Catherine Noone (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

-----he has made great strides. As someone who previously served as a Senator - for two terms - and a councillor, he is very well placed to make changes in this area. That must be acknowledged.

It is rare that I agree with Senator Gerard Craughwell, but I did so when he mentioned maternity leave. Obviously, that issue is close to most women's hearts. A problem exists in this regard. We are not getting things right from the top down, and that applies to these Houses as well. This is something at which we need to look and to which we must take a more mature, professional approach. The wage that councillors earn is an insult, to be quite honest. It is not something that Fine Gael created. Successive Governments have denigrated politicians in general. We are not happy unless we are criticising ourselves, getting rid of cars and all these things of which people do not take any notice. They just notice when we do the opposite.

Contributory pensions have to be acknowledged as a positive. Obliging councillors to travel around the country in order to get some money is also an insult. I received a great deal of feedback from councillors to which I will briefly refer because it would be remiss of me not to provide constructive criticism. A number of councillors contacted me to describe the €1,000 figure as miserly and inadequate. Regarding the €5,000 for vouched expenses, some councillors have indicated that it has not been made clear to them what is deemed acceptable as a vouched expense. Others argue that a €5,000 vouched expenses allowance will leave them worse off on the basis of the rules and regulations that apply. I am just giving the feedback. A vouched system is a joke. Why not give €1,000 and increase the existing expenses instead of creating all the hullabaloo to which this proposed change has given rise? I do not want to be overly critical of the Minister of State because he has not created this situation. He is very well placed and I hope that he will really take a lead on it. I wish him good luck with the consultation that will take place in the coming months.