Brian Stanley (Laois-Offaly, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

On the question of outsourcing, the Minister made reference to the age profile of outdoor staff in local authorities. What is the intention of the Department in this regard? The logic of what the Minister has said is that the recruitment embargo will have to be lifted. There are some local engineering areas in which there are only eight to ten workers. The local authorities will have to outsource work to the private sector or the embargo will have to be lifted. What is the intention in this regard, given that local authorities can only go so far in cutting back on staff?

The Minister referred to Northern Ireland in the context of amalgamations. The intention there is that there will be 11 local authorities or almost two councils per county. Amalgamations are ongoing-----

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