Peter Fitzpatrick (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Bill dissolves 80 town councils which together account for 744 councillors and provides for the establishment by ministerial order of municipal districts to cover the entire territory of the State bar Dublin. This has the effect of reducing the overall number of councillors in the State from 1,627 to 949 while increasing the number of county councillors from 883 to 949. Section 15 sets out the number of seats for local electoral areas in each local authority. It provides that the Minister may, by order, disband regional authorities and replace them with regional assemblies composed of existing councillors. The immediate impact of the structural changes are that 31 city and county councils will replace 34 county councils and 80 town councils and that there will be a district level tier to cover the full territory of the State bar Dublin. There is a significant reduction in representation for the 14% of the population who live in areas with town councils. On the other hand, in places which had no town councils, the effect of creating municipal districts whose councils together act on behalf of the district would seem to improve the quality of representation. The effect of the changes on the quality of representation depends very much on how the municipal districts function and on the extent of their autonomy and power. The Bill sets aside specific functions which are to be performed at the district level, including that the district members contribute to the drafting of the district budget and the annual schedule of works for the municipal district and may amend the chief executive's final draft of both. The county council may, by resolution, delegate other tasks to the district level. However, the county council is legally responsible for decisions taken at the municipal level. The municipal district is not a separate legal entity but a formation of the council.

As part of a policy to enhance the role of elected councillors in local government, the position of county manager is replaced by that of chief executive who has more statutory obligations toward elected members. The chief executive remains a central Government appointee appointed by the Public Appointments Service and subsequently by a formal resolution of the council. The Bill gives the local council the power to veto such an appointment after which the recruitment process begins again. The Bill restricts the power of local councils to use section 140 of the Local Government Act 2001 in respect of planning. It provides that each of the 31 councils will establish a strategic policy committee on social and economic development to function as other strategic policy committees as per the Local Government Act 2001. It dissolves county and city development boards and provides that all councils will have local community development committees. The policy objective is to align local community and economic development with local government.

On 16 October 2012, the Government published an action programme for effective local government entitled Putting People First as part of its commitment in the programme for Government to reform local government. The action programme outlined a range of possible reforms to local government before presenting the reforms which the Government is to implement under four categories: reform of structure; reforms of funding, accountability and government arrangement, including balance of power between the Executive and elected council; local government involvement in economic development and job creation; and reforms to ensure efficiency in service delivery. An independent boundary committee established by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government in November 2012 in accordance with the 2001 Act made recommendations for the division of each county council area into local electoral areas and on the number of councils seats to be assigned to each local electoral area. The committee was asked to make its recommendations in the policy context set out in the action programme and to be cognisant that as far as possible, the local electoral areas were to coincide with the new municipal districts. Its terms of reference also required that it improve balance and consistency in representational status throughout the county and take into account the location of towns and their hinterland in the creation of new local electoral areas and that each municipal district will constitute a single electoral area with a membership of between six and ten councillors except in exceptional circumstances.

There are four local authorities in Louth - Louth County Council, Dundalk Town Council, Drogheda Borough Council and Ardee Town Council. There are 47 elected councillors representing the four elected councils in 11 electoral areas. That will change to 29 elected councillors covering four electoral areas - two six-seaters, one seven-seater and one ten-seater. The reforms introduced by the Bill will result in gratuity payments for town, city and county councillors for losing their seats. Under current rules, following the replacement of town councils with a system of municipal districts, members who do not go to be re-elected to city or county councils will be entitled to pay-outs for losing their positions. According to the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government, amounts are expected to average almost €4,000 for town councillors but exact compensation payments will depend on number of years served and position. The limit is €16,000 for 20 years' service. The overall cost of the payout has been estimated at €45 million.

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