Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The culture is dictated by that control mechanism. Essentially we are limiting the prospect of real change and engagement by not taking that on board. That is my honestly held view, having been a member of a town council and a county council for a long number of years.

The Minister said that he would have a look at my amendment No. 15 and I will be interested to hear what he has to say. Some of the things I had expected to change do not appear to have changed following the Committee Stage debate - we will come to some of those later. I would like to hear what the Minister has to say on the issue of control and how he believes that will not continue to be a dominant feature of local government if we do not give the municipal districts the appropriate power and control.

Amendment No. 15 deals with cases where a local authority may revoke the delegation of a function to a municipal district. I am seeking that may only be done by way of agreement with the municipal district. I do not want these to be beefed-up area committees; I want them to be meaningful if they are to happen. At the very least that should be acceded to.

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