Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will not delay on this. The whole idea is to make sure there is as wide a consultation as possible in respect of the areas where the notice can be viewed. Very few people go to their Garda stations and, in many parts of rural Ireland, half of them are closed during the week. As for the library, there is a problem as regards the numbers there. We will deal with whatever is there. It is about having the widest possible readership or consultation. People need to be able to see the signs in future. That is one of the problems. The vast majority of people are switching from hard copy newspapers. It is about how we reach those who do not read newspapers or go to their Garda station or library and get their information through some gadget or other.

It is something we will have to come back to as a society, not just as regards this issue but on a whole range of other issues. How do we reach out to those who we want to play a role in public consultations but who are not at present? In future, they definitely will not play a role because they are disconnected from the official sources of notices, whether these are national or local newspapers. I concentrated on local newspapers in this amendment because, at the very least, we know that people read them, or some of the free newspapers in this city. They at least get them. I do not know whether they read them from cover to cover or look at the pictures but they cannot say they did not have access to them. The whole key is to have access or sight of notices. Whether it is to do with this issue or other aspects of public consultation, it is something we will have to grapple with.

See this speech in context