Local Government (Support for Elected Members) Bill 2024: Second Stage
Seanad Éireann — 2025-12-10
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Victor Boyhan (IND), Agricultural Panel

Many people would like to be in public life but they can give it the time due to their family commitments. Their own security, jobs and professional trajectory sometimes does not necessarily allow it. Of course we all want to support councillors but we want to do it in a meaningful and effective way. The easy option is to come in here and say it is all terrible. I am not in the business of doing that, because councillors are no eejits. They have been around for a long time. They have been around many a corner and have heard many promises from people inside and outside these Houses and they put them in their right place at each Seanad election. There is no automatic pathway into these Houses. We demonstrate our commitment to our work on a broad political agenda. People know when people are genuine and when they are committed.
I say to the proposers of this amendment, I support the amendment. I know what they are trying to do. We need also to progress. What are the needs? Is it individual secretarial services or administration services? Is it about giving councillors more money so that they can procure individual secretarial services? I do not know. However, councillors need more support. I agree with other speakers that we need to address the issue of their pensions. It is unacceptable. A councillor met me yesterday. I will not say from which party but he was on party business here and he said he has 30 years' service in the Munster region but will only get 20 years' recognition. That has to stop. That is not fair or right. However, I acknowledge there have been vast improvements, which is really important, and we can do a lot more. Maybe the day will come when we will provide legislation to allow certain councillors to be full time, if that is an option they wish to pursue.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2025-12-10/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:26+00:00
Sitting date: 2025-12-10