A chara, – Frank McDonald's argument that Cork city needs to double in size in order to become a successful European city is misguided ("Cork's small problem – the real issue for the real capital is its size", Opinion & Analysis, April 7th).
There are many European cities which are similar in size to, or even smaller than, Cork, but which are quite successful. By the same token, there are many which are much larger than Cork but are beset by stagnation.
The key to economic success in a globalised world is the creation, at regional level, of a specialised economic base capable of competing in international markets. This requires, not a large population, but a set of core firms in dynamic sectors, a cluster of related firms providing key inputs to the core firms, a supportive array of educational, scientific and infrastructural facilities, and an attractive living environment capable of attracting and retaining high-quality workers.
It is the interaction between these ingredients which creates the "critical mass" referred to by Mr McDonald. The National Spatial Strategy aspired to the creation of such specialised export bases in Ireland's main regional centres, but did not provide the means to create them. The rearrangement of local government boundaries, such as is proposed for Cork, will do little to promote the region's economic development, given the very limited, and dwindling, functions and powers which exist at local level in Ireland. In other European countries, where power is much more decentralised, regional and local government frequently play a leading role in promoting development due to their capacity for co-ordinating key functions under their control in areas such as enterprise promotion, education, research and infrastructure. The Government document Putting People First, published in 2012, included a powerful argument for widespread devolution of functions and powers to local government. However, as is typical of the political process in this country, the ensuing Local Government Reform Act 2014 did nothing to put this argument into effect. Instead, the present Government has overseen the further dismantling of the local government system through, for example, the abolition of town councils, the centralisation of water and sewage disposal management in Irish Water and the removal of responsibility for vocational education from county councils. – Is mise,
Dr PROINNSIAS
BREATHNACH,
Department of Geography,
Maynooth University,
Co Kildare.