Fintan Warfield (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy John Paul Phelan, to the House. I regret that I did not have an opportunity to speak in the previous debate on councillors' pay and conditions but I am pleased to do so now. Councillors are one of the most crucial tenets of this State's democracy. They provide in-depth knowledge of a particular local area, its community, its infrastructure and its vitality as part of wider Irish society.

The work that we do in this House is largely focused on national issues. While that is the way it should be, we should not lose sight of the fact that councillors do not receive the same opportunities that we, as Oireachtas Members, do. That is in spite of the fact that no councillor seeks election to a local authority to be well paid or receive the high status of office that often happens here in the Oireachtas. Many councillors hold two jobs. They surrender their evenings and weekends as part of their work. They do so out of commitment, duty, passion and love for their local community. They do not receive gratitude that matches the hard work they do. The sacrifices they make can be to the detriment of their family life, social life, relationships, physical and mental health. I concur with everything Senator Dolan spoke about. The question is whether we want a good element of local democracy and a flourishing local democracy. If so, then we should back the reform horse.

In the context of our discussions tomorrow on the Planning and Development (Amendment) Bill, I note there are interesting, creative propositions that support councillors. Senator Boyhan is carrying that into his everyday work in the Oireachtas and I look forward to speaking in support of his amendment to allow fees for observations and submissions regarding planning to be waived in the case of councillors.

The Sinn Féin spokesperson on housing, planning and local government, Deputy Eoin Ó Broin, is undertaking a scoping exercise on this matter in order to bring proposals to the Sinn Féin Party during the summer and we will forward the proposals on councillors to the Minister of State for his consideration on the issue. However, we can say that a reasonable salaried income is required that reflects the work done and one that does not actively discourage our best and most committed councillors and, as Senator Buttimer said, those who cannot afford to take on the role as it stands.

Further to that, there are has been much discussion in recent months of the centenary of women's suffrage and, inevitably, debates about encouraging equal gender participation across the political institutions. The National Women's Council of Ireland, NWCI, in its report on closing the gender pay gap, recommended varied measures around childcare and sufficient maternity leave to support women in the workplace. I commend the Sinn Féin councillor in Cork, Danielle Twomey, who has raised the issue of councillors not receiving maternity leave. It is a scandal that if they take six months leave from their roles, they will be deemed to have resigned from their roles. If we are to truly discuss how we are to encourage women into politics and lead by example on making the workplace a welcoming environment for women, we cannot continue to turn a cheek to that blatant obstacle facing members of society. Could the Minister of State please comment on that final point as well?