Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I wholeheartedly agree with the Bill brought forward by my colleague, Deputy Peter Mathews, and congratulate him on bringing it before the House. Politicians should be able to reach their own decisions and should not have to vote against their conscience out of fear they will be expelled from their political party. If this amendment is introduced, elected representatives will be forced to have better knowledge on the subject matters on which they are voting. They will have to have an informed opinion on a subject instead of blindly following a party Whip and doing what they are told. Instead of putting their party first they would put the country and citizens first. The Thirty-fourth Amendment of the Constitution (Members of the Houses of the Oireachtas) Bill 2014 proposes to amend Article 15 of the Constitution to insert a provision to provide that all Members of each House of the Oireachtas shall be representatives of the whole people, not bound by orders or instructions, and responsible only to their conscience.

Since being expelled from the Fine Gael party I have found it liberating to be an Independent Deputy, being able to weigh up each piece of legislation and every important item coming before the Parliament and being able to make a decision based on what is in the best interests of all of the people and not being pressurised by a party whip. Voting in Parliament is a pointless exercise if we know what the result of the vote will be before it takes place. Governments introduce legislation knowing it will be passed because they have an absolute majority. This legislation may not be good for all of our citizens, but because the Government has strength of numbers it will pass and this is not good for society generally.

Too often politicians pander to party loyalty and vested interests. This Bill would make elected representatives more answerable to the electorate, by forcing them to make decisions and take a stand on issues. It is disheartening to see so many good and intelligent people in political parties on all sides of the House blindly following a party Whip considering they have their own ideas on certain issues. Unfortunately, many politicians see their career progression as being more important than the national interest, and if there is a slight chance of being promoted they will keep their mouths shut and go along with the groupthink which can occur within parties. It is not good for democracy that a small number of people decide on policy for a political party and that anyone who dissents from it is thrown out.

If the Whip system were loosened and Deputies and Senators were given greater freedom when voting, it would create a much more interesting and vibrant Parliament with varying contributions and proper political debate.

Everybody would be allowed to have his or her own say, while still considering himself or herself to be a member of a political party. Just because a politician votes against his or her political party does not mean that he or she does not still hold the same policies, convictions and core principles as the party.

As previous speakers stated, political reform was one of the cornerstones of the election promises made by Fine Gael in 2011. After the battering the country had received from the previous Fianna Fáil-led Administration, an overhaul of the political system was much needed. I believed that reform would be at the top of the Government's agenda but, sadly, that has not happened.

Making changes to the Whip system is one area of reform that should have been a priority for the Government, in particular, for the Chief Whip. Free votes are provided on certain issues in most European countries and in modern democracies, such as New Zealand and Australia. Issues of parliamentary procedure or reform have also received free votes in the United Kingdom. In the past 40 years, there have been only three free votes in this Parliament. When one considers the various serious issues that have come before the Dáil, it is shameful that parties do not allow free votes, in particular, on issues of conscience.

The Government should now go back to the drawing board. It needs to assess what is the standard procedure, particularly in the parliaments of our neighbours in Europe, especially the United Kingdom, and adopt a similar approach here in Ireland. Politicians must be able to vote with their conscience.

Deputy Mathews' Bill needs to be seriously considered by the Government. I am disappointed with the response so far by Government. Perhaps it can further reflect on the issue and come back to it at a later date.

As the late John F. Kennedy stated in a famous speech before his election as President of the United States, "I will make my decisions ... in accordance with what my conscience tells me to be in the national interest". Why should parliamentarians in Ireland not be granted the freedom to do the same?

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