Ciarán Lynch (Cork South Central, Labour)

I have an image of the Green Party inside the Fianna Fáil tent at the Galway Races and I am reminded of the observation of Lyndon Johnson regarding the water flow and its direction. It is apparent that the Green Party has given up on dealing with this issue.

I will bring two points to the Minister's attention and then ask a supplementary question.

Mr. Justice Matthew P. Smith, chairperson of the Standards in Public Office Commission, in his report last summer said: "There is a strong case to be made for a new approach to the general funding of political parties and sound arguments to be made for increased transparency in such funding and for greater scrutiny of political party expenditure." The Minister, Deputy John Gormley, then in Opposition, said that if the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste were serious about new ethics legislation they would accept the proposals put forward by the Green Party to ban corporate donations, restrict spending — not just at election time but between elections — and to severely restrict personal donations and advertising. My question is——

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