A Letter from Ireland
a Chara,
We are living at a time in which political precedents are being swept away. What was once thought to be unacceptable is now celebrated.
In the Dáil (Irish Parliament), a row has been growing since Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael established this new government with the support of several “independent” TDs. This week it resulted in a vote of “no confidence” in the Speaker Vorona Murphy, an “independent” TD elected from Wexford.
All of the opposition parties voted “no confidence” in the Speaker. She only survived by the votes of the Government TD’s. This was without precedent as all previous Speakers worked with the confidence of both government and opposition.
In a parliamentary democracy, the Speaker has to act with, to borrow a phrase from the Good Friday Agreement, rigorous impartiality. The Speaker is neither Government or Opposition. Their role is to oversee the operation of the parliament in fair way and to ensure that the rules of conduct are enforced. That is why the Speaker is the highest paid official in the political system, paid more that the Taoiseach, and also is automatically re-elected as a member of the parliament in the subsequent election.
Central to the operation of the parliament is the ability to hold the Government to account. Without the checks and balances in other systems, a parliamentary democracy is left to the tyranny of the majority.
So how did we get to the point of a motion of no confidence? Following the general election in November 2024 the combined number of seats held by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael were two short of an overall majority.
Sinn Féin were returned as the second largest party in the Dáil. True to form, Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, the establishment parties, refused to talk to Sinn Féin and began canvassing support with other smaller parties and “independents”.
They settled on a group of “independents” headed up by a TD called Micheal Lowery. The current speaker Verona Murphy was part of that group.
In 2011, a Tribunal of Inquiry found that Lowry had an “insidious and pervasive influence” on the bidding process for a mobile phone licence when he was a Fine Gael minister in the 1990s.
The tribunal found that the winning bidder had made or facilitated payments of hundreds of thousands of pounds sterling to Lowry. Lowry rejected the findings.
Micheal Martin, the current Taoiseach, supporting a motion to expel Lowery, said that the tribunal’s report on Lowry “amounts to a shocking indictment of his behaviour”. Years later and the findings of the Tribunal still stand, however the position of the Micheal Martin has changed.
The leaders of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael entered into negotiations with the Lowery led “independents”, and in return for their unwavering support, a number of the group became Ministers. Ms. Murphy, a member of the group, was elected Speaker with the support of government TDs.
The government proposed that remaining members of the group who supported the government were allowed the same opportunities as the opposition to hold the government to account. They were to be in government and opposition at the same time.
The government pushed through these changes with the Opposition highly critical of the role played by the Speaker. Hence, the vote of no confidence.
I hope that explains what is an inside-baseball issue, but one that will have ramifications in the days to come. A government established by grubby deals and enforced by their majority is not a good omen for the future.
Have a great weekend.
Is mise,
Ciarán
Ciarán Quinn is the Sinn Féin Representative to North America. Each week he writes a letter from Ireland with news and analysis. It is featured in the weekly Friends of Sinn Féin USA Newsletter. Be sure you are subscribed to stay up to date.
