§ Mr. McNamaraTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he has discussed with representatives of Lisburn district council power-sharing agreements. [176329]
§ Angela SmithThere have been no discussions with representatives of Lisburn city council about power sharing arrangements. Under current legislation the Government have power to intervene in the internal affairs of a council only if it is failing to fulfil its statutory functions. Power sharing arrangements are essentially an internal matter for district councils.
The issue of governance arrangements in district councils has been raised during recent consultation on the Review of Public Administration and that it will be addressed when firm proposals on the Review are published for consultation in the autumn.