Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Tuesday, 17 May 2022

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government

National Oversight Audit Commission’s 2021 Annual Report: Discussion

Mr. Michael McCarthy:

We are going to do that with customer service. It goes back to Senator Boyhan's point. A lot of good work can be done but there is no point in keeping it a secret. It is good to showcase that, particularly from a public service point of view. With regard to the response by local authorities around community call during Covid, my experience around home was their staff were the only people to be seen out and about, apart from gardaí, when I went out to do the shopping within the 2 km area. The local authorities led on the ground from the front. Recognising the other aspects of local government and the very good services we get, it is very important from our perspective to push that and to highlight and showcase it. It is ongoing work and we will do more on that.