Regional Business Organisations Call for Local Government Savings to be Passed Back to Business

28th July 2010

Business organisations in the Cork region which include Cork Chamber, IBEC - Cork, Cork Business Association and the VFI Cork Branch today strongly welcomed the recent publication of the Local Government Efficiency Review Group, noting that many of the cost saving recommendations if implemented swiftly have the potential to help reduce the burden on local government funding, of which the business community has long been the funder of "last resort".

According to Ger O'Mahoney, President of Cork Chamber, "The report through its 106 recommendations has identified efficiencies and other savings of €511m for the local government sector. It is now critical that Minister John Gormley T.D. steps up to the plate and sets about implementing these recommendations as a matter of urgency. Cork Chamber and all business organisations in the region are calling for the cost savings which can be achieved to be passed back to businesses in the form of reduced rates and other charges. The payment of commercial rates and other local authority charges is a significant burden on businesses, many of whom are not currently profitable and at risk of closure".

IBEC Cork Regional President Brendan Keane said, "Many of the recommendations within this report are in line with what the business community has been calling for in terms of local government reform over recent years. If reform is successful, it will result in real cost savings for businesses through reduced commercial rates and other local government charges. These savings should help ease the significant burdens and financial pressures on businesses in the Cork region".

"We particularly welcome the recommendations around cross-cutting and shared services whereby local authorities in specific regions should be obliged to negotiate a framework agreement for the region every five years, which would include assessments of shared service opportunities and encourage attention to regional policy issues that transcend local boundaries. The business community has long been calling for further progress to be made in terms of cost savings across the local authorities such as the introduction of a "shared service" concept, specifically relating to HR, IT and finance functions. There is extensive replication of services and functions across local authorities, many of which could be integrated and would result in significant savings to the Exchequer", stated Donal Healy, Chief Executive of Cork Business Association.

Mr Con Dennehy of the VFI Cork Branch said, "The business community does not object to paying their fair share for local authority services and recognises the efforts of local authorities, particularly in Cork City and County, to seek enhanced efficiencies in order to meet the budgetary constraints that now exist. Notwithstanding this, it is imperative that restructuring the system of local government in Ireland as recommended in this report, improves Ireland's competitiveness, while minimising the negative impact on ratepayers. There have already been tangible improvements in the competitiveness of unit labour costs, and significant falls in property costs and industrial electricity costs. However, we now need to see reductions in local authority rates and charges".

For further information please contact:
Ger O'Mahoney, President, Cork Chamber, tel (021) 4907000 / (087) 2502726
Lucy O'Donoghue, Membership Development & P.R. Manager, Cork Chamber, tel (021) 4509044
Maeve Cahill, IBEC Cork, tel (021) 4295511
Donal Healy, CEO Cork Business Association, tel (086) 2331686
Con Dennehy, VFI Cork Branch, tel (087) 2608016

About Local Government Efficiency Review Group
Established in 2009 to review the cost base, expenditure of and numbers employed in local authorities, the members of the group were:
- Pat McLoughlin, Chief Executive, Irish Payment Services Organisation and former Deputy Chief Executive of the HSE (Chairperson)
- Donal McNally, Second Secretary General, Department of Finance;
- John O'Hagan, Professor of Economics, Trinity College;
- John Quinlivan, former County Manager;
- Ian Talbot, Chief Executive, Chambers Ireland; and
- Geraldine Tallon, Secretary General, Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

Return to the News section