Seán Doherty
Question:50 Mr. Doherty asked the Minister for the Environment if he will publish the names of the local authorities surveyed in the audits carried out by the value for money unit in his Department. [1568/97]
Written Answers. - Value for Money Audits.
Noel Dempsey
Question:231 Mr. Dempsey asked the Minister for the Environment if he will ensure that all meetings are open to the public and publish the names of councils surveyed by the value for money unit in his Department in the interest of openness and transparency in local government. [1797/97]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 50 and 231 together.
As outlined recently in "Better Local Government — A Programme for Change", the role of the value for money (VFM) unit of my Department will be enlarged in terms of scope and application. With the experience gained from projects already completed, the unit will be in a position to undertake more comprehensive and in-depth analysis of a wider range of local authority activities. Value for money audits will be placed on a statutory basis and, on foot of this, it is proposed that the VFM unit will publish full details of the results of its work. In addition, it is proposed to identify a range of financial performance indicators against which local authorities will be required to measure their performance and publish the results; the purpose will be to identify best practice and encourage individual local authorities to improve their performance levels.
I intend, in the near future, to bring forward comprehensive regulations which will modernise and consolidate the law on local authority meetings and procedures. These will include a statutory right for members of the public to attend council meetings.