Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)

I know the Ceann Comhairle will protect me from the big Minister. The Taoiseach picked an interesting combination for local government reform. He has the nice, meek and softly spoken Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Deputy Howlin, and then he has Big Phil the enforcer - the Minister, Deputy Hogan - to do the heavy lifting. The plan backfired, however, and it has been abandoned until after the referendum. This Bill is being teased and tickled but nothing is happening.

I am in favour of cost savings and economies of scale but I am not in favour of the bully boy tactics that are being implemented in my county. Tipperary is being hurled together. The Ceann Comhairle will know all about Tipperary because his good wife comes from the middle part of the premier county. It is proud horse racing country.

The Minister, Deputy Hogan, appointed two former senior civil servants, who I imagine are on fine pensions, to make recommendations on the amalgamation. The county manager for North Tipperary County Council, Mr. McGrath, was also appointed, as was the acting county manager for South Tipperary County Council. The manager for north Tipperary was appointed as chair. That was totally unfair and immoral. We now find out we are losing this and that service in south Tipperary. The Minister is out to destroy south Tipperary but we fought off Cromwell and we will fight off the Minister. Cromwell came to Clonmel and we hunted him. The Minister is not out of the woods yet for his attack on South Tipperary County Council. I do not know why he is trying to bulldoze the two councils together and give all the services to north Tipperary. Why was he unable to appoint an impartial chair or find two people other than retired civil servants who should be out playing golf? They were probably paying golf when they were supposed to be working but now they are working and getting paid again. It is rotten and disgraceful.

Why will the Minister not amalgamate Kilkenny? Carlow and Kilkenny were mentioned by the group but he steered away from that.

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