Noel Dempsey (Meath, Fianna Fail)

I spent my five years in the Department of the Environment and Local Government. Every time I visited a local authority they wanted to tell me how poorly off and cash-strapped they were. They would produce the books to prove this to me and refer to the loss of rates and other sources of income. In the middle of it would be "snow money", the money that the then Tánaiste, Michael O'Leary, promised local authorities from his office in Dublin. He told them to do whatever it took to clear the roads and the Department would look after it. They are still waiting for the money.

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