Jerry Buttimer (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)

I welcome the Bill and commend the Minister on bringing it to us. The Bill is another example of the reform being proposed by the coalition Government. In his trend of reform, the Minister has already merged local authorities. The Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Quinn, has merged VECs. It is fulfilling the commitment in the programme for Government to make a substantial cut to the number of State bodies and companies. The Chairman of the Committee of Public Accounts, Deputy McGuinness, is present. He will very much welcome the attempt to make Government smaller, more accountable and make it deliver to people. That should be at the heart of Government. It should not be about the creation of fiefdoms. Deputy McGuinness was a long-time opponent of the former Taoiseach, Mr. Bertie Ahern, when he was in the House. The model he employed could bear with close scrutiny. It would make a great PhD study of how not to do business. He made Government bigger and it became uncontrollable and unaccountable. Fiefdoms and slush funds were created and money was poured out to keep everyone happy. The fabric of society plummeted in the past 14 years.

In our election manifesto we committed to cutting the number of quangos, regulators and inspectorates, and to end the confusion, wasteful mismanagement and fragmentation in the delivery of services. Those of us involved in national politics with a local authority background fully understand that people and the delivery of service to them must be at the core of what we do. I love the Irish phrase "an gnáth duine". That is what they are. That is who depends on the service of Government.

Deputy McFadden is correct. RAPID was a very good proposal that brought enhanced benefit to communities. The great phrase "enhancement of the public realm" became a reality for communities. In Cork city we have a very good RAPID co-ordinator. She does great work. She is accountable. She attends meetings and she delivers. I am afraid that we have lost accountability in the fragmentation that is now the delivery of Government in different spheres and on different levels. From tomorrow morning I hope we will not have a lack of accountability from those who remain following the public service retirement scheme and that they will not use the excuse of the diminishing numbers to bring it about.

To date, the Government has abolished more than 14 quangos, two more are in the process of being abolished and 15 more are on a list for abolition. A total of nine quangos are being merged and there are plans to merge six more. Three quangos are being restructured and a further ten are due to be restructured. In 12 months the Government has started its reform process. I welcome the changes proposed in the Bill for the amalgamation of the dormant accounts fund. It ends one period and introduces another. The Minister and the Department will be to the fore in terms of expenditure, which will be under the control of the Comptroller and Auditor General and the Committee of Public Accounts.

Another aspect of the Bill which I very much welcome is that the role of the Dáil and the Seanad in the disbursement of dormant accounts funding will be also increased. The power to annul the scheme within 21 days will be laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas. That will allow for accountability, debate, discussion and transparency. It also involves the political responsibility lying with the Minister, which was lacking for 14 years. Ministers could hide behind quangos and say they had no responsibility, that it was not their job. The Minister is doing that. It is important that we have proper oversight of decisions being taken.

The Bill is another example of a reforming Government, one that understands the need for accountability, and of a Minister who is prepared to accept responsibility and accountability. As Deputy McFadden indicated, the RAPID programme has done great work, which must be continued. We must continue to enhance the lives of our fellow citizens.

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