The Council for European Municipalities and Regions each year produces a useful overview of the state of local government across Europe. In the larger countries it is clear that local government plays a significant role. In France for example, there are almost 37,000 local municipalities. In Germany some 12,104 authorities provide local services including hospital care and education while in the United Kingdom, perhaps the most centralised local government in the OECD, some 406 councils deliver services such as education, social services and economic development.
While there are on-going reform efforts in most countries, the 2011 Report paints a relatively robust picture of the state of local government albeit that much of the financial data is based on 2009 figures. How long this continues to be the case, of course, remains open to question given the huge fiscal pressures applying right across the Union. Recent announcements in the various austerity packages of some Member States do include significant structural reforms. This includes the merging of smaller local authorities so that, for example in Italy, we might see a huge reduction in numbers of town/municipal authorities as those with a population of 1,000 or less will move into larger functioning units.
Nonetheless it is interesting to compare what we have in Ireland with other similar sized economies and populations, some of which include:
Austria with a population of 8.3 million people has 2,357 authorities with an average population of 3,550. Local government spent an average of €2,687 per person and a total of 15.7% of public expenditure in 2009. Local functions in Austria include :
. Provision of Social services
. Maintaining public order
. Urban planning
. Water provision
. Sewage provision
. Roads
. Household refuse management
. Urban transport
Denmark with a population of 5.52 million has 98 authorities with an average population of 56,345. Local government spent an average €15,122 per person and a total of 63.9% of public expenditure. Local authority functions include :
. Education at primary level
. Child care
. Culture and sport
. Public and social services
. Health care provision
. Employment and integration
. Active labour market management
. Business support services
. Transport and roads
. Nature, environment management and planning
. Industrial and economic development
. Administration and digitalisation
. Technology development
. Support for local economy
Finland with a population of 5.3 million people has 342 local authorities with an average population of 15,610 people. Local government spent an average €7,297 per person and a total of 40.6% of public expenditure. Local functions include :
. Health care (primary and secondary, dental services)
. Social services (child day care, services for the aged and the disabled)
. Education (pre-school, primary, secondary, vocational training, adult education, libraries)
. Culture, leisure, sport
. Land use planning and supervision of building
. Building and maintenance of the technical infrastructure and the environment, (streets, energy management, water and sewage works, waste management, harbours, public transport)
. Promotion of business and employment
Lithuania with a population of 3.34 million has 60 local authorities with an average population of 55,655 people. Local government spent an average €843 per person and a total of 24.3% of public expenditure. Local functions include :
. Pre-school, primary and secondary education
. Civil protection
. Culture
. Environmental protection
. Environmental and public sanitation
. Labour market measures and promotion of entrepreneurship
. Primary health care
. Public services and municipal property management
. Spatial planning
. Sport
. Tourism
Slovakia with a population of 5.4 million people has 2,928 local authorities with an average population of 1,850 people. They spent an average of €833 per person and a total of 17.2% of public expenditure. Local functions include :
. Local roads provision and maintenance
. Public transport
. Environment
. Water supply
. Sewerage and communal waste
. Local development
. Housing
. Pre-school and school facilities, social facilities, health-care facilities,
. Culture
. Participation at regional plans.
So what about Ireland?
In the Republic there are 34 county and city councils with another 80 borough and town councils, making a total of 114 authorities. The average population size is 39,190 albeit that this includes the town and borough councils. Average size at County/City level, a more relevant comparator, given the range of functions of other European local government systems, is 131,412 people. This figure is only exceeded by the United Kingdom. Average spending was €2,791 per person or 16% of public expenditure. Only Greece, Malta, Luxembourg and Cyprus had a smaller proportion of spending.
The local government efficiency review in Ireland noted that day-to-day spending in 2010 by city and county authorities ranged from €783 per person to €1,889 per person. Spending by town and borough councils ranged from €927 per person to €7 per person! Clearly an extra-ordinary range of spending worth examination. This overview above does not take account of the differing responsibilities of local government. In forthcoming issues of the Newsletter each of the above will be looked at in more detail and perhaps it might be possible to understand why other local government systems have such a comprehensive range of responsibilities.
