Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I agree with the points made by my colleagues on the question of councillor's pay. We have all raised this issue in our own parties in the past 12 months to two years.

While councillors get travelling expenses for travelling to council meetings, what is not taken into account are all the other meetings that they attend. I know there are councillors in the Gallery and I welcome those present. Some councillors from west Cork, the Cathaoirleach's constituency, are present. By the time they leave County Cork they are half way to Dublin and that is the extent of the travel they have to do. From Bantry in west Cork to Cork County Hall is not a short trip. One of the councillors identified to me that yesterday morning it took them two and a half hours to travel to Cork County Hall. No one compensates them for the two and a half hours that they spend driving to get there and another two and a half hours to get home. That is not taken into account, together with all the other meetings they attend throughout the week.

That is the reason the issue of councillors' expenses has been very much simplified about being paid just to attend council meetings without taking all the other issues into account. That needs to be dealt with. My colleagues are correct that we will have difficulties because of the upturn in the economy and the demands that are now on everybody who holds down a job. I can remember quite clearly when I was on Cork City Council, which is one of the councils that hold their meetings in the evening, whereas most other councils meet during the day. There was only one other councillor in addition to me who was a ratepayer to the city council at that time.That imbalance in respect of the composition of councils is one of the problems we now have and it is all because we cannot get people. We will have further difficulty in that regard in the next few years. It is something we need to seriously consider.

I would like to briefly touch on the issue of Versatis. The wrong decision was taken in this regard. Mixed messages are being sent. There is a very simple way of dealing with this. We should allow those people to whom it has already been prescribed continue on with it, although perhaps efforts should be made to phase it out of their treatment. New patients should go through the new system which has been introduced, rather than introducing the new system for everyone. This decision was wrong, poorly planned and it was not thought out. Many people are going through very difficult times as a result. We have heard them on the radio and in the media over the last week. Their views on how this issue is managed should be taken into account. We should invite the Minister to the House to talk to him about dealing with it.