Gavan Reilly: TDs deserve their speaking time - and not to feel the Dáil is RIG-ged
The idea that simply being a TD isn’t enough to garner speaking time in the Dáil is certainly an oddity. I totally get the position of Gillian Toole, or indeed of Peadar Tóibín: the former finds herself attracting unwanted national ire for trying to join a ‘technical group’ so as to garner speaking time in the chamber; the latter is facing criticism from other opposition parties for allowing their Regional Independent Group (RIG) be used in their ruse. Deputy Toole’s feelings, shared with Sally Harding on the page opposite, are completely legitimate. So are those of Tóibín and his new party colleague Paul Lawless: Aontú’s 86,000 voters only get heard if the TDs are able to organise into a group of five or more.
But there is a clear and demonstrable problem with the insistence on putting the heads down, and continuing to carry on as if the current arrangement is tenable: the rules explicitly say groups are supposed to be formed by TDs who are “in opposition”. Toole and her colleagues self-evidently aren’t. One of them is set to be given the title of ‘assistant government whip’ and cannot claim to be in opposition while literally marshalling votes for the government.
It’s worth outlining the privileges that come with forming a group. Not only is there the high-profile slot at Leaders’ Questions every other day (farcically questioning a government that the TDs are upholding), there’s the right to table a motion and spend two hours debating it every month or so – and, the right to speak on the motions put down by everyone else. There’s also scope to jump the queue at ministers’ question time, nominating some questions for ‘priority’ (which actual government TDs cannot do), plus a valuable daily opportunity to question a government minister about ‘promised legislation’ on a particular area.
Not alone does forming a group in opposition, while being in government, dilute the time available to legitimate opposition, it equally undermines the position of FF and FG backbenchers.
Take the example of what happens when Sinn Féín puts down a motion for debate, as it will be able to do every week. Government responses are limited to senior and junior ministers – yet each technical group would get a chance to contribute. Gillian Toole might have a chance to speak while Aisling Dempsey, who was elected on the explicit premise of being in a government party, would not. If the arrangement does stand, therefore, expect all sorts of ire on the backbenches.
There’s a relatively simple fix to this. The Dáil rules were never written to contemplate backbenchers being independent, and outside of a party fold. So rewrite them. Allow the independent four to be a third backbench grouping, alongside FF and FG, with a pro-rata distribution of committee seats and speaking time. Isn’t that the fairest outcome?
Unless of course, the government parties want to avoid visible association with Michael Lowry - in which case, they should have insisted on negotiating with somebody else.
- Gavan Reilly is Political Correspondent with Virgin Media News and Political Columnist with the Meath Chronicle. Column appears first in Tuesday's paper!