Green Party participation 'should not be assumed'

Decentralisation: The Green Party yesterday warned that its participation in government should "not be assumed" unless other…

Decentralisation:The Green Party yesterday warned that its participation in government should "not be assumed" unless other parties were willing to adopt key Green policies such as radical changes to the decentralisation programme.

Finance spokesman Dan Boyle yesterday accused Fine Gael and Labour of failing to adopt a coherent policy on the issue. He said candidates from both parties appeared to be in favour of decentralisation in their own areas.

Mr Boyle said the Green Party was totally opposed to the current decentralisation programme as it was merely a plan to relocate offices. "This policy as defined by the Fianna Fáil and the Progressive Democrats has been inefficient, wasteful and based on the cynical assumption that it was of political advantage to the outgoing government," he said.

"And yet, other than criticising the Government for how decentralisation is being implemented, other political parties seem not to have a coherent, alternative policy."

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He said that Fine Gael and Labour candidates "around the country have seemed more prepared to ask why a promised Government department or State agency has not come to their town or constituency than to challenge what has been a half-formed, ill-advised policy".

He said the Greens would want to bring about a real programme of decentralisation of the powers and functions of government departments and State agencies to the regions.

Green Party participation, "cannot be assumed unless other parties are seen to be committed to changing not only the faces at the cabinet table, but also the policies that a new government will follow and the very culture of politics itself in this country".