Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

If it is the case that the political parties are the road blocks and the measures being imposed on them in this legislation are the gate ways, it would imply that Independents do not need that gate way and never faced that road block. However, this does not necessarily reflect reality. In the Seanad elections last year, for example, 14 men and six women stood for election on the Trinity panel. On the NUI panel, 22 of the candidates were male and five were female. I am not sure what is the road block and what is the gate way. Of the large numbers of Independent candidates who stand in every constituency in local elections, general elections and European elections, the vast majority are male. We must ask ourselves whether it is as simple as saying that political parties are somehow the problem.