New-look ‘Irish Times’ lead misleads on Pearse Doherty by-election court costs

» Mark Moloney

Had the Fianna Fáil Governent moved to allow the people of Donegal South-West elect a person to represent them in the Dáil – as is their constitutional right – there would have been no legal costs to pay.

A HEADLINE in today's new-look Irish Times newspaper shouts “State pays €240,000 to SF TD’s solicitors” but what it should have said was “State wasted €240,000 trying to prevent by-election”!

The story relates to the Donegal South-West by-Election of November 2010 which was only held after a legal challenge by Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty (then a Senator). Doherty brought a case against the Government over their failure to hold a by-election within a year of the seat becoming vacant.

At the time, the Government had only a majority of three in the Dáil and refused to hold the election, knowing that it was unlikely they would win.

Fianna Fáil's Pat ‘The Cope’ Gallagher had been elected to the European Parliament more than a year earlier, on 5 June 2009. The failure to move the writ on the by-election was the longest ever in the history of the state and the people of Donegal South-West were left under-represented in the Dáil for a period of 17 months.

The High Court said the delay was “unprecedented” and that the Government was responsible for an “inordinate delay” in holding the by-election. It also ruled that the failure to hold a by-election was a breach of Doherty's (and by extension the people of Donegal South-West) constitutional rights.

Justice Kearns said at the time that the Government’s failure “offends the terms and spirit of the Constitution and its framework for democratic representation”. Then Taoiseach Brian Cowen announced his intention to appeal the decision but the Government later told the Supreme Court it was not proceeding with the challenge. Both the High Court and Supreme Court ordered the state to pay Doherty's legal costs. Doherty subsequently won the election with a massive 39.85% of the vote

Had the Fianna Fáil Governent moved to allow the people of Donegal South-West elect a person to represent them in the Dáil – as is their constitutional right – there would have been no legal costs to pay.