Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Every Deputy's mandate is equal, whether he or she is elected by Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, Labour Party, Sinn Féin or any other party. I believe the larger parties are discriminated against in terms of speaking time. As Deputy Heydon has pointed out, there are as many Fine Gael backbenchers as there are Sinn Féin Deputies, so surely Fine Gael backbenchers should have the same amount of time as Sinn Féin. However, that is not the case at the moment. That is an inequality and it is unfair not only to those Deputies but, more important, to their constituents who elect them.

I was asked about the local authority leadership, governance and administration reform report. The report is with the Minister but he has not shown it to me yet. It is intended to go to Government next week.

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