FG Local Govt Plan will drive job creation and abolish quangos

 FG Local Govt Plan will drive job creation and abolish quangos

Abolish/merge 95 quangos + freeze rates for 5 years

Fine  Gael Environment Spokesman Phil Hogan TD has  set out his  Party’s  plans  to  reform  Local  Government:  ‘Power to the People –
Bringing Local Government Back to the People’. This latest Fine Gael policy is another ambitious plan to completely shake up Government structures, and follows  similar  proposals  for  the  Oireachtas, healthcare and education reform.

The  Fine  Gael plan will see Local Government become the primary driver of business  support  and development at local level. It will involve 95 State bodies  being  merged  or abolished, saving millions of euros for taxpayers every year, and freezing local business rates for the next five years.

“Local  Government  must  play  an integral role in dragging Ireland out of recession  and  in  driving  job  creation. However, Local Government is in limbo,  if  not  in  crisis.  Local  Government has lacked a strong primary mission  for  decades  with  power and services being devolved to unelected ‘quangos’. Fine Gael will change all that. Our plan, ‘Power to the People’, will see:

Local  Government  become  the primary driver of business support and development  at  local level. This will involve ending the wide-scale  duplication  of  services  among  unelected  bodies and bringing them  under  one  roof in Local Authorities to create a one-stop-shop. Fine  Gael-controlled  Councils  will  freeze  local business rates for the next 5 years;  Ninety-five   quangos   merged   or  abolished:  53  bodies  will  be  amalgamated  into  Local Government with the complete abolition of 42  more. This will result in an administrative saving to the taxpayer of over €70 million a year;  In  planning,  separate  transport  and  education  plans  need to be  included  in  the planning process and in County and City Development Plans;  Fine  Gael will support a directly-elected Lord Mayor for Dublin City   for   a  term  of  five  years  from  2014  provided  that  relevant, significant powers for the Mayor have been decided;   Simple  reforms  in  the  structure  of  Local  Government to improve   services  to both the public and elected representatives, including a  special  customer service unit which will be uniform across all local  authorities based on best practice.

“We want to see savings and efficiencies rather than new taxes and charges . We  need  to  restore  trust,  services  and  responsibility  back to Local Government.  Putting  Local  Government  back  into  a  central role in the community  will  result in greater community cohesion, better services, and more  employment opportunities, all the while saving millions of taxpayers’ hard-earned millons.