Shane Cassells (Meath West, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will share time with a number of my colleagues. I thank the Minister of State for the detail provided this evening. I am pleased to speak on the Bill and its implications. Any document that has at its heart the issue of boundaries will elicit much passion, interest and debate. Debates about boundaries in this country, whether they are international, as we see at present, or county boundaries, have always generated passionate debate. Debates about boundaries in today's Ireland have more to do with planning and the results of how populations have sprawled beyond old urban boundaries than about marauding forces breaching boundaries.

Nonetheless, the passions can be just as high. As a part of this initial boundary review, the results of which we are now debating, my home county of Meath was subjected to a review and a concerted campaign by Louth County Council's elected members and executive to seize part of Meath and take it for the town of Drogheda. This land grab was fought back with even more passion by Meath County Council and our inhabitants who sought to stay within the royal county.

Leaving aside the issues of this land grab that concern the heartfelt desire for one's children to play for a good footballing county, what was really at play here was the key issue of resources. Officials from Louth County Council gazed across the border into County Meath and saw thousands of homes and the potential for local property tax income, coupled with the potential for the rates income of large businesses located across the border, which was a highly motivating factor.

Having been involved in a boundary extension a decade ago in my town following an order by the then Minister, John Gormley, I know there are many officials in Meath who can suddenly become the most talented map-makers one would ever see. In my town of Navan, we have the largest zinc mine in western Europe and there was no way that mine's rates base was going to move from the county council area into the town area. Lines were drawn in Meath County Council headquarters that one could compare only to the division of Africa by the colonial powers and they were ultimately endorsed by the Custom House. In the long run, however, that did not matter because Fine Gael killed local democracy in towns anyway and, therefore, the budgets were all merged onto the county council books.

The point we are debating in respect of Cork is the same. When we consider the Bill and address the need for the transfer of assets, income and expenditure from one authority to another, it is the issue of money that always arises and is the overriding concern. At the time of the review in all of these counties, be it Meath, Louth, Kilkenny, Waterford, Roscommon, Westmeath, Galway or Cork, the people themselves only wanted authorities to provide good service, as evidenced by the submissions received, and for the county to which they belonged to be the authority providing it. We in Fianna Fáil believe that respect for county boundaries is essential and should be respected.

The extension of the city boundary in Cork is being done to ensure the orderly expansion, continued prosperity and growth of Cork city, and to reflect the true nature of the area the city encompasses. This will not, therefore, have any impact on the integrity of county boundaries. Ensuring we have a strong counterbalance in the south of the country to the ever growing over-concentration of high-tech development, industrial development, infrastructure and housing in Dublin is essential. In Cork city, the people's republic, there are the skill sets, dynamism, third level colleges and infrastructure to do this. The city council must be able to capitalise on that foundation. It needs to be supported by these legislative changes and we in Fianna Fáil are happy to support that process. The extension of the city council boundary to places such as Ballincollig, Blarney, Glanmire, Little Island and Cork Airport into the city, and the expansion of the city's population from 125,000 to approximately 250,000, will allow the city expand and grow by attracting investment as a city on a European scale.

In Galway, also, the Bill provides for the creation of a chief executive officer, CEO, to administer the local authorities of the city and the county. The current city manager in Galway, Brendan McGrath, with whom I had the pleasure of working for many years, is a former senior official and manager of Meath County Council. He is a credit to the local government service and one will find no finer county or city manager. I am sure he will do an excellent job in the transition period.

As I mentioned in my opening remarks, it is the issues of finance, assets and debt that have exercised most minds. There needs to be much more clarity in respect of these arrangements for the Cork expansion to provide real certainty for both authorities and to allow them prepare financially in a proper fashion for 2019 and thereafter. While there are big headline issues that will need to be addressed quickly, there is a myriad of services that cross over the councils and need detailed examination to be resolved. Some 400 services are being transferred from the county to the city council, ranging from the big issues such as housing, roads, rates, rents, local property tax and so on, to more nuanced and emotional issues such as burial grounds looked after by the council. I accept that there is a timeline for the transfer of the big headline items, but will those other issues be worked out also?

There is concern from members and officials in Cork County Council in respect of this. As local government spokesperson for Fianna Fail, I have met the mayor, Patrick Gerard Murphy, the CEO, Tim Lucey, and the leaders of the respective party groups, Councillors Seamus McGrath and Kevin Murphy. The Minister of State said the liabilities will transfer to the city council, but there are concerns from that delegation that in sections 9 and 11, there is an apparent anomalous situation whereby property and assets could potentially transfer to the city but the related liabilities would remain with the county after the transfer day. The representatives from Cork whom I met requested that the Bill would clearly state that on the transfer day, when property and functional areas transfer to the city, all pre-transfer day liabilities attaching to that property and functional area shall also transfer to the city. Furthermore, they seek Cork City Council to be obliged to indemnify Cork County Council in respect of any other potential and unknown liabilities. In the Minister of State's closing remarks, will he address and explore this issue?

Section 17 deals with the financial settlement, which is of key concern to ensure there is a smooth transfer. There are some technical issues which need to be looked at as the Bill progresses, such as the activation of the review after the financial settlement. Whether this takes place not later than three years after the making of a settlement, as proposed, or not earlier than three years, as sought by Cork County Council, can be discussed. The Bill contains no reference to the continuation of the financial settlement period beyond ten years. Cork County Council members previously stated their strongly held position, however, that the financial settlement should be a fixed annual sum, index-linked on annual basis and payable from the city to the county, that it should not cease after ten years and that a further review beyond the initial ten-year period could be considered as deemed necessary and appropriate. As one can see in section 17(5)(b), there is no provision for a fixed amount on an annual basis in terms of the financial settlement, which has caused concern on the behalf of the Cork County members.

I raise these concerns because they were raised with me. I wish to see the Bill's smooth passage and discuss these matters and others with the Minister of State. As he stated, it is necessary for the legislation to be enacted this year to enable all the necessary provisions in time for the local elections next May, but I would appreciate examination of these concerns. My party and I wish to be supportive to his work in achieving that goal in order that we achieve the bigger goal of a more prosperous city and county in both Cork and Galway. I hope that whatever issues need to be ironed out are, ensuring a smooth, swift and efficient passage of the Bill.

Finally, I am interested in the amendments which could be tabled on Committee Stage, in particular in respect of committees for cross-boundary urban areas. The matter was problematic in the Minister of State's region and it is problematic in mine. We must seek to address that for the benefit of citizens around the country where there has been urban sprawl which does not serve our people well.

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