Colm Burke (Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister of State for his comprehensive reply. While I acknowledge that some progress has been made in the past 12 months and local authorities have websites in place, they still appear to be reluctant to identify officials and their responsibilities. Progress is required in this area. As I have noted on a number of occasions, I contacted the Revenue Commissioners when I started working in the legal profession many years ago and found that getting answers on any issues was a nightmare. I now consider the Revenue to be the best Government agency to contact because if the person on the line does not have responsibility for the area in question, one is informed of the name of the persons who have responsibility and issued with a comprehensive response within a short period. Given the high demand for local government services, I hope progress will soon be made in this regard. In light of the introduction of the household charge and other charges, it is vital that members of the public obtain value for money within a short timeframe.