Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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200. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government the extent to which his Department has identified the impact of the cost-cutting requirements imposed on the services arising from the Memorandum of Understanding which he inherited from his predecessors; the way this is affecting the capacity to provide continued service throughout the sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23286/13]

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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It is a matter for each local authority to determine its own spending priorities in the context of the annual budgetary process having regard to both locally identified needs and available resources. The elected members of a local authority have direct responsibility in law for all reserved functions of the authority, which include adopting the annual budget and authorising borrowing, and are democratically accountable for all expenditure by the local authority. Engagement between my Department and the local government sector on financial matters is well established and is ongoing across a number of channels, including through the County and City Managers’ Association and its finance subcommittee. While expenditure in the sector is significantly reduced on 2010 levels, this reflects the difficult budgetary situation in the period and is not specifically attributable to the EU/IMF Programme of Financial Support for Ireland.

Andrew Doyle (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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201. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if he will provide in tabular form a breakdown on a yearly basis of the legal and travel costs his Department has incurred as a result of litigation in the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, the General Court in Luxembourg and the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg from the years 2005 to 2012; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23312/13]

Phil Hogan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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The requested information is currently being compiled and will be forwarded to the Deputy as soon as possible.