Jim Walsh (Fianna Fail)

That is because we are behind in the environment provision of regulating landfills and so on. The Minister should look at this before Committee Stage. If local government is continually eroded, how can we expect people of ability to go forward for election and make a contribution?

The removal of the dual mandate and the proposed removal of the directly elected chair will leave local government, to some extent, leaderless. We should strive to make local government fulfilling and of interest to those who give of their time, seven days a week, year in, year out. There are several examples of people who do that in every county. If we remove many of the powers and functions from local government, who will be interested in participating? The challenge is to have a process that meets the obligations the Minister seeks to set out which not only preserves but strengthens local government and gives us local authorities on a par with continental Europe.

Much of what I have said on those issues has been negative but I would welcome the obligation on all to pay the charges. The Minister is right in saying that if people do not pay they should not get the service. That principle applies in business. A local authority is a big business and it should apply equally here. The time has come to stop people free loading on others.

Any initiative taken on litter fines is welcome. There are community wardens. We have a pilot scheme in our county and they do excellent work. However, as regards litter they are ineffective because they do not have the legal or moral authority to get people's names and addresses. That is a practical difficulty that should be examined. Any efforts made in this area would be productive.