Peter Burke (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for giving me the opportunity to outline today the importance of Government funding of local authorities, with a particular focus on the spend of Galway City Council and Galway County Council, and also to reflect on the serious impact Covid-19 is having on local authorities' expenditure and on their cash flow. The funding system that applies to local authorities is a complex one, as authorities derive their income from a variety of sources including commercial rates, charges for goods and services and funding from central Government. Central Government funding of local authorities similarly presents a complex picture, with transfers coming from a wide range of Departments and offices, not solely from my Department, for a variety of purposes. It is the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport that has responsibility for the funding of swimming pools. Also, local property tax, LPT, can be used by local authorities to support the provision of local services which benefit citizens directly including parks, libraries, leisure amenities etc.

My Department recognised that cash flow support was critical to local authorities in order to ensure the services they deliver, including required subventions to swimming pools, could be maintained. It was decided to bring forward a number of payments due from the Department, where possible, throughout 2020. Specific advances were made to both Galway City Council and Galway County Council in respect of LPT and also each local authority's individual payroll and public service pension reduction allocation. In fact, all of the LPT allocations for 2020, amounting to €516.8 million in total, have been paid to all local authorities at this stage. Local authorities have been advised to capture all related costs in their financial systems to aid future financial analysis of the impact of Covid-19 on the local government sector.

My Department is engaging with representatives of the local government sector and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform on the financial challenges facing local authorities as a direct consequence of the pandemic, in terms of additional costs incurred as part of the local government response and declines in local authority income streams. These matters are under active consideration. In order to support the sector generally, I will ensure my Department continues to keep local authority income, expenditure and cash flow under review and will continue to work with all local authorities, both collectively and individually, including on issues being raised by Galway City Council and Galway County Council.

In the programme for Government, Our Shared Future, the Government places a strong emphasis on swimming, cycling, walking and running, which are especially suitable for all generations. I am also mindful of recent comments by my colleague, the Minister for Finance, who commented on the importance of swimming pools remaining open during and after this pandemic, though he also advised a huge intervention is required and it may be that we will not be able to meet every need. I hear the significant case the Deputy has put forward in connection with the swimming pool in question and I know that the Department is reviewing the case with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. We have a great need to be met in the local authority sector between a collapse in goods and services income, the commercial rates income being significantly compromised and also in terms of the collection of income streams in the sector.

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