Post by Young Ireland on May 21, 2017 11:01:40 GMT
OK, so I am going to start off this discussion with an aspirational post of what I would imaging the end goal to be rather than what is likely to happen. In summary, I envisage a structure with 5 tiers of government: the national level, the region, the division, the district and the pobal.
So in general, I would advocate the use of smaller councils/institutions, as this would enable each and every member to play a significant role in the formulation or the opposition of laws and would as a result reduce the tendency for constituencies without a TD to be marginalised. Using the level of government immediately below the level in question for constituencies would save money in constituency commissions (though population growth would mean that there would from time to time need to be new entities created at the four lower levels and boundaries redrawn). Each level of government would to start be entitled to one-fifth of the tax take (so for example the rates of income tax at each level would be 4% for the lower rate and 8% for the higher rate, 4.5% for VAT and 2.5% for corporation tax. Each level of government would have latitude to set taxes according to their needs, however they must inform the higher levels of government, and they must make sure that this would not imperil the entity's financial situation.
As mentioned before, the Gardai would be divided into a national force and several regional forces, with each force co-operating with each other in areas of mutual interest. The Commissioners of the regional forces would be the equivalent of the current Assistant Commissioner rank. Likewise, the HSE would be abolished and the old health boards reconstituted, which would be answerable to the regions. More specialist health care would be the responsibility of the national government.
RTE would be expected to provide regional radio and television programming in addition to its national channels, similar to the situation in Germany. To preserve its independence, it would no longer be permitted to carry advertisements, but the licence fee would be increased by €80 to counteract this. There would also need to be a move away from trying to compete with the BBC and ITV and towards a less ambitious, more public-service oriented model.
Regional television franchises similar to the old ITV set-up would also be introduced, with oversight similar to that of the IBA in the 70s and 80s. Radio wise, community radio would be strongly encouraged, and over time, local radio would be changed to reflect divisions rather than counties where practicable to do so.
Social welfare is more difficult to decide how to divide out. I am inclined to think that policy in this area should remain national in order to avoid welfare tourism, but that lower levels (the regions and to a lesser extent the divisions) would be given greater responsibility for provision.
The delegation of power to lower levels would also allow the abolition of many of the quangos, unless their remit cannot be done at a lower level, potentially saving tens of millions of euro a year.
Corruption is a significant danger, which will not necessarily disappear with devolution, and there would have to be measures to counteract this. The Standards in Public Office Commission would be given similar power to the DPP to investigate allegations of corruption at all levels of government, and most importantly to prosecute if the allegations are founded. In addition, each executive body would be obliged to draw up an action plan to deal with corruption if detected. Any politician found guilty of corruption should forfeit their position and be barred from public office for a period of time.
So after a long post, I think that's it for now. Feel free to offer your own opinions if you like.
- First of all, I will start with the lowest tier of government, the pobal, which would each represent a community or a group of communities. These would have an average population of 4,000 people and would elect one councillor for every 200 people. Therefore an average council will have 20 members. These members will not be paid, and therefore meetings would take place in the evenings to optimise attendance. Their main responsibilities would be the upkeep of the area and the enforcement of local by-laws. They would be also responsible for the provision of basic community facilities, such as pitches and playgrounds.
- The district would comprise an average of 5 pobail,have an average population of 20,000 people and would elect one councillor for every 1,000 people. Therefore an average council will have 20 members.The constituences used for elections would be the constituent pobail. The members will not be paid a salary, but will be entitled to expenses incurred in the course of their duties. Meetings would take place in the evenings to optimise attendance. Their main responsibilities would be (for example) the provision of primary schools, the maintenance and construction of local roads, and (where feasible) fire services. They would be expected to consult with the pobail councils before making any decision affecting that pobal.
- The division would comprise an average of 5 districts,have an average population of 100,000 people and would elect one councillor for every 5,000 people. They would as a result be similar to the present county councils, but would generally be smaller, with and average of 20 members.The constituences used for elections would be the constituent districts. The members will be paid a small salary of €15,000, and will be entitled to expenses incurred in the course of their duties. Meetings would generally take place in the evenings to optimise attendance, but occasionally they could take place at other times. Their main responsibilities would be (for example) the provision of secondary schools, the maintenance and construction of regional roads, local radio licensing and further education. They would be expected to consult with the district councils before making any decision affecting that district.
- The region would comprise an average of 5 divisions,have an average population of 500,000 people and would elect one assembly member for every 25,000 people. They would also have an average of 20 members.The constituences used for elections would be the constituent divisions. The members will be paid a salary of €45,000, and will be entitled to expenses incurred in the course of their duties. Meetings would generally take place daily, and members would be expected to give up their previous employment for the duration of their time in office. Their main responsibilities would be (for example) the formulation of the primary school curriculum, the maintenance and construction of non-motorway/dual carriageway national roads, regional broadcasting and licensing ,the regional Garda forces, public transport (though this could in turn be devolved to the regions if practical to do so) and the re-constituted health boards. They would be expected to consult with the district councils before making any decision affecting that district.
- Because power over local and regional issues would now be in the hands of lower bodies, the Oirechtas can be reduced to 55 members (40 in the Dail and 15 in the Seanad). The Dail would elect one TD for every 125,000 people. This would yield approximately 38 members using the current population of Ireland. In the event of population growth and unification, this number would increase. The constituences used for elections would be the constituent regions. The members will be paid a salary of €135,000 (to account for the reduced numbers), and will not be entitled to expenses, which the salary would be expected to cover. Meetings would generally take place daily, and members would be expected to give up their previous employment for the duration of their time in office. Its main responsibilities would be (for example) the formulation of the secondary school curriculum, the maintenance and construction of motorways and dual carriageways, the railway network, third-level education, national broadcasting and licensing and the national Garda force. It would be expected to consult with the regional councils before making any decision affecting that region.
So in general, I would advocate the use of smaller councils/institutions, as this would enable each and every member to play a significant role in the formulation or the opposition of laws and would as a result reduce the tendency for constituencies without a TD to be marginalised. Using the level of government immediately below the level in question for constituencies would save money in constituency commissions (though population growth would mean that there would from time to time need to be new entities created at the four lower levels and boundaries redrawn). Each level of government would to start be entitled to one-fifth of the tax take (so for example the rates of income tax at each level would be 4% for the lower rate and 8% for the higher rate, 4.5% for VAT and 2.5% for corporation tax. Each level of government would have latitude to set taxes according to their needs, however they must inform the higher levels of government, and they must make sure that this would not imperil the entity's financial situation.
As mentioned before, the Gardai would be divided into a national force and several regional forces, with each force co-operating with each other in areas of mutual interest. The Commissioners of the regional forces would be the equivalent of the current Assistant Commissioner rank. Likewise, the HSE would be abolished and the old health boards reconstituted, which would be answerable to the regions. More specialist health care would be the responsibility of the national government.
RTE would be expected to provide regional radio and television programming in addition to its national channels, similar to the situation in Germany. To preserve its independence, it would no longer be permitted to carry advertisements, but the licence fee would be increased by €80 to counteract this. There would also need to be a move away from trying to compete with the BBC and ITV and towards a less ambitious, more public-service oriented model.
Regional television franchises similar to the old ITV set-up would also be introduced, with oversight similar to that of the IBA in the 70s and 80s. Radio wise, community radio would be strongly encouraged, and over time, local radio would be changed to reflect divisions rather than counties where practicable to do so.
Social welfare is more difficult to decide how to divide out. I am inclined to think that policy in this area should remain national in order to avoid welfare tourism, but that lower levels (the regions and to a lesser extent the divisions) would be given greater responsibility for provision.
The delegation of power to lower levels would also allow the abolition of many of the quangos, unless their remit cannot be done at a lower level, potentially saving tens of millions of euro a year.
Corruption is a significant danger, which will not necessarily disappear with devolution, and there would have to be measures to counteract this. The Standards in Public Office Commission would be given similar power to the DPP to investigate allegations of corruption at all levels of government, and most importantly to prosecute if the allegations are founded. In addition, each executive body would be obliged to draw up an action plan to deal with corruption if detected. Any politician found guilty of corruption should forfeit their position and be barred from public office for a period of time.
So after a long post, I think that's it for now. Feel free to offer your own opinions if you like.
