Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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Is that not a matter for the local authority to determine? I said to the Deputy earlier in the Dáil Chamber that he frequently talked about the need for local authorities to be strengthened, the need for proper local government and governance. With that in mind, why should I, as Minister, prescribe in legislation how the members of a local authority should work with members of the local community?

The view I am about to describe is not ascribed to the Deputy because I have never heard him make this point and do not believe he would. I hear people say they want to strengthen local government and give more power to local members, but when those local members make a decision with which people are not happy, they say they do not want local government to be strengthened; they really want groups that are not elected to local government to have strengthened powers versus elected representatives. I put it back to the Deputy that if he believes so strongly, as I believe he does, in the powers of local authorities and their elected members, it is up to the local authorities to state how they want to structure their engagement with communities which they are elected to represent. I could ascribe that motive to the amendment. I am not suggesting it is one the Deputy has, but somebody could interpret it as stating the Deputy is not confident that elected members in a local authority would be able to engage with communities in the way he or I would want them to do. I am confident that they would be able to do so. Why does the Deputy believe there is a need for this structure, leaving aside my point about bona fides, which is a serious one. If the Deputy believes the panacea for the difficulties he has described is having a role for elected members and he has faith in their ability to rise to that challenge, why does he believe that, on top of local authorities playing a role in a port, there is a need to put in place a group and for me, as Minister, to enforce it through primary legislation, as opposed to saying there is a need for local authorities to have a strengthened role which I hope he understands is my belief? A corollary to that belief is that I am confident they will be able to organise and structure their engagement with the local community in the way they see fit because that is what local government is for.