Local government is the beating heart of democracy. That heart was torn out of democracy in 2014 with the abolition of town and borough councils. The latter were replaced by committees with no powers, no functions and no funding. This has done serious damage to towns across the country in the context of their economic and social development. It is now widely acknowledged, even by a former leader of the Labour Party, Brendan Howlin, that this was a very bad decision.

The local government task force established to examine the position held its first meeting on 26 June last year.

Its report and the recommendations in it were to be with the Minister within a six- to nine-month period. We are now at the end of the eighth month of that period. Has the Minister received the report? When will the Government re-establish town and borough councils and will they be in place in time for the local elections in 2029?

I truthfully do not know if the Minister has received the report, but I will certainly find out for the Deputy and ask that the Minister write to him. The programme for Government is clear in relation to this. There are examples around the country. I should declare an interest that I am a former member of a town commission in Greystones. There are examples of how town councils and town commissions provided excellent work, not just for budding politicians who might have wanted to go from a town council to a county council or maybe even the Dáil, but also for people who wanted to just serve their communities in that role. The councils organised events such as the Christmas lights or St. Patrick's Day parades and fostered a sense of civic pride. This is something the Government is actively considering. It might be something that bridges the political divide in Tipperary, because Deputy Murphy has also raise this matter in the context of Clonmel. I will ask the Minister of State, Deputy Cummins, and the Minister, Deputy Browne, to come back to Deputy Healy regarding the timeline for that report.