My thoughts on the re-structuring of Money Advice and Budgeting Service and the Citizen Information Service that provide a vital service to users.

Then there was the report entitled Making an Impact: The Public Value of Citizens Information Services in Ireland, which very much highlighted the value of the work and the service being provided. We know today the additional range of services being provided. There are referrals from the Department of Social Protection, work with the new communities, help with appeals to decisions and landlord-tenant issues and so on. There has been a call for the Citizens Information services to take on the planning area as well, which has not happened yet. The National Development Managers Network, having consulted its members, has come to the conclusion that the optimum model to serve the citizen is to preserve the county model, with or without some integration with MABS. I heard some of the issues the Minister referred to regarding the restructuring but they can all be addressed without this drastic restructuring.

If a restructuring were in the best interests of all concerned, that is, those working in the service and the citizens who avail of the service, the proposal would not have led to the disquiet and consternation it has led to. I do not think this is just because people want to maintain the status quo.

This is part of the very strong role people in organisations have played in a voluntary way for many years. We know how these acts of neighbourliness and solidarity developed into Citizens Information services and Citizens Information centres. At the core of the work is the citizen, with paid staff and staff from Government schemes such as community employment, but still with a very strong emphasis on volunteers working in the centres and on the boards. There seems to be a movement away from local community and independence, so there is a change in the narrative. The three reasons the Minister gave for restructuring were governance, accountability and value for money. The proposed restructuring will be very costly, which would knock value for money on the head, and governance and accountability have not been lacking in the current structure. The casualty will be the independence of the service. The National Development Managers Network is prepared to discuss and engage on the matter and I hope that is what will come out of this debate because there is no evidence that citizens are dissatisfied with the current service. A major concern I have, because of my long time spent in voluntary work, is that the proposed regional boards will not have directors representing the community and the voluntary sector. I have heard the argument about considering MABS. It was initially set up to examine money lending, and this work has expanded considerably to take on mortgage arrears. However, the Citizens Information services are a very different matter because they have been providing a safe, independent third space. If they become just an extended arm of the statutory apparatus, something of immense value will be lost, and what will be lost is an independent agency and its citizen-provided, citizen-directed, independent, impartial service.

The way it is now the power lies with the unelected officials, there are questions regarding accountability. I do not say that a directly-elected mayor will solve all the problems of Dublin, but it makes much more sense than our people in predominantly symbolic roles that have been used as bargaining tools within each council in the gift of the political party or grouping taking it in turn over the course of the life of that authority.

If we get it right in Dublin, it will be a template for Cork, Galway, Waterford and Limerick. Getting it right means clear areas of responsibility, such as planning, waste management, housing, transport and infrastructure, and tourism, with a practical realistic budget with a fixed term and the necessary staff and advisers.

It also means having somebody who has a vision for Dublin, and that vision for Dublin has to fit into the vision for Ireland. It needs to be a vision that is fit not just for the following one or two terms of office, but takes cognisance of the fact that whatever decisions are being made will have an effect on generations to come.

I know directly-elected mayors could also feed into populism, given that a mayor would have to keep an eye on re-election. However, with fixed terms and fixed time limits for being a mayor, it could be solved. My preference would be for one fixed term of five years and then not being eligible for re-election for another five; or a three-year fixed term with an ability to stand for re-election directly after, but then a gap before being allowed to stand again.

A directly-elected mayor also means greater democracy and accountability. It could make a real difference in the areas of housing, planning, tourism and transport, where some disastrous decisions have been made in the past. It is about better co-ordination, better planning and forward planning.

Ag an bpointe seo, admhaím go dtacaím leis an ngnó anocht agus amárach mar beidh seans ag muintir Bhaile Átha Cliath vótáil i gcomhair méara.

Fianna Fáil is looking for a plebiscite in 2018 to give voters in Dublin an opportunity to give their views on whether this should be a reality with the vote probably being held in 2019. I note the Government’s amendment, which also fits in as part of overall local government reform measures because it allows for consultation with relevant stakeholders with a report by mid-2017. That could lead into the Fianna Fáil motion. There may not be a need for a plebiscite depending on what that report indicates. The 2018 plebiscite in the Fianna Fáil motion gives people the opportunity to decide if they would like the idea to be progressed whereas I believe the Green Party is saying that this could be a reality for 2019.

I know we go back to the 13th century when a charter was granted for the office of lord mayor. It seems that at that stage, mayors did have real powers albeit some that involved the use of violence. There are four authorities in Dublin – Dublin City Council, Fingal County Council, South Dublin County Council and Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. While Dublin is the capital with a population of some 1.3 million, it is incredible that we have four local authorities and four mayors even though only one has the title of lord mayor, which I know is problematic for some people as a relic of British power. It is probably not quite a relic of British imperialism as Great Britain had not really embarked on its empire building at that stage, only its immediate neighbours. If changes were introduced, I would favour the word “mayor” as opposed to putting “lord” in front of it. There are three mayors and one lord mayor in Dublin. We know their roles are, in the main, symbolic. They attend functions, perform openings, make speeches at events and attend and organise conferences depending on their personal area of interest.

The interest of the current Lord Mayor of Dublin was in organising a conference on crime in the city. I acknowledge the work of a previous Ardmhéar, Criona Ní Dhálaigh, regarding the historic Moore Street battlefield site.

The Lord Mayor of Dublin gets a “161-D-1″ car, can live in the Mansion House if he or she chooses, gets to jaunt in the lovely carriage on St. Patrick’s Day, gets to host events, for example, when Dublin wins the All-Ireland Football Championship, or when we have various individuals, groups or teams returning to Ireland via Dublin after some sporting, cultural or literary event or competition. Yesterday, I attended an event at which the current Lord Mayor launched the International Dublin Literary Awards. The Lord Mayor also chairs the monthly meetings of the council. I am sure the mayors in the other three authorities perform similar roles. The common denominator is that it is very much the same and it is very much symbolic. How much of a difference are they making to the life of Dubliners and the city of Dublin? If the Lord Mayor was not there and was not carrying out those events as Lord Mayor or mayor, while the communities are delighted to see them coming out, life will go on and someone else could perform those roles.

The job of the mayor or Lord Mayor is in the gift of the political party or political grouping in that authority, which is not good enough for the voters in the Dublin area or for voters anywhere. We need to take the opportunity that is being given tonight and tomorrow and with the Government amendment to bring about change that will make a difference. We think of the mayors in London and New York as examples of authoritative figures with the power to make a difference. One of those is the recent C40 initiative from the Paris climate change agreement. Many mayors in European cities are taking a very proactive role on this because they want to achieve the goals set in Paris and they can do that because they have the power to do so. Many European cities have directly-elected mayors with power and influence.

I support the principle of directly-elected mayors along with either the report, as the Government amendment suggests, or the plebiscite, as Fianna Fáil suggests, or both. Both of them will feed into the Green Party’s proposal – I note that Deputy Eamon Ryan said it is capable of being amended. Overall, having the opportunity to vote for such a mayor will be better for democracy, and better for those communities that feel disengaged and disillusioned. We know about low voter turnout, which we see particularly in areas of Dublin. This could perhaps get people more engaged in the process. We also have a few years to ensure everything is right for it.

We have a serious problem of reacting instead of putting in place measures to solve the occurrence in the first place, across the board. While Garda resources and check points at corners with high caliber machine guns will give the image of an out-going Government responding to the spate of gun crime; that’s in fact all it is doing, giving an image of a Government responding to the problem.

The Dublin gang culture is a product of many different regressive measures taken by Government. Firstly we see a lack of robust legislation to tackle certain types of street dealing which I have long called for and that is keeping the Gardai’s hands tied as they go about their jobs; the 38% cuts in services in areas of disadvantage, which I highlighted at Leaders Questions last year, and; we see a criminal justice system that is too reliant on locking people up at tax payers expense only for them to re-offend over and over again. A proper community court would help deter people from a life of crime, another measure I have constantly called for.

I have been campaigning since I entered the Dáil for a Mini-Criminal Assets Bureau, just like the CAB Tony Gregory campaigned for to deal with the drug dealers. Since then, CAB has moved onto all crimes where large scale money is involved, not just drug related and now we need to rethink how to deal with mid-level drug dealers who are not selling drugs and flashing the cash with little or no consequences. These are the people doing the work on the ground and many are not being investigated.

If we are serious about stopping these killings, proper resources and legislation are required to investigate and bring these criminals to justice and to deal with the Drugs Crisis once and for all. However, this will not happen unless we take a multi-facet approach and enable the Gardaí to do their job.

I had hoped to introduce the Proceeds of Crime (Amendment Bill) 2015 which was not accepted in the Dáil on standing orders. This bill called for the establishment of a locally organised mini-CABs to tackle mid-level drug dealers who are able to go about their business under the radar of the Criminal Assets Bureau in its current remit. The bill also called for the re-allocation of seized proceeds of crime from drugs to be invested back to the community organisations, the drug task forces and the prevention and education programmes that are dealing with the effects of drugs in the communities.

We must remember that “three times as many deaths occur from drugs as occur from road accidents”, it is clear resources definitely don’t reflect that, and drugs and addiction are far down the list of priorities with almost 38% cuts to those community and youth projects and addiction services in Dublin Central.

I believe that funding directed to agencies and groups tackling the scourge of drugs; in conjunction with increased Garda numbers which are effectively allocated and resourced, has to be sufficiently adequate, or these heinous killings in the community will continue and the drugs crisis will worsen.

How many more young people need to die, how long do communities need to live in fear before proper resources will be allocated to cut off the power the gangland figures have on the community. Short-term check points and heavily armed Garda may look good to the media but more substance and preventative measures are essential from the next Government as opposed to the reactionary tactics used in the last number of years.

Cinnte, tá fadhbanna leis an bpróseis pleanála sa tír seo. Tá cuid de na fadhbanna seo ag leanúint ar aghaidh inniú.

There is absolutely no doubt there have been planning decisions in this country that have been disastrous for communities, certain areas and, at times, for the country as a whole. There was an expectation that there would be progress and that the promises made on the reviews into planning in certain local authorities would be met. Equally, it was expected that there would be a much better era of accountability and transparency.

I will consider three issues in my constituency.

The first one is in the docklands. The Minister of State and I both know about some of the disasters there where communities were left fighting for survival against the planners and developers. I listened to the Minister outline some of his plans. The Mahon tribunal sat for ten years and cost €97 million. What did it achieve? Some of the problems identified are still there. Unless there is real progress on this issue, there will be another boom and bust cycle and we will see more people evading taxes and putting their money into property. Already we can see certain sectors looking for restrictions to be lifted.

Another scandal in Dublin Central relates to Aldborough House, which is the second-biggest private Georgian residence in Dublin. As I give this speech I am standing in the largest such residence, the Dáil. Aldborough House had various uses over the past 200 years before being sold to a property developer whose company went into liquidation. I am not sure if the developer’s lifestyle went into liquidation but the property is now going to rack and ruin. I am not sure if he is getting a fine salary from the State but developers should be responsible for the properties they bought, regardless of the state of their companies. If there is any money coming into those developers, it should be used to secure the properties so they are not left to the local authority, which in this case is Dublin City Council.

The most glaring matter is the current and long-standing issue of Moore Street, an area of historical and cultural significance. It was first allowed by the local authority to fall into dereliction for many years and then it was sold, lock, stock and barrel to a private developer. If the so-called boom had continued, we would have another massive shopping centre at Moore Street in the midst of all the others in the area. This part of Dublin is of great historic significance and potential, as opposed to the one-sided view of culture evident in Temple Bar, has been failed by our planning system. That system has also failed the people who gave their lives in the Easter Rising. As a result of the planning process, today on Moore Street there are multinational supermarkets and tacky establishments that are undermining the genuine and long-standing tradition of Moore Street traders.

Image courtesy of STE-J-ART of an Aldborough House conservation project

Ciaran says he is indebted to a number of people who helped deliver the project, including Maureen O’Sullivan TD (Ind) and the board of St Mary’s Youth Club; Principal Gerry Duffy and the board of O’Connell’s School; Aideen O’Connor from the Dublin City Sports Network; Tesco which provided the healthy lunch each day; and Aine Fanning from St Vincent’s Camogie, who is also a teacher at North William Street Girls’ School.

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“This games space is long overdue. More play spaces and facilities are needed for young people in our communities.  These places shouldn’t be an afterthought, they’re a vital part of urban living and well being in the inner city.” – Cllr. Mel MacGiobúin

That was followed by meeting of the board of The Cavan Centre. Finally, the funding having been agreed back in 2007, it is ready to be drawn down and work can begin on the tennis court which will be multi purpose with flood lights.  The Hall will be renovated to a high standard and there is funding for a caving system – so all systems go at The Cavan Centre to further enhance the facilities.

I am totally committed to more sports and recreational facilities for young people, it was great to see another MUGA opening for the inner city; I see it as a continuation of the work of the Young People’s Facilities and Services Fund for which I chaired the north inner city group. Dublin City Council are to be congratulated for their support. And wasn’t the Pop-Up park in Dominick Street a great success!

New Councillor for the Gregory Group Mel MacGiobúin also attended. ‘It was encouraging to meet other candidates from other communities and make new connections, listen to other TDs perspectives and get some insights. It is more than a slogan ‘Strength in diversity’, being an independent doesn’t mean your isolated and there’s a greater opportunity to represent the community’  said Mel MacGiobúin on workshop.

The common denominator among Independents is their community background – they come from direct involvement in community groups – whether with youth, the arts, senior citizens, residents – wide variety of projects. There is a connection with communities and a real sense of what matters to people.