Barry Ward (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I wish to respond to some of the issues Senator Higgins raised. There are two things primarily, the first of which is the suggestion the Minister made in his speech and the case for this amendment. I think, if I have understood what the Minister said in his last response, that the opposite is the case. I do not see how this amendment in any way addresses the fact that these issues might arise quite rapidly or during a recess, for example when the Houses are not sitting, which would create a significant difficulty.

The other point - and I think it is often talked about here - is the role of the Legislature. I, more than anyone, value the role of the Legislature and I think it is incredibly important to hold the Government and the Executive to account. However, when we talk about the separation of powers, let us be in no doubt at all that there is really no separation of powers between the Executive and the Legislature in our constitutional system. In fact, the Constitution de facto mandates the Executive to have control over the Legislature. It has to do so. It has to have a majority in the Houses; otherwise, it cannot function under our system. Therefore, when Senator Higgins talks about democracy and its application, the democratic element of this is in fact the Minister's decision. He is the delegate of the Houses of the Oireachtas, specifically the Dáil, to make these decisions as a member of the Executive. To a certain extent we have to trust in him or her - whoever the officeholder is at that time - to make those decisions. The Senator is quite right when she refers to these being matters of life and death, but again, we must trust in the Minister to make those decisions appropriately. We should also remember that whatever decision the Minister of the day makes, he or she is accountable to these Houses.

As for rendering an explanation to these Houses, there is ample opportunity for the Minister to do that. The problem I have with this suggested amendment, however, is that it would essentially tie the Minister's hands behind his or her back in making decisions as required because he or she would have to take a relatively long lead-in to get a motion passed before both Houses. It is all very well to say we will have plenty of time to do that and we will have plenty of time to get around before that decision has to be made, but what happens if the issue or the difficulties arise, for example, in mid-July? As for extending the delegation of operational control, we have to trust in the Minister to make that decision himself or herself at the right time while, equally, as the Minister said in his response earlier, being accountable to the Houses for how or why that decision was made.