Kevin Humphreys (Labour) | Oireachtas source

The previous speaker made a very important point about the centres of excellence. I had many disagreements over the policies Mary Harney implemented, but the development of certain centres of excellence in cancer treatment has saved many thousands of lives. However, we need the services to ensure people can get to those centres of excellence quickly, safely and on time to get a good outcome. We should ensure that for all our citizens.

I wish to speak about funding of local government. It has again become a serious issue for the capital city. Dublin City Council failed to pass a budget last night.One of the many problems in regard to the funding of local government is the commitment that was given that the transfer to Irish Water would be revenue neutral, and we now find it is not. This happens over and over again in regard to local authorities, especially within the Dublin area. I sometimes wonder what Fine Gael has against Dublin or what Dublin has done to Fine Gael to be treated in such a manner. We see the same thing in regard to Dún Laoghaire Harbour, where there was a commitment that it would not be a drag on the local authority. We now see it is a drag, with the loss of services which other Senators have raised in regard to the cost of support for the harbour.

There is a big, crying issue in regard to the funding of local authorities. It does not matter what political party anyone comes from but, at this time of the year, as the councils are passing their budgets, we see clearly the difficulties and, in many ways, the contradictions. For example, councillors vote for a decrease in the property tax and are prepared to vote for an increase in social housing rents.

I am proposing an amendment to the Order of Business calling on the Minister to attend today to discuss in detail the funding of local government. Local government is the bedrock of Irish democracy and it is the closest interface with the citizens. It is not right that councillors should be put in this position due to decisions that are made by the Government. They were given a clear commitment that the transfer of Irish Water would be revenue neutral but it is not. I formally move that amendment.