Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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328. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, Community and Local Government if a review of local electoral area boundaries will take place ahead of the local elections scheduled for 2019; and if so, the proposed timeline for same. [18225/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The most recent review of local electoral areas was carried out from November 2012 to May 2013 by a Local Electoral Area Boundary Committee established under the Local Government Act 1991.  Unlike the position for Dáil and European Parliament constituencies, there is no constitutional or legislative requirement for the revision of local electoral areas.

The Programme for a Partnership Government sets out a number of requirements in relation to local government reform, involving a report to Government and the Oireachtas by mid-2017 on potential measures to boost local government leadership and accountability, including a commitment to consider reducing the size of local electoral areas.

Depending on the outcome of consideration of the mid-2017 report, any review of local electoral area boundaries would be undertaken in good time before the 2019 local elections.