Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

The party comes here and demands to take power from local authorities by way of dealing with the flooding and drainage of rivers and it wishes to set up a national semi-State company to handle and deliver water to our houses in County Laois. It is prepared to make a show of its local authority members. Perhaps it has lost confidence in its own local authority members' ability to run their business. This is an attempt to undermine local authorities and I am shocked that the Fine Gael Party would do so.

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