Séamus Kirk (Louth, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to contribute to the Bill which, if enacted, would lead to the Thirty-fourth amendment of the Constitution. At the outset, let me set out my party's position. Fianna Fáil is not opposed to advancing the Bill to Committee Stage for further debate. Fianna Fáil supports relaxing the Whip on specific matters of conscience and was the only party to do so in the debate on the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill 2013. However, enshrining it in the Constitution may erode the Whip system in other areas, damaging the effectiveness and independence of the Oireachtas. The Bill should be debated carefully on Committee Stage to test its potential consequences before a final decision is taken and I will exhort the Government to seriously consider allowing the Bill to go to Committee Stage for further debate.

Holding a referendum on enshrining freedom of conscience may be unnecessary given the personal rights to freely express conditions and opinions already enshrined in Article 15 - dealing with the national Parliament - and Article 40, which applies to all citizens, including public representatives. Fianna Fáil believes the Whip should be relaxed within the party structure on matters of conscience such as abortion, euthanasia and stem cell research which evoke fundamental contentious issues. Removing the Whip system entirely, as this Bill may do, would be a legislative disaster for the country. Lobby groups would individually pick off members without the broader support of a party leading to policy stalemate and instability. The Whip system maintains group discipline in important policy matters. Relaxing it on specific matters of conscience rather than engaging in a free vote "free for all" is a positive step towards giving representatives more power.

My party believes in a package of broader political reform that will address the deeper issues upon which Deputy Matthews' Bill touches. Members of the Dáil and Seanad must have a greater role in shaping policy. Making decisions in accordance with one's conscience is an essential feature of a liberal democracy. This is enshrined in the Constitution in the personal rights outlined in Article 40. Bunreacht Na hÉireann also protects the right to form political parties or other associations under Article 40.

This legislation may be unnecessary in light of these already existent provisions in the fundamental law of the land. It is important the impact of the proposals upon the Whip system in its entirety is fully debated. The abolition of the Whip system in its entirety may allow for free votes rather than just votes of conscience. This means that the ability of parties to impose discipline on their members would be removed from all legislation that is not consensually agreed. This should be further debated at committee level.

In his classic defence of political parties, the eminent statesman and philosopher Edmund Burke put forward a series of benefits that parties provide to a state, namely that they have an important role in formulating policy in the national rather than geographical interest, engaging candidates, providing transparency in their aims and, critically, providing the state with stability. The Whip system is an integral part of that. It is used to maintain discipline among party representatives to hold a common agreed line on divisive policy issues. This has been the standard practice in the Irish parliamentary tradition and in other jurisdictions.

International experience shows that on issues that split voters, taking any policy decision is unattractive to parties geared towards elections. It leads to policy stalemate. This implies that besides the respect for the inalienability of a legislator's conscience, there is a strategic element for parties not to declare or even form a position on contentious issues involving morality. Removing the Whip will eliminate the strength and solidarity of a party in taking a firm position on ordinary policy and allow for lobby groups to pick off members one by one.

Decisions taken in the legislative arena affect not only the decision-maker but all those subject to the laws being passed thereby distancing the personal element one attaches to concepts such as morality and conscience. When voters cast their ballot in favour of a party, policy platform and representative, the Deputy has an obligation to reflect their views, not only his or her own. This is particularly relevant in non-first principle issues.

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