Colm Burke (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister of State and thank him for returning to the House. He is here almost on a weekly basis at this stage. This matter relates to accountability and the giving of information to the public, particularly as it applies to local authorities. I have raised the issue directly with the Minister and on the Order of Business.

We can consider the websites of those people working in the European Commission. I looked at the website of the director general of agriculture and rural development to find an entire page, with 89 departments within that section of the Commission, setting out the names of 89 people, who is responsible for a particular area and how these people can be contacted. I also looked at other areas, including the section dealing with energy, and it is interesting that with three officials there is a note of responsibilities and how they can be contacted but also an indication of them being placed at the disposal of the Greek task force. Not only do we know their department and how they can be contacted but also any additional responsibilities that can be given.

It is time we moved on with local authorities in Ireland, as there have been big complaints from the general public. Some local councillors might not like this proposal because it might give more information to the general public and reduce their role. We must open the information on local authorities to the public, particularly who is responsible for particular areas. The big complaint of the general public when contacting local authorities is finding a particular person is unavailable or a person listed as a contact is not the right person to deal with the issue.

We are talking about cutting red tape and each local authority in the country should put on its website who is in charge of particular departments, or who is responsible, for example, for housing matters. In Cork city that issue is divided into different parts of the city and somebody would also be in charge of maintenance. There would also be a person with responsibility for dealing with urgent matters. We are looking to provide clear information to the general public while making local authorities more efficient. We should also ensure information is passed to the right person or official within a reasonable period, and the general public should not have to make a number of phone calls to find out about a particular issue.

I ask that this matter be addressed on a nationwide basis. It is not a major request in a time when we talk about making information more widely available. We should do this at the earliest possible date.