Seanad Public Consultation Committee holds first public hearing on the Future of Local Democracy

The hearings, which will take place in the Seanad Chamber, will consist of two sessions, taking place from 10:30am to 1:00pm and 2:00pm to 5:30pm.

In the morning session, the Committee will engage with councillor representative bodies, where it will hear from the Association of Irish Local Government and the Local Authority Members Association about the issues they wish to raise in relation to local government in Ireland. Further, the Committee will also explore the approach to local government in Northern Ireland with the Northern Ireland Local Government Association and the National Association of Councillors – Northern Ireland Region.

In the afternoon session, the Committee will engage with Cathaoirligh of local authorities and individual councillors who made submissions to the Committee, focusing on the Midlands and North-West of Ireland. These hearings will be the first of several public meetings the Committee will hold with councillors and other stakeholders, where the Committee will hear their views on local government in Ireland, explore their suggestions and identify recommendations.

Ahead of the meeting, the Leas-Chathaoirleach of the Seanad, in his capacity as Chairperson of the Committee, Senator Mark Daly said: “The Committee is mindful of the Council of Europe’s Congress of Local and Regional Authorities (CLRAE) Report on the Monitoring of the application of the European Charter of Local Self-Government in Ireland, which noted that local government in Ireland is ‘weaker in Ireland than in most other European countries’.”

Senator Daly added: “On behalf of the Committee, I wish to express my sincerest thanks to all who have taken the time to make a submission on this very important topic. We are now moving to the next stage of the consultation process and very much look forward to beginning this valuable part of our work. Local government represents a central aspect of public life in Ireland, and with this in mind, the Committee is deeply concerned about the findings of the recent report.”

The Rapporteur for the consultation, Senator Shane Cassells added: “The purpose of these hearings is to build upon the ideas provided to the Committee in submissions, where we as Senators can explore this material, in addition to new and valuable insight from interested parties. We all look forward to starting these very fruitful and constructive discussions and I particularly look forward to engaging with our colleagues from the north of this island on the insight they can offer.”

The Committee expects to hold further public hearings over the coming months, with the aim of compiling recommendations, which it will publish in a report in due course. These hearings represent the next stage of the Committee’s process, following the public notice calling for submissions that was published in July 2023.

Read more about the work of the Seanad Public Consultation Committee on the Oireachtas website.