Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)

I support Senator Cullinane in his call to examine the system of government and how we seem to be heading towards a democratic deficit. The local government efficiency implementation body met on 9 September and will meet again on 17 October. It sends reports to the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government without scrutiny by this House or the Dáil. It is changing the way local government is run in a radical way. Over 100 proposals are being implemented, including the merger of city and county councils and areas of responsibility, yet there is no scrutiny or oversight.

The Lisbon treaty afforded parliaments the opportunity to scrutinise draft legislation. There have been 132 pieces of draft legislation proposed by the Parliament and 428 submissions by other European countries on amendments to the proposed legislation. Ireland has submitted zero amendments. In three or four years' time, when those pieces of legislation are enforced in Ireland, we will wonder how that happened.

Local democracy is being changed and the European Parliament is proposing changes to the way we run our affairs in this country with no amendment to legislation made by this House or Government. There is something deeply wrong with the way we are doing our business. If we do not change it we will be defunct.

Senator Cullinane referred to getting rid of the Seanad and reducing the number of Deputies and councillors. Not only is the EU running the show but it is introducing laws and we are not bothering to submit amendments which are important to the people of Ireland. We have tabled a valid motion about TalkTalk today, which is valid but its impact is zero.

I ask the Acting Leader to bring the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government to the House to talk to us about the effects of the local government agency review implementation body, what it is doing and why it is making changes at local level without any scrutiny by any public representative. No public representative sits on it and there is no scrutiny of it by this House or any Oireachtas committee.