I thank the Government for introducing this Bill. Regardless of the outcome of the inquiries referendum in 2011, and judging by the number of Deputies who have spoken on this matter in recent days, I believe there is a strong public and political appetite for the proposed powers to be enshrined in legislation so as to ensure public representatives in the Houses can hold to account those who spend public money and who are involved in governance.

Fine Gael Laois TD Charlie Flanagan welcomed the allocation of €240,000 by the Department of Transport for maintaining and repairing roads in Laois.

Fine Gael TD for Kildare North, Bernard J Durkan, has today (Thursday) warmly welcomed the announcement by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Phil Hogan TD, that funding has been allocated to allow Kildare County Council accept the €29 million tender for the upgrade and expansion of the wastewater treatment plant in Leixlip.

Fine Gael Dun Laoghaire Deputy, Mary Mitchell O’Connor, has said the awarding of Blue Flag status to Killiney Beach and Seapoint is great news for the local areas which will no doubt see an increase in the number of visitors to their shores as a result.

Fine Gael Dublin Senator, Catherine Noone, has today spoken of the potential for companies to work together on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects in order to make real changes in the communities in which they are based. Senator Noone’s comments coincided with the launch of Business In The Community Ireland’s Impact Map, which highlighted over 1,900 community partnerships taking place right across Dublin which were supported by 46 companies in association with Business In The Community.

Fine Gael TD for Roscommon/South Leitrim, Frank Feighan, has welcomed the approval of €412,000 by the Minister for the Environment, Phil Hogan TD, to put in place a temporary water treatment plant to address the cryptosporidium problem on the Roscommon Central Water Supply Scheme.