John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

I published the Green Paper, Stronger Local Democracy — Options for Change, in April 2008. The Green Paper presents a set of options which share a common theme of strengthening local democratic leadership. For example, Stronger Local Democracy — Options for Change proposes a regional mayor for Dublin to meet the strategic challenges the city faces. The paper also suggests that local leadership, accountability and connection with the citizen would be achieved through the provision of directly elected mayors with key powers of initiative in other areas. A suite of further proposals on issues such as town government, participative democracy, regional governance and service delivery are also included in the Green Paper.

Stronger Local Democracy — Options for Change represents the initial phase of a transparent, inclusive policy formulation process. Its purpose was not to arrive at a single solution but to present options for further consideration. Following the publication of the Green Paper, my Department conducted a public consultation process to inform the drafting of the White Paper. The consultation process included a series of six regional seminars held over the summer, to gather as full a range of perspectives as possible.

I am considering the outcomes of the consultation process, including the many written submissions I received. I hope to finalise the White Paper on local government by the end of the year. It is my intention to see a stronger, more vibrant and more accountable form of local government at the end of this process.

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