Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

We were here last Friday discussing this and I made my views very well known at that time. We have tabled a number of amendments. I thank Brian Ó Domhnaill in our office for doing the research on this but it is all a useless, futile effort. I said this last week and I will say it again. When the Minister was on an taobh seo den Teach he was opposed to these powers. He stood up vigorously opposing them.

Each and every one of us, including myself and my five colleagues in the Rural Independent Group, supported these measures from day one. I have said since time immemorial that I staggered out of the Cabinet room that day because of the ferocity of what we were told would happen, and the shock and fear. Thankfully, and thanks to the heroic efforts of front-line staff and everybody else, nothing like that happened in our country. Unfortunately we lost a lot of lives and one life is one too many. Some of them were lost in very dubious circumstances when people with Covid were put into nursing homes without telling the management but that is for another day.

NPHET has lost the support and confidence of the people and the Minister has lost our support. One of the main reasons is that the Opposition's duty is to scrutinise, examine and have pre-legislative scrutiny. I asked the Taoiseach today during Leaders' Questions, which is something I take very seriously, about the analysis of how beneficial the Covid certificates have been and what impact they have made, looking for information to be brought before the House. He gave no answer - ní raibh aon fhreagra - but he got out of it by saying pre-legislative scrutiny was too slow and would take too long. That was an outrageous statement for a Head of Government in a democracy and a republic to make. We are just going to steamroll ahead and not worry about the implications because it is too slow. It is not too slow.

The Minister has these powers and does not know what it is like to be Minister for Health. I wished him well when he was appointed and I still do not wish him any animosity. He has had emergency powers since day one so he does not know what it is like to be Minister without this strong arm signing these statutory instruments. I keep asking him about this but he will not answer. Is it the heavy hand of pharma that is pushing him to sign these draconian pieces of legislation, or whose hand is it? The Irish Council for Civil Liberties and human rights organisations are totally against this too, although they were with the Minister for a long time. Many people's rights were trodden on and removed but that was due to the fear and the lack of time and space. The Minister could have consulted us on this after last July, or brought the Bill in for pre-legislative scrutiny in September. He knew these measures would expire in February but it was last Thursday evening before we got the explanatory memorandum - not even the Bill itself.

The Minister and his officials in the Department of Health, and whoever else, are running riot and running amok. They treat this House with total disdain. The Minister just comes in here and sits through the debate writing away. He keeps his head down and says nothing and does not listen to us. Our sovereign duty is to scrutinise. We were elected for that reason. The Taoiseach said today that we do not have time, that it would take six months, as if to say people were being awkward or belligerent. I do not know anybody who goes to any committee to be awkward or belligerent by asking questions and scrutinising.

I said last week that the Minister was afraid to answer the questions to which I want answers about the powers of detention. Some of the later amendments are pretty draconian. I had legal people go through the Bill. Oireachtas Members, colleagues of mine, were contacted about this and they started laughing and said there was nothing like that in the Bill. That is the way. They keep their heads down, put a bag over their heads and vote blindly. Of course that is in the Bill. I again thank the people from the Alliance for Justice who helped me go through the Bill and examine it in detail so I know what I am talking about, because it is not easy to follow this legislation. The Minister has a whole Department and advisers and officials to do this but he would not come to pre-legislative scrutiny. It is getting worse. The Taoiseach said today that pre-legislative scrutiny was taking too long and could take up to six months. Those were his words. I do not know anybody who would have delayed it for that length of time. There was a special Covid committee of which my Independent colleague Deputy McNamara was chair and its recommendations are gathering dust somewhere as well.

The sad part is that we in the Opposition were briefed weekly, or fortnightly at worst, from the start of the pandemic right up to last October. We have never had a briefing with the Minister, the Taoiseach and Tánaiste and NPHET. We had a briefing with NPHET two weeks ago, after 12 months. Why lock us out of the situation? The Government needs us and the more support it has for legislation the better. Why lock us out completely and disrespect the Opposition like this, telling us carte blanchethat our views do not count and do not matter? We are all in this together but clearly we are not. The Minister forgot about the Opposition when he needed it. When he was in opposition he was at some of those briefings with me, Deputy Cullinane and others from all groups. When he took over he should have known the value of them and the value of having a united approach. We are not going to be obstreperous but we are certainly not going to defend this. It is my duty to defend the human rights and liberties of people when I see them threatened. I have been called the tin hat brigade and all kinds of names but when I have legal advice telling me exactly what is in the legislation, my antenna goes up immediately. Why does the Minister need these powers? He did not lay before us any segment of a report about how many times those powers were used since they were introduced in 2020, whether that was once, twice or 100 times. We should know that when renewing legislation.

This Bill rolls four pieces of legislation into one. They were all emergency Bills and they were all rushed. None of them had pre-legislative scrutiny and we have had no pre-legislative scrutiny on this either. I am honestly very concerned. That is why I called a vote on Second Stage and I will be calling any vote I can tonight as well. I will be answerable to the people. I have made my best efforts to understand what is in this Bill despite the limited time we had before last week. It is just not good enough. The Taoiseach said this morning that pre-legislative scrutiny would take too long.

It is alarming that the head of Government would tell Parliament that it could not discuss legislation and should just take the legislation from the drafters and nod away. I will not be nodding anyway. That is one thing that is certain. I will be ós comhair an Bille seo. It is draconian and rushed and rushed legislation is bad. The Government has abandoned the Opposition because it does not brief us. When replying, the Minister might explain why we have not been given a briefing in 13 months. It was late October 2020 when we last had a briefing. Health spokespersons received a briefing from some of NPHET a fortnight ago last Monday, but that was all. I support Deputy Cullinane's amendment.

See this speech in context