Mr. Fionnán Fitzgerald:

I thank the committee for the opportunity given to me to make a submission on the future of local government. I am a councillor who was elected for the first time in 2019. I am a secondary teacher with more than 20 years' experience. Public service is an honour and a privilege for all those on whom the opportunity is bestowed. I will outline what I see as some of the obstacles to public service. I hope to touch on a number of topics throughout my contribution.

One issue I find is the difficulty in managing a job along with performing the functions of a county councillor. The times of council-linked meetings are often during working hours. This can make attendance difficult for a councillor who has work commitments. I remain a teacher on a part-time because I enjoy teaching and working in a school environment. It is part of my life. I am fortunate to be able to work at both functions. Members of the public are aware that meetings occur during working hours and I sense that this is a deterrent to those considering public life. I know of many people withdrawing from public life as a councillor due to being unable to handle both work and council commitments. I would like to see local authorities engage in a process whereby times and frameworks for meetings would be established by both council staff and councillors. Sometimes we hear the phrase "If we don't finish our business today, we will continue it on Thursday or tomorrow", which throws every councillor into disarray.

A second issue is the fear of abuse through social media, which has been mentioned by other members here this afternoon. Much of the work of a councillor involves the introduction of policy that is based on State legislation. This situation could lead to enormous pressure and tension being put on the councillor and his or her family, which can deter people from going forward.

As a secondary teacher, I sense that political life is often viewed as a closed society. I am a very strong believer in the capacity of any individual to run for public office and represent constituents. Too often, I sense people believe it to be a private place where entry is only open to those from families with political experience. I encourage this committee's work and the work following it to provide a framework whereby members of the public are encouraged to run for public office. To me, this sense of enclosure around political life has consequences and discourages people from minority groups from seeking public office.

I suggest that there should be a political campaign highlighting the work of politicians and local representatives. I have attended many talks given by universities and third level institutes to secondary students at which they encourage students and put before them the various options and career paths, but I have never yet heard somebody suggest politics as a career. Life as a politician is not presented to our youth as a viable career that should be considered at a young age. Rather, it is put forward as simply to be considered should you be lucky enough to have a solid career behind you, which you can fall back on should your political career falter.

The final issue I wish to raise is the tension I sense between State legislation and local government. State legislation is enacted for the overall betterment of the country. While this is so, there is a strong sense that national legislation does not always fit with the local situation. I have witnessed examples, such as legislation around renewable energy, planning guidelines, and funding for the upgrading of roads to name but a few. In the overall sense, a local public representative is bound and limited by the overarching policy. I cite, as an example, the recent county development plan in the constituency where I live. Sin a bhfuil.