Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)

That is exactly what the Minister said and I am disappointed by it. There are, at most, two, three or four dual mandate holders in each local authority. I cannot think of a Member of the Oireachtas who is holding back local government reform. The Minister's comments insinuated that local government reform would be hastened as soon as the link was broken. Why can local authorities not have the suggested new role while the dual mandate is still in place? We can decide whether the link should be broken at that stage. The Minister wants to break the link but is going down an alley and people are fearful because they do not know where it leads. A Bill before the other House removes powers from local authority members. The Minister has said he wants local authorities to be able to raise a significant amount of money through charges. Local authorities will meet new challenges, as they have in the past. Although the holders of dual mandates have been leaders at local authority level, the Minister seems to believe they are holding back local authority reform. I am disappointed that he has said this.