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AS THE ARGUMENT over speaking rights in the Dáil shows no sign of abating, Taoiseach Micheál Martin has confirmed that no deal was done in relation to speaking rights as part of government formation talks.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald has insisted today that her party will oppose any attempt to give Lowry Opposition speaking time in the Dáil.
Meanwhile, newly appointed Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan dodged a question on whether he is comfortable with Lowry supporting government.
Last week, plans to elect Martin as Taoiseach had to be abandoned after the Opposition refused to co-operate due to an attempt by four Independent TDs, headed by Michael Lowry, to sit in both government and opposition.
Lowry, Danny Healy-Rae, Barry Heneghan, and Gillian Toole all participated in government formation talks and have agreed to support the Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael led government for the next five years.
Despite this, the group wanted to continue to access Dáil speaking time and other privileges as members of the opposition rather than government backbench TDs.
Asked today if there was an agreement in place to allow the four TDs speaking time in opposition as part of the deal done with the Regional Independents, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said there was not.
“There was no deal. No deal whatsoever,” he said, adding that they had “no idea” at the time that additional members would be added to the Regional Independents technical group.
These additional members were Carol Nolan and Mattie McGrath, who joined the Regional Independents technical group after the deal was done with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. Neither have an agreement in place with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael to support the Government.
Yesterday, the Dáil Reform Committee met to discuss the speaking time situation.
Last week, an agreement was made that the Regional Independents technical group would not be granted opposition speaking time as an interim measure, but a longer-term solution remains to be agreed.
Later this week, the Government will bring forward a proposal to amend the Dáil Standing Orders to grant the group access to speaking time during Leaders’ Questions in the Dáil.
It is understood that allotted times will be redrawn as part of this new arrangement.
Speaking today, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said her party will “strenuously” resist any attempt to grant Lowry and the other three TDs speaking time during Leaders’ Questions.
McDonald said Lowry will not be allowed “masquerade” as an Opposition TD.
“There are no circumstances in which Michael Lowry should be allowed, or can be allowed, to pretend that he is a member of the opposition, and what that means is he cannot have access to opposition speaking time, and he certainly cannot be part of a charade wherein Maradh he questions the Taoiseach in Leaders’ Questions to hold a Taoiseach that he supports to account,” she said.
“That turns logic and democracy on its head. It is a patent absurdity.
“It’s actually an insult to the collective intelligence of the Irish electorate. Nobody buys it,” she added.
Elsewhere, the newly appointed Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan was asked today by The Journal if he is comfortable with Michael Lowry supporting the government, given the findings of the Moriarty tribunal.
In 2011, the Moriarty Tribunal found that Lowry had an “insidious and pervasive influence” on the bidding process for the second mobile phone licence in Ireland when he was a Fine Gael minister in the 1990s.
“In respect of Deputy Lowry, it was a very difficult process to put a government together after the last election. A lot of the other parties did not want to be involved in it.
“The only people who put their hands up to be part of it were the Regional Independents, and now they are part of the government,” O’Callaghan said.
He added: “But it’s important to note that Mr Lowry is not part of the government. There are four individuals who are junior ministers.”
When it was put to him that Lowry played a key role in the formation of the government, O’Callaghan said: “He is a backbench TD who supports the government.”
Asked if he is comfortable with Lowry’s involvement, O’Callaghan responded: “I am comfortable with the fact we have put together a government, the country needs a government.”
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