Seán Kenny (Dublin North East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The Bill gives legislative effect to proposals set out in the action programme for effective local government, which was published this time last year and which outlines an overall vision for local government as the primary vehicle for governance and public service at local level in Ireland. The action programme sets out Government policy on a range of reforms to the local government system, including structures, functions, funding, operational arrangements and governance designed to strengthen local government. The two primary aims of the Bill are to provide for the significant reorganisation of local government structures and the strengthening of governance and accountability in local government, with particular emphasis on rebalancing powers appropriately between the Executive and the elected council.

In addition to the significant structural reforms provided for in the legislation, Parts 7 and 8 and Schedule 3 contain a range of provisions relating to the more efficient and effective governance and management of local authorities. Of particular note is the major rebalancing of powers between the executive and the elected council, with much greater powers granted to the elected council to direct policy, oversee implementation and actively review the actions of local authority management. As a former Dublin city councillor for more than 30 years, I welcome these progressive policy changes.

The elected council will also have a power of decision over appointments to the new chief executive positions, which, under the Bill, will replace the current city and county manager positions. It has been said that city and county managers are the most powerful group of unelected officials in the State. The legislation contains the following specific provisions relating to the management and governance of local authorities - the post of city and county manager will be replaced by a post of chief executive, providing more explicit statutory expression of the duty of the chief executive to assist the formation of policy by the elected council, comply with that policy, support its implementation and account for action in that regard, as well as strengthened provisions for the elected members to oversee the actions of the chief executive in implementing policy decided by the elected council; a provision that will allow the elected members to decide on the appointment as chief executive of the person recommended by the Public Appointments Service on foot of the selection process for the post; other provisions to strengthen local government oversight, including expansion of the role and remit of local authority strategic policy committees, establishment of a national oversight and audit commission, and changes to local authority audit arrangements; and the amendment of section 140 of the Local Government Act 2001, which gives elected members power to direct the manager. The recent European Commission call on Dublin City Council to terminate a contract for client services and public relations at the Poolbeg incinerator in which spending ran over by more than €20 million is apt in the context of this Bill. Section 140 motions will no longer apply to planning functions in line with the recommendation of the Mahon tribunal.

A number of outstanding issues relating to the tribunal are relevant to the Bill. When the Mahon report was discussed in the House last year, the debate did not include the Carrickmines module because of pending court cases at that time. The court case collapsed last summer when the main witness became ill and it would be proper to fully debate the Carrickmines module fully following the publication of this chapter of the report. The Dáil should have a debate also on the entire Mahon report as a result of the the collapse of the court cases against one sitting and three former Dublin county councillors who were involved in rezonings.

Will the Minister arrange that debate?

In regard to the Mahon tribunal report and the making of city and county development plans, councils must guard against creating another property bubble in the future. We are again seeing house prices rise in the Dublin area due to a housing shortage. Care must be taken by planning authorities not to take action which would spawn another property bubble.

Part 10 provides for the arrangements in regard to the holding of a plebiscite to consider future local governance arrangements for the Dublin metropolitan area, including options for the introduction of a directly elected mayor. As a former lord mayor of Dublin, I welcome this initiative. Following a request from the Minister, the Lord Mayor of the City of Dublin shall convene a forum representative of elected members of the four Dublin local authorities to discuss the establishment of an office of a directly elected mayor for the Dublin metropolitan area. Subsequent to its discussions, the forum shall submit a written report, including a draft resolution containing its deliberations and conclusions, to the Minister. Once the Minister is satisfied with the resolution and the supporting statement, it can be put before each of the Dublin local authorities. The resolution shall provide for the holding of a plebiscite on whether the office of a directly elected lord mayor should be established for the Dublin metropolitan area. The resolution and statement should also include details of the future functions, structures and governance for the Dublin metropolitan area, the changes that would arise in regard to the local authorities and in regard to the functions of other bodies, their relationships with the office of a directly elected mayor, the cost and resource implications, advantages and disadvantages arising and measures to maximise efficiency and accountability and to avoid duplication across the local authorities.

All four Dublin local authorities must adopt the resolution no later than 31 March 2014, on the basis of an absolute majority in each local authority, to enable the plebiscite to go ahead. Where the resolution is adopted, a plebiscite may be held to provide for the establishment of the office of a directly elected lord mayor and other such matters relating to local government in the Dublin area as the Minister considers appropriate. The plebiscite shall be held in tandem with the 2014 local government elections.

This section also provides for the making of regulations setting up the arrangements for holding the plebiscite, including provision of information to the electorate. Section 63 provides that should the plebiscite be passed, the Minister shall, within two years of the date of the plebiscite, submit to both Houses of the Oireachtas a report either setting out a proposal for legislation on the establishment of the office of a directly elected lord mayor or containing a statement of the Minister's reasons for not making a proposal for legislation in that regard. I commend the Bill.

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