Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I will conclude by referring to the Government's support for Kildare, in particular since 2020. Across all schemes and funding sources, my Department provided €151.7 million in 2020, €155.9 million in 2021 and €164.9 million in 2022 to Kildare County Council. Included in this is the unprecedented level of support provided by central government to local authorities during 2020 and 2021, rightly so, in respect of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In 2023, a working group was set up to carry out a comprehensive review of the local property tax baselines. This group included elected and executive representation from the local government sector. My Department has engaged with key stakeholders in the course of this review. Submissions were invited for consideration from other interested parties. The work of this group recently concluded and the recommendations are currently being considered by the Minister. It is intended, subject to the agreement of the Minister, to apply the recommendations to the 2024 LPT allocations. The review took into account the overall funding position of all local authorities and included consideration of the ability of each authority to raise income locally, along with the main drivers of expenditure, such as area and population, as the Senator rightly pointed out.

I disagree that the Government is not doing anything. The Government is working with local authorities to try to equalise and ensure that local government, including Kildare County Council, is adequately funded to carry out the vital work it does.