Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)

I am grateful for the opportunity to raise this issue. The need to hold a boundary review of local electoral areas is clear. A review has not been carried out since 1998, which was based on the 1996 census. The boundaries are, therefore, 11 years out of date. Since then two constituency reviews for European elections and two for the Dáil elections have been carried out.

At a recent conference, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government suggested such a review would be carried out and completed by spring 2008, while the Taoiseach suggested it might be completed by next May or June. However, in reply to a number of parliamentary questions I have tabled in this regard, I have not received a clear written commitment from the Government to carry out such a review. A boundary commission has not been appointed and time is running out. Local elections are not far away and parties need to organise and hold conventions. I would like a written commitment that the commission will be appointed in the next few days rather than a vague statement about consideration being given to its establishment.

Section 22 of the Local Government Act 1994 provides for the Minister to vary the number of councillors on local authorities. The population has increased dramatically in a large number of local authority areas. For example, in my area, Fingal County Council, the ratio of councillors to people is 1:10,000, which compares with 1:1,000 in County Leitrim. The population has also increased considerably in County Wexford and additional seats are needed in Gorey, but perhaps they should not be provided at the expense of New Ross. Will the boundary commission or another body be given authority to vary boundaries?

What terms of reference will be laid down for rural areas? Currently a significant anti-democratic bias favours such areas. For example, Carrigaline has double the population of Bantry in County Cork but Bantry has five seats compared with six in Carrigaline because, when the previous boundaries were drafted, rural areas were favoured over urban areas. It is unjustified that people who live in suburban Cork should have less representation on Cork County Council than those living in rural Cork.

The key issue in Dublin West is the Mulhuddart ward, which comprises half my constituency. The ward has a population of 58,000 and has four council seats. However, its population is more than that of the Howth, Malahide, Portmarnock wards combined, yet they have seven seats. This is an example of rotten boroughs, which is why a boundary review is needed as soon as possible. Clarity is also needed on whether the number of councillors will be increased, the terms of reference of the commission and whether urban votes will be worth less than rural votes.

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