We are being presented with the usual catch-phrases and sound bites, which have little or no substance. One wonders whether the Better Local Government document was geared towards and benefited the providers and administrators of the services, rather than the people who are supposed to receive them. Have the services to ordinary people improved significantly as a result of the document to which I refer? I do not believe so. Transferring further powers from elected members to people who will say "Yes, Minister" in order to comply with his or her wishes will further erode the power of elected members and, more importantly, the people they represent.