Dáil debates

Wednesday, 4 December 2019

Ceisteanna ó Cheannairí - Leaders' Questions

 

12:00 pm

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

I asked the Taoiseach whether he accepted that Dara Murphy's behaviour was not morally sustainable. This is not about a person having two jobs. People are angry that he took a full salary. The Taoiseach avoided the substance of my position, which is that he effectively walked away from the Dáil at the end of 2017. He did not represent the people of Cork from the end of 2017 onwards. The record speaks for itself. I am not talking about mere physical attendance. I am talking about parliamentary representation and representing people on the ground, which was non-existent, and in Dáil Éireann, which was non-existent.

It goes to the very core of the work of a Teachta Dála to represent the people who elected him. The Taoiseach issued a fulsome statement in May 2018, when Dara Murphy announced he was not contesting the next general election. He confirmed that Dara Murphy would be continuing as director of elections for the European People's Party, EPP, which is Fine Gael's grouping in the European Parliament. The Taoiseach went on to state that “So while Dara might be leaving the Dáil, he is certainly not leaving political life or Fine Gael", and then added that, “I look forward to working with him closely during the next phase of his career.” Dara Murphy essentially left the Dáil, however. He left the people of Cork behind him and said goodbye, and that was okay with the Taoiseach. What was more important was that Dara Murphy was not leaving Fine Gael and he was working with the party in Europe full-time. That seemed to be fine.

The reason I asked the question was that situation dovetailed with Dara Murphy's announcement that he was not seeking re-election. As far as the Taoiseach was concerned, the people of Cork did not matter and whether Dara Murphy continued working as a Deputy did not matter. All that mattered was that he was going to be with Fine Gael in Europe. Will the Taoiseach accept he was guilty of a serious error of judgment in allowing such a practice and behaviour, which has angered people and eroded public confidence in our democratic institutions? Dara Murphy should have resigned at the end of 2017. His behaviour was not morally sustainable.

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