Paschal Donohoe (Fine Gael)

What always happens is that the responsibility is either handed over to another organisation or a new organisation is created to take responsibility for it. I raise this issue because it is now apparent that the Dublin Transport Authority, an organisation that is responsible for so many matters we raise regularly in this House,will have two features missing from it. The first is that no politician will play a leadership role in determining what that organisation is doing and, second, that organisation will not be subjected to parliamentary questions. We are now in a situation where health issue are the responsibility of the HSE, transport issues will be the responsibility of the DTA while the issues many Senators have raised today on the cost of living will be the responsibility of the National Consumer Agency.

Given the focus of this Government in handing over responsibility for these matters to other organisations that we cannot question, led by a Taoiseach who said he believed in the primacy of politics, where is that primacy when the power politicians have is continually eroded? At the end of its term of Government, I ask the Leader what exactly it will be responsible for?