Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to contribute to the debate. Before I get into the nuts and bolts of the legislation, I often wonder whether the previous Government did anything apart from establish boards, quangos, talking shops and unnecessary stuff because we have spent most of the past two years doing nothing other than abolishing them. I acknowledge we have to try to get rid of 14 years of quangos but this is another board that was badly in need of abolition. What was it set up for in the first place? The recommendations in the legislation will not change how the Civil Defence operates or administers the functions it carries out effectively around the country. Why over the past two years have successive Ministers had to traipse into the House with legislation to unwind a spider's web of quangos that the previous Government left them with?

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