John Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Lombard and the Cathaoirleach. I am glad to be back in Seanad Éireann, albeit in a different capacity.

The issue the Senator raises is highly contentious both in Cork and around the country. The report of the Cork local government committee in September 2015, based on the position of the majority of the committee, recommended that a unitary authority should be established as the statutory local authority for Cork as a whole. There were actually three reports rather than the two the Senator identified, as there was a minority report from that committee also. The minority report considered it essential to retain the city council as a completely separate local authority and took the view that a unified authority would not be able to address adequately the different needs of urban and rural areas. Both the majority and minority groups on the committee agreed that retention of the status quoin Cork was not a tenable option.

As the recommendations were inconclusive, the then Minister established the Cork expert advisory group in October 2016 to examine the majority and minority reports and underlying material. It had a mandate to identify and examine a wider range of options for Cork than might have been considered previously. A key question which the group sought to address is what arrangements would best promote sustainable economic growth and strengthen Cork's position as Ireland's second city and an economic engine for the south of Ireland, along with the implications for business development, population growth, housing provision and associated infrastructure, particularly sustainable transport.

That group's report, published in June 2017, concluded that the current local government arrangements in Cork are unsustainable. Having evaluated a range of options against relevant criteria, it concluded that on balance, an expanded city council area offered the best solution, particularly in terms of the structure of local government and a strong focus on the needs and demands of the metropolitan area, including regeneration. The report also recognises the specific service needs of rural areas.This would involve two separate local authorities with an extension of the city council boundary, which the report concluded represents the best governance model for Cork.

The advisory group also recommended the establishment of a statutory metropolitan body to formulate and oversee a Cork metropolitan area plan to address strategic economic development, housing and infrastructure matters in the wider Cork area. Implementing a significant extension of the boundary of Cork city will be challenging and will involve considerable further logistical work and a detailed financial and organisational analysis to identify assets and liabilities and address issues such as the necessary financial and other adjustments between the local authorities, the transfer of staff and the establishment of new structures to ensure that the challenges of implementation are addressed effectively.

An implementation oversight group with relevant expertise, in particular in the financial area, is to be established to oversee the process. The changes represent the most significant population transfer associated with a local government boundary change in Ireland. This will be reflected in the consequent timescales for implementation. Arrangements for the operation of the implementation oversight group are being finalised. Its initial main task will be to submit a detailed implementation plan in the early autumn.

I will try to get more specific information for the Senator on the implementation plan and when it will be submitted. The Senator is right to identify the point that the potential transfer of such tracts of the county into the city area would have significant financial implications for Cork County Council, were it to happen, not to mention the review of local government electoral areas. There will be a national review of those areas, which is due to start in autumn of this year following the recent publication of the Dáil boundary report.

At this stage, the implementation oversight group is charged with finalising the boundary issue between Cork city and county, and I will work with it, as will the Department, to ensure that happens as soon as is practically possible.