Previous Dublin reorganisation proposals
Quinn sought clarity on whether the Government had rejected the previous administration’s Dublin reorganisation plans. Flynn said they remained under consideration, while acknowledging the current arrangements were unsatisfactory; he declined to detail differences from the earlier bill before Government clearance.
The Minister has given a fairly comprehensive reply. Would I be right in assuming that the Government have implicitly rejected the previous Government's proposals for local government reorganisation in the Dublin area?
Comment on this
The Government are considering that as far as the new possible arrangements are concerned. The previous Government announced a major devolution programme in May 1985 but little progress, if any at all, was made in the implementation of that programme before the Government left office.
Comment on this
The previous Government left on the Minister's desk a blueprint in relation to a number of local authorities in the Dublin area. Indeed, the last local elections provided for an increase in the number of councillors throughout the city and county area. Am I to take it that the present review as the Minister described in his reply explicitly rejects the previous Government's proposal?
Comment on this
No, it does not implicitly reject it. That is one of the things being considered and the document, as the Deputy says rightly, was there and that was the cause, I understand, of the election of 78 people anyway. That is still being considered in the overall. I cannot give an indication yet as to whether I will go completely with what is suggested in that but it has to be looked at. Things as they are are unsatisfactory at the moment.
Comment on this
In view of the substantive answer to the original question, can the Minister indicate whether there is any fundamental difference between what he is considering now and the general scheme of a Bill on local government reorganisation which was adopted by the previous Government in the middle of 1986?
Comment on this
I would rather not be drawn on it now. I think that is not the way to get the best advantage from any reorganisation on local government that we have considered. I would like to have the Government see it and clear it.
