Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I wish to share time with Deputy Seamus Healy. I am grateful for the opportunity to speak on the Thirty-second Amendment of the Constitution (Abolition of the Seanad) Bill 2013. I strongly oppose the abolition of the Seanad. In this debate, I would like to bring the fight to the abolitionists and challenge them in their efforts to damage the democratic process in this country. I support the argument that we need change, reform and a more inclusive Seanad, with a better democratic mandate. However, to the abolitionists I say, "You are wrong". They are wrong in their assessment and wrong in wanting to end the second Chamber of the Oireachtas. We on the reformist side want a new Seanad. I propose to outline today my proposals for reform of both the Dáil and Seanad.

In the last general election my political manifesto contained a section dealing with reform of the Seanad and the Dáil and I was elected on that platform. An integral part of my manifesto was not to abolish the Seanad and I said that to the electorate when I went knocking on doors in Dublin Bay North. My manifesto proposed that we create a real democracy with accountability at every level. We do need to cut the fat. We need to transform the Seanad, a point I fully accept. We need to transform it into a genuine forum for civic society. We need to introduce more vouched expenses for all politicians. We need to be seen to make the Parliament work and to stop the use of the guillotine to pass laws that have not been scrutinised adequately.

We must give Oireachtas committees the power to examine proposals for spending before it happens and to hold real inquiries with the power to compel witnesses and discover documents. We must also make senior public servants responsible for their decisions and actions. When I was a principal of a disadvantaged school, I was answerable to the Department for every single cent I spent, as well as being answerable to a board of management. There is no reason why senior civil servants cannot take the hit and get on with it. We must bring real transparency to the funding of political parties and make them publish annual accounts. Some of this process of reform has started but we have a long way to go.

We must register and control lobbyists, protect whistleblowers and make all appointments to State or public bodies and the Judiciary open to public competition and Dáil scrutiny. We need to ban any individual from being a director of more than three companies or public bodies. We also need to conduct an urgent review of company law to ensure that white-collar criminals are brought to justice. We need to restore the right to know through the Freedom of Information Act. These are just some reform proposals that I am putting forward today. I put it to the abolitionists that these are serious reforms. There is no limit to what can be achieved by a community or a society working together. In this context, I mean the citizens of this State, the Dáil and the Seanad all working together.

The Seanad Bill 2013, published a number of weeks ago by Senator Feargal Quinn and introduced in the Dáil by Deputy Shane Ross, contains some excellent proposals for reform. The Bill outlines how the Constitution provides that the Oireachtas shall be the national parliament and shall consist of the President and two houses; the house of representatives, to be called Dáil Éireann and a Senate, to be called Seanad Éireann. The Seanad's role under the Constitution includes "important safeguards for the citizens and the State and important checks and balances in relation to the performances of the Executive, legislative and judicial powers of Government in the State and in relation to the European Union". That is very important in a country that is under the supervision of the troika. It is also very important in the context of the amount of legislation emanating from the EU.

The sensible Bill, namely the Seanad Bill 2013, opens up the Seanad to a wider electorate, including every person who is eligible to vote in any other parliamentary election in the State, as well as to Irish people abroad, eligible persons in Northern Ireland and graduates of other universities. These are three sensible proposals. I would love to see the Irish abroad being involved in the political process and having a House to represent them. I would also love to see people from the Six Counties, who often feel excluded from the rest of this island, being represented in the Seanad. There is a mindset in this Dáil that believes that Ireland stops at Dundalk and I want to challenge that mindset. Senator Quinn's Bill proposes that people from the North be given an opportunity to have their voices heard. The Taoiseach spoke about the peace process yesterday, which we must embed. Everybody has a role to play in the peace process and people in the North should be given a voice in our Seanad - a reformed Seanad.

The good Bill, as I call it, is the Seanad Bill while the Government's Bill is the bad bill. The good Bill also provides for a more open and inclusive Seanad whose elected membership will have an equal number of males and females. This deals with the equality issue. Many people jump up and down, shouting about the lack of women in politics but this legislation proposes to address this. It puts equality on the table and puts it up to the Government. I challenge the abolitionists on this. The reformists are bringing forward realistic proposals to reform this country. The Seanad Bill also provides that the process of nominating persons to be candidates for the Seanad be opened up to allow candidates to be nominated by popular support, which amounts to a citizens' Senate. I would love to see that happening.

The Seanad Bill also confers a range of additional powers on the Seanad in areas such as the scrutiny of legislation, the examination of public appointments as well as the holding of inquiries. The legislation contains sensible proposals put forward by those on the reformist side. It represents a challenge to the abolitionists. We will continue to challenge the abolitionists in the Dáil, in the media and in our constituencies. We are putting forward proposals for real reform here. Every single new Deputy in this House was elected on the promise of change and reform. Now is our chance and our opportunity because democracy is under threat from the abolitionists.

It is very important that we state this. Many people are anti-politics and not only Ireland has a crisis. Other countries also have a disconnect and a lack of trust between the political system and the people. Consider the turnout in by-elections and general elections. In parts of my constituency more than one third of people regularly do not vote. These are often the people who need a voice in Dáil Éireann. They also need a voice in a reformed Seanad.

The year 2012 was characterised by the sovereign debt crisis and weak political leadership throughout the political world. This is what people stated throughout the European Union and the United States. Popular confidence in political institutions has declined throughout Europe. If we do not protect and defend them, other more extreme elements will move into this space. This is why we should never take democracy for granted. We should consider the countries in which it has collapsed and what happened in the 1930s and 1940s. We cannot allow democracy to come under threat.

It does my head in when people jump up and down about the cost of the Seanad. A Fine Gael Senator told me it works out at €3 per year per taxpayer to keep the Seanad open. What is wrong with this? It is the cost of half a bottle of beer or half a pint of Guinness. Let us not jump up and down about costs. Democracy does cost money but we must defend it. It is important that this is stated during the debate. Countries in Latin America have had horrific examples of a negative impact on democracy. Flawed democracies are dangerous for all countries and not just themselves. When one has a flawed democracy one is under pressure. We need a second chamber to do radical things, examine legislation and come up with new ideas and have fresh thinking.

According to The Economist, in some countries policy is no longer set by national legislatures and elected politicians but is effectively set by official creditors such as the European Central Bank, the European Commission and the IMF, and the severity of austerity has tended to weaken social cohesion and diminish further trust in political institutions. I urge all Deputies to stand up and fight for democracy and join us, the reformers, and take on the abolitionists. I urge all Deputies to reject the Bill and support a new reformed, inclusive and democratic Seanad.

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