18 December 1997 Edition
Six months in Leinster House
MICHEAL MacDONNCHA, parliamentary aide to Caoimhghín O Caoláin TD, reflects on the reality of life in the Big House
The peace process may have led to a thaw towards Sinn Féin on a personal level (and that's by no means unanimous as you would see from some of the sour pusses in the corridors) but in here the political reality remains. We are a competing party, presenting an electoral challenge and a political alternative. No favours are expected or given.
Two reports landed on my desk here in Kildare House last week. One was full of Christmas cheer. The other struck a more sombre note.
The first was a little Christmas present from An Post - a brochure and stamps marking 75 years of `Rialtas na hEireann', the anniversary of the foundation of the Free State on 6 December 1922. The text gushed with enthusiasm for the Celtic Tiger and the great achievements of the Irish in all fields of endeavour. It was a promotional publication, aimed primarily at international audiences. But the tone echoes that of our political class in the 26 Counties, full of self-congratulation about the successes of the economy. We are all meant to share in the `feelgood factor'. If we dissent we risk being stigmatised like the grumpy old man whose Christmas greeting was ``Bah Humbug!''
Of course the real Scrooges are not griping on the sidelines. They are actually running the country. The second report reminded us of that. It was from the Conference of Religious in Ireland and gave a detailed analysis of Charlie McCreevy's Budget for the Rich.
Charlie is an old-fashioned politician. He doesn't have much time for ideas or ideologies. He likes horse-racing and has a down-to-earth style of delivery.
He was truly disappointed when he was not universally praised for giving pensioners a rise of £5 per week. He was completely unruffled when it was pointed out that he had blown the best chance in years to narrow the inequality gap and lift many of our people out of poverty.
Those of us with longish memories recall his Dirty Dozen cuts when, as Minister for Social Welfare in 1992, he cut benefits during the recession in the name of fiscal rectitude. During hard times the poor are made to pay.
During better times the wealthy are rewarded. That, basically, is how the system works. Companies and wealthy individuals will have bulging Christmas stockings thanks to Charlie. The rest of us will struggle along as usual.
In their constituencies the 81 Government TDs will encounter daily the hard realities which no amount of public relations can conceal. They will meet people living in cramped accommodation as they linger on endless housing lists.
They will meet the unemployed, and some of the many thousands on the make-work schemes which are used to fiddle the true jobless figures. They will deal with innumerable social welfare issues.
In such face-to-face meetings in their `clinics', boasts about the Celtic Tiger will not work. So the government TDs will rely on their ability to convince people that because they are government TDs they have special access which will speed up claims and get the desired result. Once again, that's how the system works.
Where can a progressive party that seeks fundamental change fit into all this?
With great difficulty is the short answer. The two-fold challenge is immense. It is first to provide the service to constituents which they expect and deserve. It is then to put forward a consistent political programme, an alternative to the failed policies which have dominated for so long. This alternative needs to be constructive, offering real improvement in people's lives in the short term as well as in the long term.
Place this burden on the shoulders of one TD, the sole representative of his party in Leinster House, and the size of the task becomes clear. And I haven't even mentioned the special responsibilities which participation in the peace process bring.
We live in the most centralised state in Europe, and one of the most bureaucratic. Precious little power is devolved to local level. Conservatism is ingrained in the ethos of the civil service, mirroring that of their political colleagues of both the major parties. This means that people look to their elected representatives to short-circuit a system which is bewildering in its complexity and intransigence. It means that the vast majority of TDs spend virtually no time on law-making and policy formulation and nearly all their time on constituency work.
Leafing through the newly published Guide to the 28th Dáil and Seanad it is amazing the number of faces that I do not recognise. They are rarely seen around the corridors here. They are the mass of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael back-benchers who spend all their time on constituency work and only appear here as required by their party whips for lobby fodder when votes are called in the House.
The business of forming policy and making laws is left to a very few people, a select group of ministers and top civil servants. These same people dictate the procedures of the legislature itself. They treat it as a kind of sausage machine. The meat is stuffed in one end and the regulation-size sausages come out the other. Their job is to ensure the smooth working of the machine.
Political debate is incidental. Real political imput from TDs, representing the democratic voice of constituents, is negligible.
All this is disguised by the niceties of parliamentary procedure and the ethos of Leinster House itself. Like most parliaments, its membership is male-dominated, mainly middle-aged and conservative. The stuffiness of the gentleman's club prevails. If you're not part of the old boy network - the lobby fodder - life is made very difficult for you.
The sole Sinn Féin TD Caoimhghín O Caoláin has encountered all this at first hand. Even the most basic democratic right - his right to speak in the body to which he is elected - is severely curtailed. The peace process may have led to a thaw towards Sinn Féin on a personal level (and that's by no means unanimous as you would see from some of the sour pusses in the corridors) but in here the political reality remains. We are a competing party, presenting an electoral challenge and a political alternative. No favours are expected or given.
In response we must deploy hard work and struggle - nothing new for republicans. The workload of our TD is enormous. Constituency work is highly demanding and there is a big challenge to make full use of the political opportunities presented by membership of Leinster House, both for the people of Cavan/Monaghan and for Sinn Féin. We are learning lessons all the time which will be of use to future Sinn Féin representatives here. We are improving representation and service to constituents.
We work in a system which we are trying to transform and that means that the most important arena is not in here but on the outside, in the community, where we build our political strength. It has been an unprecedented year for Sinn Féin in terms of building political strength. We made a breakthrough six months ago in Cavan/Monaghan. The story of the past six months has been one of efforts to make more breakthroughs, to push the boundaries further. Republicans have shown themselves well capable of breaking out of the jails and ghettoes made by their opponents. There will be many more escapes to come.
The peace process may have led to a thaw towards Sinn Féin on a personal level (and that's by no means unanimous as you would see from some of the sour pusses in the corridors) but in here the political reality remains. We are a competing party, presenting an electoral challenge and a political alternative. No favours are expected or given.
Two reports landed on my desk here in Kildare House last week. One was full of Christmas cheer. The other struck a more sombre note.
The first was a little Christmas present from An Post - a brochure and stamps marking 75 years of `Rialtas na hEireann', the anniversary of the foundation of the Free State on 6 December 1922. The text gushed with enthusiasm for the Celtic Tiger and the great achievements of the Irish in all fields of endeavour. It was a promotional publication, aimed primarily at international audiences. But the tone echoes that of our political class in the 26 Counties, full of self-congratulation about the successes of the economy. We are all meant to share in the `feelgood factor'. If we dissent we risk being stigmatised like the grumpy old man whose Christmas greeting was ``Bah Humbug!''
Of course the real Scrooges are not griping on the sidelines. They are actually running the country. The second report reminded us of that. It was from the Conference of Religious in Ireland and gave a detailed analysis of Charlie McCreevy's Budget for the Rich.
Charlie is an old-fashioned politician. He doesn't have much time for ideas or ideologies. He likes horse-racing and has a down-to-earth style of delivery.
He was truly disappointed when he was not universally praised for giving pensioners a rise of £5 per week. He was completely unruffled when it was pointed out that he had blown the best chance in years to narrow the inequality gap and lift many of our people out of poverty.
Those of us with longish memories recall his Dirty Dozen cuts when, as Minister for Social Welfare in 1992, he cut benefits during the recession in the name of fiscal rectitude. During hard times the poor are made to pay.
During better times the wealthy are rewarded. That, basically, is how the system works. Companies and wealthy individuals will have bulging Christmas stockings thanks to Charlie. The rest of us will struggle along as usual.
In their constituencies the 81 Government TDs will encounter daily the hard realities which no amount of public relations can conceal. They will meet people living in cramped accommodation as they linger on endless housing lists.
They will meet the unemployed, and some of the many thousands on the make-work schemes which are used to fiddle the true jobless figures. They will deal with innumerable social welfare issues.
In such face-to-face meetings in their `clinics', boasts about the Celtic Tiger will not work. So the government TDs will rely on their ability to convince people that because they are government TDs they have special access which will speed up claims and get the desired result. Once again, that's how the system works.
Where can a progressive party that seeks fundamental change fit into all this?
With great difficulty is the short answer. The two-fold challenge is immense. It is first to provide the service to constituents which they expect and deserve. It is then to put forward a consistent political programme, an alternative to the failed policies which have dominated for so long. This alternative needs to be constructive, offering real improvement in people's lives in the short term as well as in the long term.
Place this burden on the shoulders of one TD, the sole representative of his party in Leinster House, and the size of the task becomes clear. And I haven't even mentioned the special responsibilities which participation in the peace process bring.
We live in the most centralised state in Europe, and one of the most bureaucratic. Precious little power is devolved to local level. Conservatism is ingrained in the ethos of the civil service, mirroring that of their political colleagues of both the major parties. This means that people look to their elected representatives to short-circuit a system which is bewildering in its complexity and intransigence. It means that the vast majority of TDs spend virtually no time on law-making and policy formulation and nearly all their time on constituency work.
Leafing through the newly published Guide to the 28th Dáil and Seanad it is amazing the number of faces that I do not recognise. They are rarely seen around the corridors here. They are the mass of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael back-benchers who spend all their time on constituency work and only appear here as required by their party whips for lobby fodder when votes are called in the House.
The business of forming policy and making laws is left to a very few people, a select group of ministers and top civil servants. These same people dictate the procedures of the legislature itself. They treat it as a kind of sausage machine. The meat is stuffed in one end and the regulation-size sausages come out the other. Their job is to ensure the smooth working of the machine.
Political debate is incidental. Real political imput from TDs, representing the democratic voice of constituents, is negligible.
All this is disguised by the niceties of parliamentary procedure and the ethos of Leinster House itself. Like most parliaments, its membership is male-dominated, mainly middle-aged and conservative. The stuffiness of the gentleman's club prevails. If you're not part of the old boy network - the lobby fodder - life is made very difficult for you.
The sole Sinn Féin TD Caoimhghín O Caoláin has encountered all this at first hand. Even the most basic democratic right - his right to speak in the body to which he is elected - is severely curtailed. The peace process may have led to a thaw towards Sinn Féin on a personal level (and that's by no means unanimous as you would see from some of the sour pusses in the corridors) but in here the political reality remains. We are a competing party, presenting an electoral challenge and a political alternative. No favours are expected or given.
In response we must deploy hard work and struggle - nothing new for republicans. The workload of our TD is enormous. Constituency work is highly demanding and there is a big challenge to make full use of the political opportunities presented by membership of Leinster House, both for the people of Cavan/Monaghan and for Sinn Féin. We are learning lessons all the time which will be of use to future Sinn Féin representatives here. We are improving representation and service to constituents.
We work in a system which we are trying to transform and that means that the most important arena is not in here but on the outside, in the community, where we build our political strength. It has been an unprecedented year for Sinn Féin in terms of building political strength. We made a breakthrough six months ago in Cavan/Monaghan. The story of the past six months has been one of efforts to make more breakthroughs, to push the boundaries further. Republicans have shown themselves well capable of breaking out of the jails and ghettoes made by their opponents. There will be many more escapes to come.