Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)

Will it be for the people of Donegal South-West to decide who represents them? Our system is flawed in that only the Government can give the people that opportunity and trigger the process of calling a by-election to fill a vacancy that arises during the Dáil term. That should change with a constitutional obligation for a by-election to be held in a set period after the vacancy arises. It should not be determined by what is politically expedient for the party or parties in office at the time.

The last thing the Government wants to do is to face the people again after its drubbing at the recent local and European elections. Yesterday, the Taoiseach announced the latest disastrous unemployment figures and actually tried to put a positive spin on them by saying the rate of increase was slower since January. Who does he think he is fooling? The Taoiseach should let the people of Donegal South-West decide. Let the Government put its record before the people. Then it might be compelled to finally come up with some attempt at a coherent strategy for the retention and creation of jobs, something it has failed to produce so far, even though we are in the depths of the worst unemployment crisis ever experienced.

The Government must not drag its heels on this by-election writ. I remind the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment and Fianna Fáil Deputies of the words of Pat The Cope Gallagher himself calling for a by-election in Donegal South-West in 1986. He told the House it was "morally and democratically wrong" for the then Fine Gael-Labour Government to oppose the holding of the by-election.

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