Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Independent)

It transferred the loyalty to a powerful elite and the rewards were given to those who funded the party and who kept it in power, and the object was to stay in power. I would say many of its membership believes their influence was lost in that context.

We have ended up with a corrupting influence in terms of that ethos where industries such as the construction industry decided the kind of development we had in this country. For example, we have ended up with a dispersed pattern of development where it is difficult and more expensive to provide public transport systems, water and waste water systems or build communities rather than just building houses because it has been dictated by the elite. We ended up with an inflated bubble in terms of the property market where people's homes became commodities. It was not even good for the construction sector because many of the people who worked during that era are working in Australia, Canada or other countries, if they are working at all. The relationship in terms of power, the elite and money has determined all of what happened. Moral authority and political culture are important in regard to this legislation.

Elections can be run very cheaply. I have done it on a number of occasions. When we consider the donations under the Standards in Public Office Commission, we see people in constituencies who have used big billboards, have three or four different headquarters and take out full page advertisements in the newspapers, yet they say they have spent less than other candidates. One knows that cannot be possible and that the declaration cannot be right but if one complains about it, one is told it is sour grapes. The Standards in Public Office Commission is toothless because it does not have an enforcement arm which can act when a complaint is made. For example, in the past nine years the Fine Gael Party has not declared a single corporate donation, while the Labour Party has not declared any corporate donations in the past four years. It appears only the smaller parties make declarations. These facts tell us something about the effectiveness, or lack thereof, of the Standards in Public Office Commission. Enforcement must mean something and declarations must be about more than form-filling. We can see where the money is being spent and every year SIPO draws attention to the gap between what is spent and what is declared. The current position brings to mind the black hole which was suddenly plugged when a tax amnesty was introduced in another context.

The proposed amendment to the Constitution is necessary. While I will support the legislation, I find it offensive that it has been proposed by those who created the problem through their political culture.

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