Damien English (Meath West, Fine Gael)
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The Local Government Reform Act 2014 saw the dissolution of 80 town councils and the Government has no plans to reintroduce town councils. Instead, the focus of the Programme for Government – Our shared Future- is to strengthen the operation of the 95 municipal districts established in 2014 and which cover the entirety of the State’s population as opposed to the 14% of the population previously represented by town councils.

The Municipal District system provides effective and community-focused decision-making and implementation. There is full integration of local authority resources across each county, and elimination of duplication both in administrative and electoral terms.

The Municipal District system is also closer to the European norm, covering the entire territory of each county, in contrast with the previous arrangement of isolated town councils, while rural areas, many town environs, and some larger centres lacked municipal status and local governance.

An important benefit of the Municipal District system is a more appropriate assignment of local authority functions. Local matters are dealt with at Municipal District level, while those of wider strategic application are decided at county level, without duplication between county and district jurisdictions. In effect, there is now a dual system of governance but an integrated administrative structure in each county which maximises operational efficiency while ensuring devolved decision-making throughout the county.

Regional enterprise development and sustainable local job creation is a key policy priority of mine and this Government.

Throughout the first quarter of this year, I along with the Tánaiste Leo Varadkar TD and Minister of State Robert Troy TD have launched 8 of 9 Regional Enterprise Plans. A key feature and strength of the Regional Enterprise Plans is that they are developed using a ‘bottom-up’ approach, developed by regional stakeholders, including local government structures, who are keenly aware of the growth opportunities and vulnerabilities in their region.

Together, we have been determined to ensure that funding is available to support these Plans. I can advise the Deputy that up to €180m is being made available for the nine regional plans to develop and implement collaborative and innovative enterprise projects – projects that will not just sustain but enhance employment opportunities at county, regional and national level.