Department of the Environment, Heritage & Local Government

Local Government and Economic Progress
No area of Irish life, including local government, has escaped the changes brought about by economic progress over the past decade and a half.

In fact, local government has played a huge role in shaping and facilitating change. It has led the way in providing new environmental and economic infrastructure. The operation of the local government planning system has facilitated the construction of one third of all Irish homes over the last 10 years to cater for a growing, more affluent and more diverse population.

Economic progress has brought its own pressures and local authorities must grapple with these. An increased population and workforce require expanded water and transport infrastructure. Increased infrastructural investment has brought environmental gains in some areas, while urban expansion and greater vehicle numbers have given rise to new or additional environmental stresses. The challenges and threats posed by global climate change will also impact increasingly on the work of local authorities over the coming years. While economic progress has brought benefits to many, areas of significant deprivation remain, particularly in certain urban locations, which face challenges of high levels of unemployment, illegal drug usage and low levels of educational attainment.

The pace of life has quickened. While community remains strong in Ireland, some ties have loosened. Long commutes and near full employment impact on volunteerism. This in turns affects local democracy, which relies on a spirit of volunteerism to encourage candidates to stand for election and, more generally, to facilitate community engagement with local authorities.

Local government itself has changed. A decade of reform followed the publication of Better Local Government in 1996. These reforms strengthened both the managerial capability within local authorities and the capacity for local public representatives to act as policy makers for the community. Local government has also been party to wider public sector reforms under successive Partnership Agreements.

Local government has led the way in customer service in many areas, such as on-line planning, on-line motortax, new customer friendly offices and more flexible opening hours. Bringing further improvement to customer service will remain a core focus of local government reform into the future.

Is there a Need for More Reform?
The Programme for Government includes a commitment to reform local government to make it “more transparent and more responsive to its customers”. Given the range of reforms already in place, the first question must be: do we need more reform? However, in a fast moving world, change is constant. Neither the public service nor the local authority system can afford not to change, to adapt, to evolve and to keep up with the needs of society. Considerations of effectiveness and efficiency also mean that further reform must be innovative, well-targeted, flexible and responsive to the citizen.

The nature of change within Ireland itself over the past decade also requires the assumptions which underpin the local government system to be scrutinised so that it can respond to the needs of today and tomorrow.

A more prosperous country faces challenges which are different to those of a decade or two ago. These challenges, which must be faced at both national and local level, include:

A growing population expected to exceed 5 million by 2020 with the resulting requirements for housing, public infrastructure, educational facilities etc
A more diverse and mobile population
An ongoing focus on overcoming social exclusion
Climate change: reducing our carbon dependency and preparing for, and adapting to, the effects of climate change
Achieving greater regional balance in a country which depends on the free market for much of its economic success
Managing urban development, and ensuring regional coherence in planning strategies, within an overall national framework
Maintaining a vibrant and sustainable rural Ireland in a way which is protective of its landscape, its built and natural heritage and the quality of our water, all of which are under threat in some areas by inappropriate development
Meeting the expectations of a highly educated, more environmentally conscious and more questioning public
Ensuring flexibility in the management of scarce staffing and financial resources.

Overarching Issues
Local government, in particular, must respond to a number of key overarching issues. These include:

Efficient Service Delivery
One of the key objectives of the Programme for Government is to make local government more transparent and responsive to its customers. The local government sector has made huge progress in recent years and has led the public sector in some areas of innovative service delivery.

One of the main challenges facing local government will be to continue to improve performance and customer service within the constraint of the staffing and financial resources available to the sector. This requires policies that deliver efficiencies and flexibility, encourage the sharing of resources between authorities where appropriate and ensure the recruitment of staff to match the requirements of local government.

In January 2007, the Taoiseach announced that he had invited the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation & Development (OECD) to undertake a major review of the Irish Public Service to make recommendations as to future directions for Public Service reform. The review will focus on the connectivity between different sectors, including between the central level and local government.

Announced in Budget 2008, an efficiency review is also underway across all spending programmes. In order to achieve and maximise efficiency gains in the sector, local authorities have been asked to identify areas of possible efficiency gains, including in relation to transaction efficiencies (e.g. for the collection of taxes and charges), the sharing of services, procurement and back office functions, and the rationalisation of organisational structures.

The outcome of these reviews will also form part of the overall reform process. In this context, it must be recognised that local authorities are more than instruments of service delivery – they are democratically elected bodies which express the priorities of local communities.

Dealing with a Growing and More Diverse Population
Local government will play a key role in responding to the growth in national population and the significant change in the make up of the population.

Census 2006 figures reveal that 8% of the population was not born in Ireland or the U.K.² This change is more pronounced in urban areas, where almost 12% of the population was born outside Ireland or the U.K.³This has come about suddenly, especially in comparison to other European states which have only reached these levels after decades of net immigration. In 1996 in Ireland, 70,000 persons were born in jurisdictions other than Ireland or the U.K. 10 years later, this figure stood at 380,000.⁴

It is also notable that the changes in our communities are not simply due to immigration. The mobility of people born in Ireland has also changed substantially. Far more Irish people are now living outside the counties they were born in. In 1996 74% of persons were enumerated in the county they were born in, by 2006 this had fallen to 64%.⁵This is most marked in the counties surrounding Dublin; less than 40% of the 2006 population was born in County Meath, in Kildare 40% were native to the county, and in Wicklow 44% of the population were born in Wicklow.⁶Although less marked elsewhere, this trend is universal in every county. Across the country local authorities serve communities that, broadly speaking, have a less pronounced historical connection with the place they live in than in previous times.

Uniquely in Irish democracy, local government receives its mandate from all residents, regardless of nationality. Local government is therefore well placed to represent, serve and benefit from an increasingly diverse society. Clearly, there are challenges involved for local government in this change from a relatively homogenous society.

Active Citizenship
The Taoiseach established the Taskforce on Active Citizenship in April 2006 against a backdrop of concern about citizen participation in their community. The Taskforce was asked to lead a debate on how citizens engage in the issues which affect them and their communities. As the lowest tier of democracy, local government is central to that debate. The Taskforce identified a democratic deficit at local level and reported, as a constant theme during the Taskforce’s consultations, that “the perceived distance between the citizen and local authority was too great – particularly but not exclusively in urban areas.”

An apparent disconnect between local communities and local government is, in a sense, ironic given the near omnipresence in our lives of services provided seamlessly and unobtrusively by local government; water, roads, public lighting, fire services, public libraries etc. The Taskforce found that the cause of the deficit is a perceived absence of meaningful opportunities for civic participation in decision-making about local issues.

While the Taskforce on Active Citizenship identified weaknesses in the community’s engagement with local authorities, it must be recognised that democratically elected councils have a tradition of engaging with, and legitimacy in, the community which predates the State. This is a real resource which can and should be built upon.

The last decade of change has brought significant new areas of engagement between local authorities and the community through an expanded social inclusion role, the greater use of ICT, and a step change in consultation with the community through new structures, such as County/City Developments Boards (CDBs) and Community and Voluntary Fora.

Towards a More Holistic Vision of Irish Local Government
The purpose of local government is to “give expression to local identity, to identify local concerns and to set local priorities.” ⁷The unique character of local government is its proximity to the community. This proximity allows local government to be accessible to the citizen and widens the opportunity for real engagement and public participation. It allows for a more effective form of government, when dealing with local services, than would be possible under a more remote tier of government. Accessibility and participation are the added value, the competitive advantage, of local government.

Recent reforms of local government have provided an enhanced role for councillors, modern administrative structures and better central financial supports. However, the place of local government within the State’s political framework has not altered significantly. The key relationships at decision making level between manager and councillor remain the same, and the relationship between central and local administration is essentially the same- see Chapter 2.

Over the long run the ideal shape of local government in Ireland would include the following traits:

A system where the instinctive reaction of local people is to look to their own local democratic institutions to solve local problems – not to national government
A system which has established its credentials at national level and where central government can look to local government with confidence when considering the most appropriate level of government to deliver both new and existing public services
A system where the efficient delivery of services continues to be of fundamental importance but recognition that local democratic choice and decision making can decide on different local priorities.

Full achievement of these aims will take time and hard work. The democratic reforms suggested in Stronger Local Democracy – Options for Change, whereby local government in Ireland is given greater political leadership and greater local democratic accountability, would represent major steps in the right direction. If local democratic government in Ireland can raise its profile as a legitimate level of decision making, and can demonstrate the benefits of local political leadership, then local government can evolve a level of independence and functionality which has not been available to it up to now.

Ending the dual mandate was one element in putting in place a proper division of responsibility between local and national democratic institutions. It is now time to explore what further measures need to be put in place to ensure strong local democracy which can, over time, take on more and more responsibility.

The Principles Underlying Reform
The discussion on local government reform is guided by 5 key principles:

An appreciation of the importance of local democratic institutions in representing local communities, in delivering services, in regulating for the common good and in developing the physical, economic and social environment of the local community;
Subsidiarity: allowing decision making to be handled at the ‘lowest’ appropriate level;
Democratic responsibility and accountability: providing that local democratic leaders have appropriate responsibility for making decisions at a local level and clear accountability for those decisions;
Ensuring the proper balance between the range and functions of local structures and need for coherence, value for money and efficient delivery of service; and
A continued focus on Quality Customer Service.

These principles are also guided by the European Charter of Local Self-Government, an international treaty of the Council of Europe, which has been signed and ratified by Ireland. The Charter embodies a broad set of principles underpinning local government in Europe, and includes guarantees of the political, administrative and financial independence of local authorities.

Specific Issues in the Programme for Government
Within the overall philosophy outlined above, the Programme for Government mandates the Green Paper to consider a number of key issues. These include:

A commitment to introduce a directly elected Mayor for Dublin by 2011
The possibility of providing directly elected chairs in other local authority areas
The appropriate powers of town councils and the possible establishment of new town councils
The balance of power between the elected member and the manager
The issue of quality customer service and the question of expenditure limits at local elections.

Strengthening the Democratic Profile of Local Government
Developing the specific issues identified in the Programme for Government, and taking into account the questions raise by the Taskforce on Active Citizenship, this Paper suggests that the strengthening of the democratic role of local government will be central to future reforms.

There are significant linkages between all the different elements of the reform agenda, with decisions on one topic affecting the potential options for other areas. For example, the issue of directly elected mayors (and the powers given to such mayors) impacts significantly on the separate question of the balance of responsibility/power between manager and elected members.

Uniform solutions will not necessarily fit all circumstances. The Dublin region is unique being the only international sized city in the State. It faces particular challenges in terms of infrastructure provision. Existing forms of structure and governance may continue to suit some areas, while growing, expanding areas may need different solutions. Reforms should also support the regional development objectives of the National Spatial Strategy and a co-ordinated approach to the transformation of developing areas. Novel institutional arrangements may be necessary where existing boundaries are an impediment to proper planning and organisation of public services.

With those principles in mind, the key elements for debate are set out below. These issues are developed in the following chapters.

A Mayor for Dublin
The Programme for Government commits to the introduction of a directly elected Mayor with executive functions. There are a number of models as to how this office would operate.

Dublin faces major strategic challenges in public transport enhancement, providing housing, managing waste, and catering for long term drinking water and waste water needs. In addition, the need to change the pattern of development in the Greater Dublin Area is a critical part of the response to meeting national climate change targets. These issues face the 4 Dublin local authorities collectively as well as individually.

This Paper suggests, therefore, that the most appropriate model for Dublin is a Regional Mayor with defined strategic functions. It is proposed that a Mayor could have responsibility for decision making/coordinating/representing the whole of the Dublin area in relation to a limited number of key strategic issues.

This would involve areas where the 4 local authorities must continue to work together including regional planning guidelines, waste management, housing, water and waste water infrastructure.

The role of the Mayor in relation to current and future institutional arrangements needs to be carefully considered. These institutions include the existing 4 major Dublin local authorities, the proposed Dublin Transport Authority, the Dublin Regional Authority, and potentially, co-ordination with the counties surrounding Dublin.

It is suggested for example, that the Dublin Mayor should become the Chairman of the Dublin Transport Authority.

Detailed consideration would also need to be given to the administrative and institutional supports required by a Dublin Mayor. Should the Regional Authority act as a council supporting the Mayor? If so how should it be elected? The Paper also raises questions as to how a Regional Mayor would interact with the city and county mayors, or whether indeed the City and Regional Mayor should be a combined office. How is the office to be financed and what control should the office have over public funds? Should there be additional fund raising powers for a Regional Mayor?

The Introduction of Directly Elected Mayors
The Green Paper proposes in principle that a system providing for directly elected mayors be introduced in each city and county council area. This will be a cornerstone of increasing the democratic legitimacy of local government in Ireland. Different options for the introduction of mayors are discussed.

A directly elected mayor would significantly enhance the visibility of the office of Mayor by (a) the enduring nature of the position – at least 5 years in place of the current annual change, (b) the greater capacity for continuity and delivery over a 5 year term, and (c) the attention and focus that the local community and media would place on one individual in that position.

The provision of directly elected mayors has spread through Europe as a way of strengthening the political leadership of local government. By raising the profile of the key locally elected representative, the office of mayor offers a point of focus which can increase accountability and help address the disconnect between citizen and local authority.

Under Better Local Government, the system of Strategic Policy Committees and Corporate Policy Groups was introduced to enhance the Councillors’ policy formulation role. It was envisaged that these structures would deliver a cabinet type leadership system in local authorities. They have worked well in some areas, less well in others. As a complementary measure to the directly elected chair, it is proposed that chairs of SPCs should be elected for the term of the council. This change would strengthen the continuity of office at SPC level. ⁸

SPC chairs are generally appointed in accordance with the party/grouping strengths on the council and it would be expected that this position would continue.

Irish local government will still rely on professional chief executives, the county and city managers, to provide impartial professional administration. The proposals for mayor will not affect that principle. However, consideration could be given to providing elected mayors with specific additional functions.

The provision of a directly elected mayor will be seen to be a key response to improving local government leadership, legitimacy, accountability and civic engagement. It should be seen as a significant part of the response to other issues including the councillor/manager balance, better customer service and ethics in local government.

Division of Responsibility between Manager and Council
The division of responsibility between the manager and the elected representatives has been a recurring theme in local government reform over the years. The view has been taken that the managerial system provides a solid base to local authority governance in Ireland. Reform has focused on how the councillor’s role can be enhanced within the managerial system.

Regardless of what reforms are introduced there will always be a need for a full time chief executive officer, and modern management structures, to deliver quality local government services. The question for this local government reform process is to identify the optimum relationship between manager and elected representatives, so that the democratic mandate and the impartial and effective delivery of services are both enhanced.

This Paper suggests that the further democratic enhancement of local government in Ireland will primarily come through the elected mayor, whose office will have the potential to attract expanded powers over time.

Town Government
The issue of the most appropriate form of town, or sub-county, government has proven to be the most difficult issue to resolve in decades of local government reform.

The distribution of town council authorities has changed little since the 19th century and the assignment of local government functions to towns does not reflect current circumstances. Some towns with a population under 2,000 have councils with a significant range of powers (to raise rates, make planning decisions etc), some towns (former Town Commissioners) with populations up to 15,000 have councils with very little power, and a number of towns with populations greater than 10,000 have no town councils.

While various options for reforming town government have been put forward over the years, the one consistent drift has been the centralising of functions at county level. This has been progressed for reasons of efficiency and the difficulty for small urban authorities of employing the specialist expertise which local government now requires across a wide range of areas, from sophisticated environmental management to resource intensive social inclusion and community building initiatives.

Two logical responses to sub-county local government would be (a) to abolish all sub-county authorities and put in place more formalised area structures as part of the county council model or (b) to put in place a universal tier of district councils centred on major towns.

These solutions have been put forward before without success due to (a) the reluctance to abolish institutions which have a local democratic legitimacy and (b) a reluctance to establish new councils in a manner which might run counter to efficient and cost effective local service delivery.

The Taskforce on Active Citizenship called for debate on sub-county democratic institutions while being mindful of the risk of potential fragmentation.

In the absence of any consensus on fundamental reform of sub-county structures, this Paper suggests that there may be alternative ways of empowering town councils. These include:

Increased local decision making, within defined limits, to be delegated to town elected members for services delivered by the county council. For example, town councils could draw up a programme of works (e.g. road repairs, local water services, parks, community facilities) and submit the programme to the county council as a basis for negotiation between the town and county tier;
To encourage local settlement on a case by case basis for the determination of specific functions of a town council, whether former UDC or Town Commissioner. A larger town council, which is a former Town Commission, could, subject to local willingness and service level guarantees, receive devolved statutory functions from county councils. For example, a former Town Commissioner town could become a joint authority for the adoption of development plans affecting the town and the county council; and,
That the county council, as primary authority, would still provide the staffing and administrative support services so as not to negate the efficiencies of scale which have been achieved in recent decades.

While such inter-authority negotiation would bring added complexity, the trade-off for the public in devolving powers to town councils should be better and more accountable service provision. Overall strategic decisions can and should be taken at county level while still leaving substantial discretion for local decision making at town level.

The establishment of new town councils would need careful consideration having regard to the potential impact on resources and efficient service delivery. Any decisions to proceed with such proposals should only be taken where there is full integration of administrative support with the county council so as to eliminate any significant cost implications.

Participative Democracy and Local Government
The Paper notes that traditional structures of engagement with local government do not necessarily work for busy people with long commutes and demanding family lives. Local government may need creatively and proactively to seek new avenues of direct participation and suggestions which could be piloted include plebiscites, town hall meetings, formal petitions and participatory budgeting.

Serving the Citizen
The provision of quality customer service to the public is a key objective of Government right across the public service.

Notwithstanding the range of initiatives that have improved service delivery in the last decade, local government must demonstrate flexibility and imagination to continue to deliver essential services in a changing Ireland.

Improved service delivery will be assisted through the culture of continuous change which has been agreed in Towards 2016. There is also potential for greater cooperation and assistance across boundaries and for the delivery of shared services.

One of the themes that came up was the disconnect between local authorities (as the lead local institution) and local development agencies.

Local authorities, from both the public representative and official side, consider that in many cases, local and State agencies do not work sufficiently closely with local authorities. On the other hand, local authorities have been criticised by the local development sector for not being engaged or pro-active enough in relation to areas of activity promoted by those organisations.

The Government is committed to enhancing the role of the County and City Development Boards as lead local agency and notes the potential that a full term mayor would have in strengthening the democratic oversight role at local level.

There is greater potential for the best performing local authorities to share experience and for good performance to be better communicated to the public. Better showcasing through awards can also highlight best performance. A directly elected mayor can assist in developing local profile in these areas.

The environment in which local authorities now operate is increasingly challenging and complex. Therefore, it is essential that the sector should be in a position to attract and retain high calibre candidates with a range of experience and skill sets. This means putting in place more flexible recruitment policies to meet organisational needs. At present, all higher-level posts are filled by open competition and Towards 2016 provides for more open recruitment at middle management level and a scheme of graduate recruitment targeted at the particular needs of local authorities. Decentralisation of public service offices also offers an opportunity for greater public sector mobility across tiers of government at local level. This could bring greater exchange of skills and experience to the wider public service in Ireland.

Regional Governance
The Paper raises the question of how best regional governance can support the emergence of strong and coherent city regions based on the Gateways set out in the National Spatial Strategy.

There are areas, for example, the Limerick/Shannon area, where issues of county loyalty may be impeding the growth of strong regional centres. This Paper asks if a city region mayor could bring tangible benefits to that area while respecting existing county boundaries. If so, could such solutions apply elsewhere? Alternatively it asks if in key Gateway areas such as Limerick, Waterford and Sligo whether a unitary authority, or common mayor, should have jurisdiction over both county and city?

Local and National Government – Working Together
For local government to prosper it is essential that there is a spirit of trust and partnership between local and central government. Local government has the potential to free up central government to perform tasks of strategic and national importance if it could trust local government to take on more responsibility. Better connectivity may help to build this trust provided that local government can demonstrate that it can responsibly deliver new services.

One of the dilemmas facing central and local government in Ireland is how to ensure that national and E.U. obligations are met, while still respecting local democratic decision making. Government in the past has dealt with this in some areas by removing powers from councillors and granting them to the Manager in order to ensure compliance with national obligations.

This Paper suggests that these policy making powers could be returned to the political system (council or mayor) coupled with a new defined role for local authority law agents/legal advisers who would have an obligation to provide advice directly to the decision maker (mayor, council, manager), depending on the class of decision involved. The decision maker in turn would be obliged to act within the limits of such advice. So that councils know what their obligations are, Government needs to be clear on the implications and costs involved (including statutory targets) when it assigns functions to local authorities.

These measures could protect local democratic decision making in a framework which recognises that national and E.U. law must be implemented.

Local Government Commission
The Local Government Act 2001 provided for the setting up of a Local Government Commission to advise the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government on issues such as the establishment of new town councils, boundary changes, and numbers of councillors per local authority.

The Commission has not been established and the Paper discusses options regarding the Commission and whether alternative mechanisms should be pursued to deal with the issues mentioned above.

Local Government Finance
The Paper recognises the need for proper funding of local government. Autonomy in fund raising increases local discretion and accountability. However, there is little consensus on how best to achieve such autonomy. This is an issue which will receive in depth analysis in the context of the recently established Commission on Taxation, which is to consider the issue of local government financing.

Ethics
In relation to the ethics regime, this paper suggests that there is a need for greater cohesion between local government law and general ethics legislation. Local authorities should still take charge of ensuring compliance with all ethical requirements but with a greater oversight role for the Standards in Public Office Commission.

It is also recommended that local electoral expenditure limits should be introduced but that the bureaucracy involved in any new procedures should be kept to a minimum.

Conclusion
Local government in Ireland has the vitality to embrace change. Changes of the kind suggested here can build on what has been achieved over recent years and assist local government in reaching its full potential.