Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Independent)

I, too, am delighted to have the opportunity to speak on this Bill. This is a short and simple Bill at first glance and concerns the enablement of the constitutional convention. The Bill enables people to be selected from the electoral register to take part in the convention.

I have many concerns with regard to the proposed convention and see it as merely window dressing to try to fulfil some of the promises made in the programme for Government or during the election. The Government has failed miserably to deliver on any of its promises, but it seems it is taking this proposal as the easy option and is rushing the Bill through the House in order to set up the convention. However, the Government remains in charge and will select 66 people to take part. I am one of the members of the Technical Group who volunteered to take part in the convention, but I strenuously object to the fact that it is being convened in Dublin, that it will be convened at weekends and that it will be guided by a so-called expert group selected by the Government. That to me implies it will be guided by either paid special advisers or civil servants.

We have got to a pretty sad state in this country and this convention is just more of the same. The Government wants to retain a grip on everything and to hold onto everything it has and it is just tokenism to propose selecting 66 people from the electoral register. How are these people to be picked? In my county recently a deceased 99 year old woman was called for jury duty. How will such incidents be avoided? We have been told a polling company will make the selection, but the work of some such companies is quite shoddy. I have never employed any of them, but I have not been impressed by any I ever had any contact with. I do not wish to be ageist, but how can people over a certain age be selected from the register for jury duty? When a complaint was made regarding the selection of the deceased woman, the person making the complaint had the head eaten off her by an official. She got on to me about it and when I inquired about it, I got the head eaten off me by a very hostile public official. I had to get her supervisor to come back and apologise to me for her behaviour. In fairness, the supervisor addressed my issues and also telephoned the family of the dead woman and apologised. I understand these things can happen through human error, but how will we avoid such things happening in selecting people for the convention if the electoral register is to be used to select them? Some of the 66 people selected may have emigrated or be deceased.. We need to be careful about how this is done.

This is a simple Bill in comparison to some of the Bills and outrageous suggestions made by the Minister since he came into government. The Minister has become known as Phil the enforcer, but following this Bill he may be known as Phil the enabler. However, the Bill does not really enable anybody to do anything. The convention should not be held in Dublin. I am not anti Dublin, but the convention should move around the country to facilitate people from other parts of the country. Not everything happens in Dublin and finishes at Newlands Cross. What is wrong with this country is that people running the Government think everything finishes at Newlands Cross and that rural people do not matter. The same occurred with regard to wastewater, with the Minister vindictively penalising rural people. The fact is that most pollution is caused by urban areas and cities. I look forward to that decision being challenged in the courts, because it is wrong. It is time we shouted "Stop" and gave ordinary people their rights and listened to them.

I hope that despite its shortcomings there will be strong participation in the convention from the 66 citizen members. The rest will comprise politicians and representatives, both from the North and South. However, the convention will not be representative of the whole country if there are only 66 citizens on it. These should be people who want to participate honestly and openly and be without a hidden agenda. Like others, I do not want to see too many academics on this convention nor to see it being hived off to them. My concern is that the same will happen here as happens with other Bills, the Gaeltacht Bill being a case in point. That Bill, which is being discussed this week, does away with democracy. It is abolishing the elections for Údarás na Gaeltacht and instead we will have seven members appointed by the Government to the údarás and five members appointed by county councils and Gaeltacht areas. These councils have strong government majorities, so we will end up with 12 government members on the board of the údarás. I do not think that is fair or transparent.

I understand that Seanad reform is not included in the remit of the convention. Reform of the Seanad is the Taoiseach's pet project and he wants to keep that for himself. I do not understand why it could not be included in the remit of the convention, because it should be discussed and we should get the people's views. I know there is open warfare going on within the Fine Gael Party, the Labour Party and, indeed, all parties in this regard. I am not in favour of abolishing the Seanad, but I am in favour of reform. Abolishing the Seanad is just another grandiose idea and I do not believe it will ever happen. If the Taoiseach is interested in reforming the Seanad, the issue should be put before the convention for discussion.

It will be able to discuss the voting age and many other issues but not real reform of the electoral system, and the Seanad and the Government will have the final say. I want a proper discussion on civil and political issues. It will depend on the members but I do not want the neo-liberals to take it over and get us everything from same-sex marriage, to which I am fundamentally opposed, to God knows what.

We must also discuss social and economic policies and the policies the Government is implementing. As I informed the troika last week, it was elected on a particular mandate but it has done the exact opposite. It was going to burn the bondholders and God knows what else but it has introduced austerity measure after austerity measure. We have seen from different reports, including one from the Economic and Social Research Institute which was suppressed, that people do not have spending money.

I hope there will be a fund available to the people involved in the convention and that they will get enough to cover their expenses when they have to travel to Dublin. They will not have Michael Fingleton to give them big loans, which the Minister could get. That is what is wrong with this country. People in high places are getting away with so much. The finger was pointed at Fianna Fáil and the last Government but now we see what is happening here. The Minister for Health will make a statement tonight but no questions will be asked about a nursing home in my constituency. These are the connections these people have despite transparency and openness and their promises, which is all waffle. It is okay for us and the ordinary people but it is not good enough for the Minister, Deputy Hogan, or the Minister for Health, Deputy Reilly. They will do what they want and talk down to the people, dismiss them with arrogance, admonish them and say: "Peasants get lost and croppies lie down." The old blue shirt regime is up and running.

I look forward to the convention, meagre as it will be, and I will participate if I can. If it is sham, I will call it one. I will not participate in any sham to suit the Minister or this Government.

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