Ms Geraldine Tallon:

The Minister spoke at some length on the costs and benefits of local government reform following the publication of Putting People First. The programme is intended to assist in increasing the efficiency and savings achievable in local government. There was recent publicity arising from the report of the Local Electoral Area Boundary Committee which has distributed 949 local councillor positions. A number of authorities feel they have an unexpected increase in the number of councillors and there has been discussion around whether or not council chambers are adequate to accommodate the increased numbers. Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council has been a case in point. There is a significant increase in the number of elected members in that authority and we understand that the existing chamber is not adequate to accommodate them. There is restricted access while Dún Laoghaire Town Hall is a protected structure. There has been debate in the local authority around finding a solution and the cost of any solution. There are a number of local authorities in the greater Dublin area where the increase in the number of elected members is significant relative to the size of the council chamber. That has given rise to discussion.

The Department is not paying additional costs of any kind. That is entirely a matter for local authorities to deal with. We would expect and hope they would deal with expenditure as cost effectively as possible.