Seanad debates
Wednesday, 5 March 2003
Local Government Bill 2003: Second Stage (Resumed).
I am concerned that, in some cases, county managers will be delighted to see the back of Oireachtas Members. While I am only a member of the council since 1999, I have noticed that some of the finest contributors at our meetings have been Members of the Oireachtas. They were aware of what was happening at national level and were able to apply their knowledge to local government in the council chamber. They teased out information with county managers in a different way from ordinary councillors. Therefore, it is important that we get strong assurances from the Minister that whatever system he puts in place is 100% foolproof because we need to be guaranteed access to vital information in our constituencies through our councils and to officials if we want to see them.
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