asked the Minister for Local Government the weekly rate of wages paid to road workers by each county council or by other local authorities in the Republic; and if there is any machinery available whereby a uniform rate for the whole country could be formulated for adoption by each local authority.

The information available in my Department relates only to roadworkers employed by the county councils. This information, in the form of a tabular statement, will, with your permission, a Cheann Comhairle, be circulated with the Official Report. With regard to the second part of the Deputy's question, there is no formal machinery whereby local authorities could be required to negotiate collectively on a claim for a uniform rate of wages for their roadworkers. Each local authority is a separate employer and the negotiations of wages agreements is a matter in the first instance between them and their employees. Local authorities, however, represented by the City and County Managers Association, do negotiate collectively on matters of common concern. The decision to adopt the terms of any agreements made on foot of such negotiations would, however, be a matter for each local authority and the decision in each case would be subject to my sanction.

Following is the statement:

Could the Parliamentary Secretary relate the reply to the fact that officers employed by local authorities receive standard salaries?

The Deputy will find in the tabular statement that while there is some variation, there is not a lot.

Why can there not be uniformity?

I suggest that the representatives of the employees should get after that.

Could we be assured that if we succeeded in negotiating a uniform rate—taking the Dublin rate as applying—the Department of Local Government would sanction such a thing?

I am not in a position to say.

No.

Who is saying no? Will the Deputy say that when he goes up for the local authority elections? It was Deputy Fanning who said no.

I did not say ‘no'.

I did not say ‘no'. As far as I am concerned, we in Fianna Fáil are always behind——

I cannot hear anybody. Question No. 13.

What has the Minister for Transport and Power to say about this?