No decision made on councillor numbers

The Department of Environment says no decision has been made about the number of councillors that will serve in Westmeath after the local authority is restructured in 2014.Minister for the Environment and Local Government Phil Hogan announced on Tuesday that as part of its new programme, Putting People First, Mullingar and Athlone town councils are to be abolished in 2014. Once the changes are implemented, Westmeath County Council will be broken into municipal districts centred around the county's major towns and their environs. Nationally, there will be a 42% reduction the number of councillors from 1,627 to a maximum of 950.According to a report in last Wednesday's Irish Independent the number of local representatives in Westmeath will be reduced from 23 to 18 after the next local elections. However, a spokesman for the department has disputed the paper's claims saying that he has "no idea where they got their figures from".The spokesman added that an independent committee, the National Oversight and Audit Commission, will decide how many representatives each local authority will have. The department says that no council will have less than 18 and more than 40 councillors.The Putting People First programme is the biggest shake-up of local government in more than 100 years, and according to the department will save €420m. According to Minister Hogan, the changes are "designed to increase the efficiency of local government and will ensure that taxpayers' money is translated into the services people expect and deserve in their local areas".Other major changes include a reduction in the number of regional assemblies from 10 to three and reductions in councillors' payments. Local representatives will also have their power to overturn planning decisions revoked.To encourage greater participation by women in local politics, councils will be encouraged to "make appropriate arrangements", include altering the time of meetings.