Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputies Byrne and Collins for raising the matter and allowing me to clarify some of the issues. Last October, the Government approved a new programme for effective local government entitled Putting People First, which included recommendations by an expert alignment steering group for enhancing alignment between local government and local communities. The steering group made a number of recommendations aimed at improving co-ordination across the range of local publicly-funded programmes, achieving greater efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of those programmes and, most importantly, improving the delivery of services to the people we all represent, the citizens and communities. I established a working group to assist and advise my Department on the implementation of the recommendations, and this working group comprises representatives of the City and County Managers Association, the Irish Local Development Network and Pobal. It is supported in its work by my Department.

As well as the ongoing work of this group, both I and my Department have had engagements with representatives of the local development and community and voluntary sectors regarding alignment and other issues of common interest. I am glad Deputy Collins acknowledged that my officials met representatives of the worker trade unions recently to discuss a number of issues at my request. I will not meet representatives of every local community group around the country as I have representatives to do so. I know the Deputy is not advocating that. The Irish Local Development Network is the representative body for the 50 local development companies throughout the country and has three places on the working group. It is the responsibility of these representatives to consult with their nominating body, the staff in the local development companies and other relevant stakeholders, as necessary, as part of this process.

I remind the Deputies that the local development companies are private independent companies with their own boards of management. I am trying to change this to ensure the local development companies and the workers can be in a better position to deliver those services in future; this is in the face of declining public funds and support through European Union programmes. My Department has no role in the internal operations of the companies and, accordingly, does not have a role in staff or employment matters. These issues are primarily a matter for the board of each company, as the employer, to manage.

The strengths of the local development companies in service planning and delivery were recognised in the final report of the alignment steering group and it is envisaged that they will have a continuing role in this regard. We will get better outcomes and value for money by better collaboration, which is why I am establishing local community development committees in each local authority area. These committees will provide a broader-based collaboration than we have had to date, and it is not good enough for people to operate in isolation, either in local government or in the community. We want to bring these people together to achieve greater benefit for the people we are trying to serve, the citizens.

My vision is for a more integrated approach to local development, with local development bodies operating in a complimentary and collaborative approach with a reformed local government system. These new arrangements will place local development structures on a more sustainable footing, eliminate unnecessary duplication and achieve better value for money. In the context of the tightening budgetary position, it is particularly important that we operate as efficiently as possible to ensure the continued delivery of quality front-line services to the community.

An alignment will not drive cuts to programme funding; rather, it will help sustain local community development services through more efficient, effective and joined-up structures. It will give local authorities, as the democratically elected level of government closest to the people, a greater role in the planning, oversight and governance of local development funding.

I will ensure the community and voluntary sector and the people the Deputies referred to will have full engagement in the process once we have completed the round with the working group. This will take place very shortly. The working group will come to its conclusions in the next two or three weeks and then I can report back to the Deputies on the next stage of the process, to assure workers we will continue to have a very strong community and local government partnership approach to the delivery of services to the people.

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