Drapier: Drapier was shocked by Minister of State Dick Roche's statement on Questions and Answers on Monday last. He claimed that the Good Friday agreement is a staging post to a settlement of the Northern Ireland issue.
This is the agreement that the Irish people North and South voted for on the same day. They voted to accept this very finely balanced agreement, and now it is a "staging post" according to the Minister of State.
Not only that, but an Ian Paisley-led, Sinn Féin-partnered devolved administration is now a consummation devoutly to be wished. Says who? Why should any fair-minded person feel obliged to secure Paisley and Adams in power?
What have these extremists done for democracy that all the democratic norms must be set aside to deliver them to power? Is the intended inference that they will continue to throw tantrums, or worse, if they do not get their way, irrespective of the sovereign decision of the people of all of this island?
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Nobody was charged with the murder of Det Garda Jerry McCabe. A charge of manslaughter, reduced from capital murder, was accepted because producing witnesses was a problem. The Taoiseach and the Minister for Justice made it clear that those who faced this reduced charge would serve their reduced sentences.
Now Provisional Sinn Féin wants to have these sentences revoked altogether as a new condition for its armed wing to renounce violence. Gerry Adams claims that it has already been conceded and that this will be "part of a sequence of agreed actions and commitments".
This is completely counter to what the Taoiseach told the Dáil. Enda Kenny and Pat Rabbitte were right to press this matter in the House on Tuesday last and they should stand their ground.
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Bertie Ahern's doublespeak may also extend to another arena. Pat Cox appears to have the Taoiseach's support for a bid for the presidency of the European Commission. Drapier has seen it all before and is very sceptical. Ahern showed his vote to Albert Reynolds to indicate he was voting for him, having worked for his downfall. "Sorry, Pat, I did my best for you," is the likely outcome.
Drapier hopes the Government will do more for Pat Cox than it did for Peter Sutherland, a sitting commissioner who could well have become president of the Commission with just a little help from the Fianna Fáil led government of the day.
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Drapier notes the departure from the European Parliament of John Cushnahan, who has a distinguished record on election monitoring in fledgling democracies. Nuala Ahern will be a loss for her openness, and both Liam Hyland and Jim Fitzsimons will be missed for their decency and good-natured approach to public life.
Mary Banotti's work on child abductions will need a new champion. Joe McCartin's knowledge of parliamentary procedures and Niall Andrews's charm and capacity for colourful interventions will also be missed. Fine Gael is losing three heavy-hitters. The number of seats for the Republic has been reduced from 15 to 13. If Fine Gael delivers four seats in the June European Parliament elections it should put paid to the constant carping from the usual sources about the party's ability to recover.
Drapier predicts that Fine Gael, Labour and the Greens will win more seats than Fianna Fáil. This may be the first step in the emergence of an alternative government.
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The shocking reality of life for persons with intellectual disabilities was highlighted by RTÉ this week. The promised new Disability Bill has still not been presented to the Dáil.
Indecision, prevarication and a lack of any sense of direction are evident. The goodwill and sense of pride shown by the Irish people in last year's Special Olympics is a clear indication that the public want action in this area for once and for all.
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Even the affable and professional Pat Farrell, former general secretary of Fianna Fáil, now CEO of the Irish Bankers' Federation, could not soften the blow of the latest AIB overcharging fiasco.
The Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority was right to require AIB to lodge €25 million with the Central Bank, but it is clear that much more needs to be done. A powerful Oireachtas committee should inquire into the ongoing activities of the banks. The Finance and Public Service Committee, chaired by Séan Fleming, has decided to look into the matter, but this will not be enough.
Drapier suspects that there are other, and deliberate, overcharging scandals to be unearthed in businesses outside of banking. Senator Shane Ross is right to continue to roast some of our financial practitioners. Hopefully they are a minority, but it is clear that the consumer requires a powerful champion. What happened to the proposal to have an Oireachtas competition committee to champion the consumers' cause? Ned O'Keeffe was expected to chair such a committee, but the idea appears to have been buried.
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Despite the public outcry, and the findings of the commission in relation to the integrity of the proposed electronic voting system, the Electronic Voting (Amendment) Bill, 2004, continued its Committee Stage in the Seanad this week. The Disabilities Bill, 2001, had to be withdrawn because of the public outcry about its inadequacy. Why has the Electronic Voting Bill not been similarly withdrawn? In time the Government parties will regret not listening to the public and the Dáil on this issue.
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Drapier notes the doubts raised in some quarters about the procedures for impeachment if Dáil and Seanad Éireann were to decide to use these powers. Drapier is perturbed that some legal eagles want to claim a right for the courts to impede such procedures.
Under the constitutional separation of powers this is clearly a matter for the Oireachtas. For example, if the president of the day were to be impeached, could the courts be used to second-guess the Oireachtas? Surely not? This would involve one institution invading the constitutional space of another while that institution considered the case against a third.
The Houses should now put in place standing orders to provide for impeachment procedures so that there is no doubt how this power can be used.