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

I thank the witnesses for attending and for the amount of time, energy and weekends they have put into this. Their expertise, everything they have learned and everything they have given to this process will help shape Dublin’s future. There are not many people who can say that, so well done.

Like Ms O’Connor, a close friend of mine was one of the 67. I knew many of the councillors involved. When I encounter people who have been involved in the citizens’ assembly, the passion they exude for it and, in particular, Dublin city is incredible.

As a member of this committee, I regret that we have not had the witnesses appear before us previously. This discussion would have set the tone for our meetings on the matter. To date, we have been operating in a vacuum. We have met the NTA, local authority chief executives and chambers of commerce, we have asked them loads of questions and they have all said that they did not know the answers because they had not been involved in the report. We now have before us the people who were involved in the report. I thank them for their attendance. We have with us the powerhouses of Mr. Gavin and Mr. O’Leary.

The question of power is one that has arisen time and again. The assembly has recommended a wide menu of mayoral powers for the short term as well as for the longer term. It is not the witnesses’ role to put together how those powers will function in practice, but I would like a sense of the vision and thinking behind these recommendations, particularly as they affect transport, education, planning and healthcare. In terms of transport, are we discussing the NTA or traffic management? In terms of education, are we discussing third level institutions, primary and secondary schools or childcare? In terms of planning, will the local authorities’ current planning departments be centralised into a new overall Dublin planning department that would work more collaboratively with the OPR?

The recommendations on councillors’ pay are great. Councillors from other jurisdictions are asking what the case will be outside Dublin. That is not a question for the witnesses, but I just wanted to put it out there.

What next would the witnesses like to see from us? The feedback I have heard from the advisory panel has been incredible. Mr. Gavin captured it when he spoke about facts, expertise and international experience. How can the Government continue to leverage that knowledge? Can the advisory panel continue to exist, even in a different format, and shape the work of this committee and of the Minister in order to get the right question to the people of Dublin and to make this happen?

I am sorry for taking so much time.