Patrick Nulty (Dublin West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Bill. I pay tribute to my colleague Councillor Dermot Looney on South Dublin County Council, with whom the Minister of State, Deputy Hayes, is familiar. He tabled the original resolution at the Labour Party conference demanding the abolition of this archaic undemocratic 1930s relic of an institution. Without his strong campaign on this issue the Labour Party may never have supported the referendum. It is important to put this on the record.

My comments are in no way a reflection on any individual Senator, many of whom make very fine contributions and I have the utmost respect for them regardless of their various political perspectives. We need a serious debate on this. What is the function of the Seanad in our modern democracy? As has been stated, countries such as Denmark, with very similar demographics and profiles, function perfectly well with a democratically elected House elected by all of the citizens. Contrast this with the Seanad where not one single Member is elected in an election open to all citizens, as is the case with constituency elections. I am a graduate of Trinity College and the NUI and as such I have a vote in both elections. I find it abhorrent that graduates of several particular institutions have a greater say in our democracy than anybody else. What about the outstanding graduates from the institute of technology in Blanchardstown? What about people who are unemployed? What about carers?

Our right to participate in democracy comes from one principle only, which is the fact we are citizens of a republic. No other factor should come into play. Any election should be based on equal citizens engaging in democracy. Our democracy is imperfect due to the influence of corporate forces, but it is a democratic system. The Seanad is something which we simply do not need. What about the Taoiseach's nominees? This is no reflection on any individual person, but on what basis should someone serve in the parliament of a country because they happen to be in the good books of the Taoiseach or Tánaiste of the day rather than seeking to put themselves before the people and be elected? This is profoundly and ridiculously undemocratic.

The point is being made about the need for political reform. As a first term Deputy I can say that the need for reform is stark. Look at the time of day at which we are debating this issue. How difficult would this be for a Deputy who is a lone parent or has a range of other commitments? It is completely family unfriendly and needs radical overhaul to allow participation.

The point has been made about the Government's overwhelming majority. We have a unique situation whereby the two largest parties in the country are in coalition together. This never happened before and is unconscionable. The obvious government was a Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael government as they are in complete agreement on most key questions. It would make perfect sense for Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil, which share the same ideological outlook, to form a government so we could have a genuine right left debate in the Dáil. Unfortunately, and much to my disappointment, this did not happen but this is democracy and we must accept it.

There has been much talk about the party Whip system in the Dáil. I can speak with some authority on this as someone who lost the party Whip. Political parties are entitled to impose a Whip if they wish. They should have more nuanced Whip systems such as those in the House of Commons and other chambers, but at the end of the day individual Deputies need to stand up and be counted and if they feel they need to break the Whip on a particular issue they should do so and stand over their actions.

One thing for certain is that removing the Seanad is not a power grab. It is removing an irrelevant institution based on 1930s corporatist Europe and not on 21st century democracy. The idea that the Seanad, which has people not popularly elected but elected by local authority members and university graduates or are the friends of the Taoiseach, should be able to provide a check on the people elected through universal suffrage is a farce. I look forward to the referendum if this legislation passes and I will campaign for a "Yes" vote to scrap the Seanad and remove it.

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