Imelda Munster (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Sinn Féin has always been in favour of retaining town councils. This is why we voted against the Bill, introduced and passed by Fine Gael and the Labour Party, to abolish them in 2013. Sinn Féin believes in the retention of properly functioning local democracy that provides for better engagement with citizens and improved accountability at local level. There is nothing new in this and it remains our view. The Local Government Reform Act did not reform town councils. It abolished 75 town councils and five borough councils, including the borough council in Drogheda. In 2012, the Labour Party and Fine Gael Government published Putting People First, which acknowledged the importance of town councils. It was a big glossy brochure but despite it the Labour Party and Fine Gael went ahead and abolished town councils anyway.

This Bill represents the height of hypocrisy. The Labour Party was in government when town councils were abolished. It voted for the abolition of the councils and the then Minister, Deputy Kelly, enforced the policy when he took over responsibility for local government.

There is a list the length of my arm detailing how Labour sold out during its time in Government. It cut the respite care grant, lone parent's allowance and social welfare for young people, and introduced water charges and the local property tax. Abolishing town councils was just another item on that long list.

Section 10 claims that the re-establishment of town councils will be met from existing resources and there will be no additional cost to the State. Will Deputy Howlin explain how re-establishing 80 councils could be done cost free? How will additional councillors be paid, for example, and how will councils run without additional resourcing or budgeting? I can only assume this section was included because of the obvious fact that establishing 80 town councils would cost money, and Opposition parties cannot enact legislation that costs money. The Labour Party is now in opposition but when it was in power, it got rid of councils. The Labour Party talks the talk in opposition but sells out the country when in power. The people know this, as was made clear in the last election. Every argument made by Labour today for the reinstatement of borough councils was known in 2012 and 2013 but the party still went ahead to abolish them.

This Bill also only states that the Minister "may" resurrect councils if he or she so wishes. The Minister knows that and it is only up to him or her. There is an onus on the Minister to reinstate borough and town councils. The Bill, unfortunately, would achieve nothing but the Deputies know that. The Labour Party had the opportunity to reform local government as part of the national Government but it did not do so. It just got rid of councils. Labour does one thing in opposition and the complete opposite in power, so why would anybody trust the Labour Party after all it did? Why in God's name would anybody give the party the time of day? It is a new low in cynical politics, even for the Labour Party.

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