Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)

I did not know the system. The Deputy is only listening to bits of what I am saying. I was not aware of the leader's allowance until I came to this side of the House. However, it is there. It is shambolic to have such a con job. We are being told we have €41,000, which we have, but we have sought some back-up staff. I went back and forward to Ministers and the Ceann Comhairle on this for the Technical Group, to have the number of staff the other parties have. It is crazy. We talk about democracy but if the 19 Independent Members of the House cannot have the same system as Fine Gael, the Labour Party, Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin, that is apartheid. Political apartheid is alive and well in this Chamber. What hope is there in talking about this Bill without being honest?

I have the figures. A total of €5.456 million was paid out last year. Fine Gael received €2,328,207, the Labour Party received €1,312,000, Fianna Fáil received €1,081,000 and Sinn Féin received €733,000. The Technical Group got nothing. Where is the fairness in that? What is the point in talking about reform of the Dáil if all the Members cannot be treated equally? There are three funds. There is the fund for the leaders' allowance, which all parties receive including the Technical Group. There is a €5 million fund from the Exchequer to pay the four political parties. As our 19 Members get none of that, instead of it going back to the Exchequer or being given for something we need, it is divided up between the four parties. Why are they talking about improving democracy when they treat their equals in the House, all elected by the people, in that way? It is an outright disgrace and outrage. It is disingenuous and dishonest.

It behoves the Deputies on the other side of the House to cop on to themselves and not taunt Members on this side of the House about our €41,000. I admit we get it. What we get is in the public domain. However, they share €5 million among themselves and the share of it that we do not get is also spread among them. It is rotten to the core. They can talk about change and introducing Bills to provide for gender quotas, but they are codding the people.

Fine Gael has brought forward this Bill now but it held functions two weeks ago in Punchestown. The tent was there. There was much talk about the Fianna Fáil tent in Galway, which I was never in and which I never supported, but Fine Gael members have a tent as well. What were they doing? Were they getting a fighting fund for the next ten years before they introduced the legislation? As for the big business associations, there is no point in talking about tribunals. They were a waste of time, to be honest, but they did exist yet nobody was prosecuted. They involved some of Fine Gael's members as well. There is talk now of pillorying a colleague of theirs who is a Member of this House for €500. That would not buy 50 dinners for campaign managers. That is not to talk of the millions that have gone side ways, backwards and other ways on the wink and the nod.

Politics must be cleaned up, and it must start in this House. If Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin, Fine Gael and the Labour Party cannot treat the 19 Independent Members equally, does that mean they are afraid of us? Do they want us out? What is the problem? If they cannot treat us fairly, what hope have Seán citizen and Mary citizen of getting fair play from this Government? I put that challenge to the Minister of State, Deputy Cannon, and the leaders of all the political parties in the House. The figures are in the public domain, thanks to Deputy Murphy and the Minister, Deputy Howlin. They cannot treat us fairly. We deserve better as we were all elected as equals on that day in February. We can be thrown out at the next election but at least give us a fair chance and the same operating tools of the trade so we can serve the public and democracy by researching Bills and reforming legislation, which is what we are supposed to do. We cannot do that without proper back-up.

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