Sean Barrett (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan. This is a pretty sad day in many ways. We have decided to attribute all the blame for the things that happened in this country between 2008 and 2010 to the Members of the Oireachtas. The number of people in this country has increased by 341,000, according to the census, but they will be represented by eight fewer Members of the Dáil. I think that is a tragedy. There is enough of a democratic deficit in this country without leaving an extra 341,000 people to be represented by eight fewer public representatives. People in the Dáil, and to an extent in the Seanad, have to stop beating themselves up about the problems I have mentioned. To the extent that they were caused by elected people, that was solved when the number of seats held by the party that was in power for 80 years, and its supporters, decreased from 85 to 19. They are gone. There is no need to punish this Oireachtas for what the previous Oireachtas did. Instead, we might take a look at the people who were supposed to be regulating the banks, the bankers themselves and the senior officials, all of whom still seem to be here. Politicians have put their heads on the block quite unnecessarily. The political problem was solved. As the Minister, Deputy Quinn, has said, people used the ballot box. There is a completely different set of people here now. The basic point is that this is not the solution to the problems this country has encountered in recent years.

The Minister tried to tell us it is a good idea that Dublin has to make do with three fewer Deputies even though its population has increased by 83,000, or 7%. The population of County Cork has increased by 37,000, but it will lose a Deputy nonetheless. County Tipperary is losing a Deputy even though an additional 10,000 people are living there, with population increases in both constituencies. Having succeeded in our efforts to build up the country in this way, now we are withdrawing the people's democratic representatives. There has been an 8% increase in population across the Ulster counties that we control. In the intercensal period, the population of County Cavan increased by 13.9%, the population of County Donegal increased by 9.3% and the population of County Monaghan increased by 8%. It does not make the slightest sense that those counties are losing 25% of their Deputies when Ulster has been the best-performing province with a population increase of 10.1%. This compares to an increase of 7.5% in Connacht, 6% in Munster, 9% in Leinster and 8.1% in the country as a whole. This measure is turning progress on its head. It should not happen. County Mayo is losing a seat even though its population has increased by 6,700, or 20% more than the population of one of the biggest towns in the county, Westport, which has a population of 5,443. We are rewarding the increased population by ensuring they will have one fewer representative in the Dáil.

As I have mentioned, the Ulster constituencies have come particularly badly out of this. Northern Ireland has a population of 1.789 million and the Northern Ireland Assembly has 108 members, which means there is a ratio of one member for every 16,500 people.

That is half of what the Ulster counties in the Republic will be with about 32,600 people per representative when this is finished. Some of them can pretend they live in Leitrim to get some kind of qualification.

One sees opinion polls stating that a majority of Nationalists in Northern Ireland now support the union. I can see why because they see what is going on in the counties of Ulster for which we have responsibility. Of the eight reductions, two were allocated to Cavan-Monaghan and Donegal. It is hardly an item when the North-South Interparliamentary Association gets together in Stormont on 26 April.

If the Government succeeds in abolishing the Seanad as well, and I believe the Labour Party is now a convert to this, there will be a massive increase in the number of people each Member of the smaller remaining Oireachtas must serve. Democracy did not cause the problem. The bankers who were in the Department of Finance and Department of the Taoiseach that night walked out with ¤64 billion. We have had no legislation to control those lobbyists. Reducing the number of Dáil Deputies and attempting to abolish the Seanad will not address what is wrong with this country. It is time politicians of all shapes, sizes and parties stood up for themselves. The reduction in the Dáil is about 5% and will be more if the Government succeeds in abolishing the Seanad. I will take the cut in pay. The Taoiseach said last week that the alternative to Croke Park II was 7%. The Senator means that a reduction of 7% was a much better solution. Whatever one is trying to save in getting rid of eight Deputies would be better saved by cutting the costs of the Houses of the Oireachtas to raise an equivalent amount of money. I do not see how democrats can come into a House and propose the reduction in numbers when the task facing this country and Oireachtas because of the events of 2008-09 is even more daunting than we had imagined. All the politicians in both Houses should be combining to tackle those problems rather than supporting the policy enshrined in this Bill of reducing numbers in a way that seems biased against the three Ulster counties. It will probably mean that the minority seat that has always been in Cavan-Monaghan will be abolished and I cannot see how that contributes to anything. We are trying to promote ourselves as a democracy and we ought to be more careful about the seats we are abolishing in areas where the population is increasing. It is a pity and a misguided way to tackle the problems of this country. Leaving banks, senior civil servants, bank regulators and lobbyists virtually untouched and beating up on Senators and Deputies is not the way to proceed.