Oireachtas report urges a five-year maximum period between local polls

Agriculture, small enterprise, transport and the environment are among the areas suitable for greater devolution to local authorities, an Oireachtas report has recommended.

The report, by the Joint Committee on Environment and Local Government, has also identified a role for councils in areas such as the community health services, housing, traffic management and the dispersal of lottery funding for specific purposes.

The findings, which were presented yesterday, include a recommendation that the June 11th referendum on giving Constitutional recognition to local authorities - announced last week by the Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey - should fix five years as the maximum period between local elections.

However, the sub-committee which drew up the report could not agree on proposals that local authority chairmen be directly elected by the people to serve the full council term, or that they be elected by councils to serve at least half the full term.