The Green Party has higher ethical standards than Fine Gael, Minister for the Environment John Gormley claimed during the debate on confidence in the Mahon tribunal.
As he defended the Government's stance on the tribunal, he hit out at the Opposition, who persistently heckled him during his speech in the three-hour debate over two days. "The Green Party has always had higher standards than Fine Gael. We have never had a single person in front of a tribunal. We have never accepted a penny from a bank or a builder, unlike your party," Mr Gormley said, adding that Fine Gael should withdraw some of the "stupid remarks" made during the debate.
Mr Gormley, as Minister with responsibility for tribunals, said he had been "at pains to point out that the Green Party has always had confidence in the Mahon tribunal".
He said that since 1997, "successive governments, led by the present Taoiseach, have responded positively to all requests from the tribunal".
Mr Gormley reminded the House of the "pivotal role that my colleague, Minister Trevor Sargent, played in highlighting corrupt practices on Dublin County Council", in leading to the tribunal's establishment.
He stressed there had been significant legislative and regulatory changes that reinforced "public confidence in the standards by which this country is governed".
Mr Gormley said: "Of course, there are legitimate concerns about the duration and cost of tribunals generally, and of the planning tribunal in particular, which has now entered its tenth year."
They needed now to "respond to the lessons that may be adduced from the experience with the planning tribunal, and indeed other recent tribunals. For that reason, the Government's motion urges the early consideration and enactment of the Tribunals of Inquiry Bill."
He vehemently denied it would affect the current tribunal and said "the proposed Bill will contribute positively to a more effective future operation of public inquiries".
He would "look at whether changes are required to strengthen the decision-making process by local authorities in the zoning of land, so that decisions are clearly arrived at, are evidence-based and secure the necessary economic, environmental and social benefits for local communities".
He would "further strengthen the planning system" and would "ensure, through the local government reform process, that any further steps required to strengthen the ethics regime in the local government system are taken".
Minister for Defence Willie O'Dea said of all the issues, "the most extraordinary of all is that an investigation that is now in its 11th year is being conducted urgently".
Hitting out at the Opposition, he said their motion "is not about fair procedures or fair treatment. It is not about the expeditious conduct of the tribunal's business. It is about political invective. It is about using and abusing the tribunal process to do what it could not achieve by electoral or normal political means."
He claimed the opposition motion was a "sham" and said that "over the past 10 years we have given the tribunal the time, the support and the additional resources it has sought. The courts have examined the tribunal's processes and made their rulings.
"All we have ever asked is that the tribunal fairly and diligently discharge the tasks we set it over 10 years ago."
