Ray Butler (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I wish to address the issue of local authorities privatising traffic warden services in rural towns. This is being done to let private companies come in to be ruthless. The service was privatised in Navan in my county of Meath around eight months ago. A company came in and was absolutely ruthless over the Christmas period with people trying to do their Christmas shopping. I believe that in Trim and Navan, they are putting the traffic warden service out to private companies.

Local authorities want to close down town centres in rural Ireland. What is happening is a disgrace. Traffic wardens were put on streets to stop illegal parking and to keep traffic moving, not for profit. We had the personal touch with local authority traffic wardens who would always give that extra ten or 15 minutes and basically give people the benefit of the doubt but these companies that are coming in are absolutely ruthless.

What has happened is that people are going to the bigger or out-of-town shopping centres to avail of free parking and small independent businesses are suffering. The last time I spoke about this issue, I said that there is a solution. If local authorities are prepared to give these big multinationals free car parking spaces, it should be free in the centre of towns to help small businesses because they have rates and are trying to keep their doors open. It is very tough out there. I can see what these private traffic wardens have done in Navan. They have decimated business on the main street in Navan. I would like the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government to come in here to discuss this issue to see whether privatising all traffic warden services in rural Ireland is now local government policy.