A Mayo View: Politicians living in glasshouses shouldn't throw stones
by Dr. Richard Martin
The TDs in the opposition benches have found over the last few months a smugness and moral superiority which is unseemly and unbecoming. . Ignoring her commands and directives.
The Ceann Comhairle, Verona Murphy, has been subjected to a constant tirade of abuse and disrespect (mostly from males). Ignoring her commands and directives.
The opposition led by SF is determined to make the Dáil chaotic and unworkable instead of a functioning chamber where progressive legislation is debated and enacted. The tactics aren’t working. The electorate see it for what it is. Nonsense.
Our national parliament is being brought to a standstill over eight minutes of speaking time. Eight minutes.
With all that’s happening in the world this is what our opposition TDs are focusing on. Trump's trade tariffs are announced. Global trade will contract. Our economy is largely (overly) dependent on corporation tax.
Big American business resides in this nice little country. It’s a win win deal. We get corporation tax receipts, they get a highly educated workforce, stable government and a low tax bill. It looks like the cosy arrangement is coming to an end.
Trump wants to bring big American business home. We should be extremely worried about the short and long-term future of our economic health.
In this county alone we have companies like Allergan, Hollister, Coca-Cola, Vantive and others. All American businesses. All major employers. Our local economy would collapse if they left and returned to the States.
Have our opposition parties any ideas on the looming economic crisis facing us?
Or are they going to keep yammering on about not being given enough time to talk. It seems to me that they have too much time to talk and not enough to think.
In any event a motion of no confidence was called on Verona Murphy. Predictably enough, it went nowhere and all it achieved was to copper fasten her position as Ceann Comhairle.
She’s there for the next two terms now and that’s it. The vote was 96 to 71, with two abstentions. That’s pretty conclusive stuff. The majority of the Dáil support her and want to proceed with setting up committees and enacting legislation.
There seems to be an obsession with some members of the Daíl with Michael Lowry and a 'grubby deal’. The inference is that the appointment of Verona Murphy to the position of Ceann Comhairle was some sort of Machiavellian deal, when in fact those of us who can look objectively at the facts can see it for what it is – a political deal.
FF and FG together did not have the numbers to form a government. After the general election, FF had 48 seats and FG had 38 seats.
Adding them together that’s a total of 86 seats. There are 174 seats in the Dáil and the Dáil arithmetic is such that to form an overall majority, 88 seats are needed.
FF and FG then needed to find another party or a group of independents to seal the deal. To ensure a stable government which will last five years roughly 92 seats were needed.
No party was willing to join a prospective coalition. For a variety of reasons. People Before Profit would be lost on the government benches.
Governance requires pragmatism and common sense.
Labour refused. They suffered annihilation in 2016. It will be a long time before they darken Government Buildings again. It’s cowardly of course because they could’ve formed a three way coalition with FF and FG.
SF just aren’t ready for government or coalition. They don’t have a credible housing policy. The long enmeshment still has a bit of a ways to go.
The two civil war parties were left with no option but to talk to the independents. Michael Lowry formed a technical group with seven other independents and they entered into negotiations with the two civil war parties.
Ultimately, a deal was struck. From the Regional Technical Group Verona Murphy was appointed Ceann Comhairle, Sean Canney and Noel Grealish were appointed Super-Junior Ministers, and Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran and Marian Harkin were both appointed junior ministers.
On balance that’s a fair deal. The two main parties kept the senior ministries to themselves, allowed two of the independents to sit at Cabinet without voting privileges and supported an independent for the Ceann Comhairle position.
Ordinarily in a three way coalition, the third minor party would demand a seat at cabinet. All things being equal it was a fair deal not a ‘grubby’ deal. The two main parties had to give something in order to get something. And in the end a government was formed. Quid pro quo.
The problem with the whole thing is Lowry. Lowry was the chief negotiator for the Regional Technical Group. He himself didn’t get a ministry.
The problem that the opposition have with Lowry is his past. In 2011 following the final report of the Moriarty Tribunal, there was an all-party motion passed in the Daíl calling on him to voluntarily resign his seat. He didn’t.
The Moriarty Tribunal found that Lowry had “secured the winning” of the mobile phone licence for Esat Digifone. In return, he received a payment of €187,000 from Dennis O’Brien.
When he was forced to resign from FG by the then Taoiseach John Bruton in the 1990s he contested every subsequent election as an independent – successfully. He is a poll-topper.
The people of Tipperary North have given him an enormous mandate at every single general election.
We live in a democracy and they have chosen Michael Lowry to represent them in our national chamber.
He has no criminal convictions and has never been found guilty in a court of law. That being the case he is innocent until proven guilty.
Here’s where the glasses houses come in.
SF has been hurling abuse across the floor of the Dáil over the past few weeks.
In 2019, a reclusive Englishman - William Hampton - donated the colossal sum of €4 million upon the execution of his will to SF. Understandably, that donation raised eyebrows. Hard not to when it was revealed that the one of the executors and trustees of the will was a former senior IRA figure.
There are many other events in Sinn Fein's past - and indeed other political parties - worthy of close scrutiny.
The funny thing about pointing fingers, however, is that three point back.
Do SF really want to continue pointing fingers at Michael Lowry?
Time will tell.