Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Green Party)
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Question 462: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the powers that exist to investigate the procedures and practices in local authorities; the action that can be taken if a local authority is found not to be acting appropriately in the performance of its duties or if a county manager is not performing his or her duties adequately. [40108/05]

Paul Gogarty (Dublin Mid West, Green Party)
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Question 463: To ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the recourse that is available to public representatives and private citizens if they are unhappy with the local authority's discharge of its duties; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40109/05]

Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 462 and 463 together.

There is a range of powers available under various codes governing local authority activities through which local authorities can be held to account. These include provisions in environmental legislation which allow the Environmental Protection Agency to exercise a supervisory role in relation to the performance by local authorities of their environmental functions. The agency may require information from, issue directions to and, if necessary, prosecute local authorities where it considers it appropriate to exercise these powers. Furthermore, section 255 of the Planning and Development Act 2000 sets out a range of powers of the Minister of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government in relation to overseeing the operation by planning authorities of their planning functions. These powers of oversight must, however, be exercised in a manner consistent with the general restriction on the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government under planning law from influencing determinations in individual cases.

Local government law also provides for the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to institute local inquiries for the purposes of powers and duties conferred on the Minister. The Minister may also appoint an authorised person to prepare a report for him in relation to any function of a local authority. The Local Government Audit Service investigates procedures and practice in local authorities in relation to financial matters on a continuing basis. In addition, local authorities are also subject to freedom of information legislation and access to the Ombudsman and the courts is also available as appropriate.

Section 216 of the Local Government Act 2001 provides that where a local authority fails to carry out certain statutory duties the members of that authority may by order be removed from office. The legislation prescribes the circumstances in which such action may be taken including: the Minister being satisfied, after the holding of a public local inquiry, that a local authority is not effectually performing its functions; a local authority failing to comply with a decree of any court; a local authority failing to adopt an estimate sufficient for its expenses; and a local authority wilfully neglecting or refusing to comply with expressed requirements imposed on it by law.

In relation to county-city managers, the Local Government Act 2001 provides that it is the duty of every manager to carry into effect all lawful directions of the elected council of a local authority or a joint body for which he or she is manager in relation to the exercise and performance of the reserved functions of the local authority or joint body. The elected council of a county or a city may by resolution suspend or remove from employment the county or city manager for stated misbehaviour or if his or her suspension or removal appears to it to be necessary for the effective performance of the functions of the council. Where such a resolution is proposed, the procedures to be followed by the relevant council are set out in section 146 of the Act of 2001. However, a county or city manager may not be removed without the sanction of the Minister who may appoint an independent panel of three persons to consider the removal, to recommend whether the Minister should give sanction to such removal and to make any such other recommendations, if any, as the panel may consider appropriate.