Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)

I withdraw it. However, very suspect tactics were used. As far as I am concerned they will be proven right when it comes to it.

What happened on this occasion has been proved and heads have rolled, but not many heads. Tom Savage said it was a media invention that heads would be asked for because all of these people in powerful positions know that nobody is sacked any more. They have to know this, otherwise how could he come out and publicly say it was a media invention? We do not have Ministers and people in charge of Departments who will take them on. Michael McDowell, the leader of the Minister of State's former party, the Progressive Democrats, was not afraid to take them on. We need more of these people. We are elected to govern and not to say "yes Minister", "aye Minister", "no Minister", "what Minister" or "what for Minister". We need to bring back the power to this building and show we are in charge, and we then go back to the electorate who will decide whether we are right or wrong. We must break the stranglehold that has taken over during the past 30, 40, 50 or 60 years whereby these people are all-powerful. When one cannot do anything with them, when they know too much about what they should not know or one is afraid of what they may or may not know, one promotes them to Europe.

Another issue I want to deal with which I could not see in the Bill is the holding of elections on weekdays. This is the biggest disgrace of all. We want people to vote and we encourage them to vote but we hold elections on Thursdays. Workers and people in college cannot go home. Every election should be on a Saturday or Sunday. Again, we cannot take on the people running the elections because they want jobs for themselves and their friends. They want to be presiding officers and clerks and they get overtime and double time counting the votes on Saturdays and Sundays. In all fairness if we want to be true democrats we should allow most people the best opportunity to vote, and Sunday would be preferable for lorry drivers and everybody else. It would give them a chance to vote. Break the stranglehold whereby it can only be held on a Thursday. We tried it on Friday once or twice, but we should provide for this. It must be changed. They are the things that should be dealt with in this Bill but are not.

We must show leadership and show the public that when we campaign on an issue, we will not proceed to do the opposite. That sells ourselves short. I was involved in that in the past and I do not deny it, but it must change. The public are sick and tired of it. That is why people, when the very important vote is held in a few weeks, might just say, "To hell with all of you" and "To hell with Europe" and vote "Níl". Where will that leave us? The entire system must be reformed.

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