Attempts yesterday, on Wednesday, by a group of TDs led by Michael Lowry, who spearheaded talks pledging support from the former Regional Independent Group to the incoming Fianna Fáil - Fine Gael administration, to sit on opposition benches caused uproar on a day normally reserved for the election of a taoiseach.
The independent Galway West TD and former Leas-Ceann Comhairle said the arrangement sought by Lowry’s group was a fundamental misunderstanding of the Dáil’s business rules.
“It’s outrageous what they’re doing. There are very few opportunities to have your voice heard in opposition in the Dáil. The people elected us to hold government to account, and the mechanism for that in opposition is to form a [technical] group to secure speaking time,” she said.
“Giving government supporters opposition time undermines our parliamentary democracy. It’s a misunderstanding of standing orders” Connolly added.
Connolly has demanded that the new Ceann Comhairle, Verona Murphy, shares the legal advisories she has received to facilitate Lowry’s new group. Murphy was a member of the Regional Independent Group in the previous, 34th Dáil.
Connolly herself has combined with the Independents and Smaller Parties technical group, which includes three PBP-Solidarity TDs – Richard Boyd Barrett, Ruth Coppinger, and Paul Murphy – alongside Seamus Healy (Ind ), Donegal’s 100% Redress TD, Charles Ward, and former Sinn Féin TD Brian Stanley (Ind ). Green Party TD Roderic O’Gorman is expected to join once he hands in his ministerial seal.
“This is the point. [O’Gorman] quite rightly can’t join a technical group while he’s officially a member of a government, so nor should the TDs who voted to form it,” said Connolly.
“You can’t have your cake and eat it.”
