Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Of course, the Leader of the Seanad was a determined and committed advocate of its abolition; therefore, I will not hold my breath in terms of his new zeal to reform the House. However, it is not a matter for the Seanad alone; it is a matter for the entire Oireachtas but this House, in particular, because legislation would have to be passed. I would like the Taoiseach to clarify, as he said in his reply, that, in essence, he is now in favour of the Manning report because when we met as party leaders during the previous term, I cannot recollect him committing to direct franchise, for example, whereby the people would elect Senators. That is the fundamental change that needs to occur. There are other recommendations made in the report which was drawn up on the basis that they would not require a constitutional amendment. That was an unnecessary constraint, but I was prepared to work with it.

The public wants the Seanad to be reformed. Seanad reform is of equal importance to Dáil reform that has occurred in giving greater authority to Members and greater opportunities to participate in rebalancing the power axis between the Executive and the Parliament. The Seanad is part of this, but for it to have legitimacy into the future, it needs a direct electoral franchise, as recommended in the Manning report, using different models. Is the Taoiseach saying he is committed to implementation of the report? Is it his view that an Oireachtas all-party implementation group should be established with a view to implementing the Manning report recommendations? Is that the pathway we are on or is he suggesting it is just a Seanad committee that will be formed? That would not be satisfactory and might delay matters even more. If all the leaders of the political parties and groupings were to sign up to the Manning report - all of us would be compromising to some degree - the logical follow through would be implementation and that would mean working through the legislative framework and the wherewithal required. The implementation group should have a secretariat and receive legislative advice to make this a reality in order that within this Dáil timeframe we could put in place and pass the legislation that would mean a different Seanad the next time we have a general election or a different modality for electing Members of the Seanad. That should be our target and I seek clarity on whether that is what the Taoiseach is suggesting.

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