Paul Kehoe (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

That is my mandate. The same is true of the Members of this House who stood under the Labour Party, Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin, People Before Profit Alliance or Socialist Party banners. The voluntary nature of the Whip system has been seen repeatedly in this Chamber since 1922. Deputies who have put their names before the public as representatives of a political party have chosen to vote against their own party's position on a number of issues. This shows that every elected Oireachtas Member is free to vote whichever way he or she wants. To be bound by the Whip is a matter of choice. While the voters always have the opportunity to support non-party candidates instead of candidates from political parties, the vast majority choose not to. Perhaps they feel that non-party candidates do not provide the basis for stable Government.

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