Tim Lombard (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

There were also plebiscites in three cities, two of which failed. The scenario in Cork was unusual. We asked for a plebiscite of the people of Cork on the question of a lord mayor but when we extended the boundary we never asked the people in a plebiscite - we just did it. There is a contradiction in this. There is a view that the executive could extend the boundary by law but that it could, when it suited it, ask the people for their view on the mayoralty. There is a failing in the system. I congratulate Limerick on putting the city and county together into one local authority, which gives it a real voice. There is population density now and they are moving into a new space, which is the directly elected mayor. They have moved light years ahead of Cork and Waterford by giving themselves the potential to work together. I never saw the logic of having two local authorities in one county. There has been an extension to a boundary on which nobody voted and, in the mayoral plebiscite, people asked why they were being asked to vote on the issue when they were not asked to vote on the extension of the boundary. We need to have a comprehensive look at local government, how it works and how it is funded. The vote failed in Cork because people thought it would be too expensive. If they went for a merger we would have one county manager, one executive-----