Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)

I am pleased to have an opportunity to speak on this important legislation. As my colleague Deputy Connaughton said, it is not earth-shattering but it is a step in the right direction. As a candidate in the last local elections to Dublin City Council, I can certainly say that some of the expenditure was obscene and far exceeded anything within the bounds of reality. This spending competition puts pressure on candidates to outperform each other, not only in terms of electoral performance but also as regards who has the flashiest literature, the most posters, and the best car or van. All of this adds to the existing pressure on candidates and it is not what political campaigning should be about. In many ways, we have lost much of the colour and flair of campaigns we saw in days gone by.

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