After a short break, next up in this series on local government is an examination of how Wales’ peer countries do it and what we could learn from them. Some of it will be familiar, some a little bit different.
As usual, it’s worth putting Wales in at the start to offer a comparison.
What are the similarities with Wales? – Both Ireland and Wales use unitary authorities in local government and Welsh and Irish councils are broadly similar sizes in population terms.
Irish councils are as reliant (if not slightly more so) on input from council officers as we are in Wales. The regional assemblies also have a similar remit to the Welsh city regions/corporate joint committees.
What are the main differences from Wales? – There are some areas in which Irish unitary authorities have more influence than those in Wales and vice versa. Irish councils run water and fire services, provide a sizable proportion of social housing and have a bigger say in economic development; Welsh councils have far more control over education, social care and social services.
Ireland has taken the step of outright abolishing its town & community councils and replacing them with area committees. It would be the “nuclear option” in Wales, though I’ll be looking at this in more detail in Part V.
Another key difference is the way councils are managed. There’s no Leader and Cabinet and the council is mainly a deliberative body that guides policy through committees; councillors seemingly have little involvement in day-to-day decisions.
What’s the financial situation like? – Irish councils spend far less money than Welsh councils; in a normal pre-pandemic year (2019), total spending by Irish unitary authorities was around €4.2billion (£3.5billion)3. The biggest chunk of that, around 44%, goes towards housing. The difference is down to the fact that Irish councils have little to no responsibility for education and social services/social care – both of which are dealt with by boards or national bodies like the Health Services Executive.
The Irish equivalent of council tax – Local Property Tax – is self-assessed and the bills are normally lower than Welsh council tax bills. To match the kind of council tax bills we receive in Wales at Band D, not including precepts (£1,400), an Irish property would need to be valued at at least €1.1-1.2million – though it’s worth a reminder that Irish councils spend less overall. Some of this property tax income is redistributed to other councils in Ireland (unlike Wales).
Ireland also has an equivalent of non-domestic rates (commercial rates), though it appears as though Irish councils keep their rates income (whereas it’s redistributed in Wales).
Is there anything that Wales can learn from Ireland? – The use of single transferable vote (as in Scotland). Ireland has also proven that you can get by with significantly fewer councillors with little difference in day-to-day management – though there are differences in responsibilities; education and social services would require deeper scrutiny.
The Irish regional assemblies are more substantial than the Welsh corporate joint committees. They both operate on the same principles, but the Irish assemblies are a least more diverse in their membership make-up and have a distinct role in Irish politics. The Welsh city regions/corporate joint committees are rarely scrutinised and are more of a decision-making body.
Another feature I particularly like is the independent appointment of senior council officers and term limits for council chief executives (7-10 years).
3. Office of the Comptroller & Auditor General, Republic of Ireland (2021). “Central government funding of local authorities” (p40). Available at: https://www.audit.gov.ie/en/find-report/publications/2021/chapter-3-central-government-funding-of-local-authorities.pdf
