Shamed government backs away from election

The likely date of a 26-County general election has been pushed back to March or even later as Fianna Fail and Green Party Ministers attempt to cling to power.

A call for two Green Ministers that their ‘priority legislation’ be enacted before the general election was cited as the reason for the change of heart.

A spokesman for the Greens has confirmed the party could be persuaded to pull back from its original demand, made on Monday, November 22nd, that it wanted an election in the second half of January.

In recent weeks it had come under overwhelming pressure to quit the deeply unpopular coalition government as the hugely controversial 85 billion euro bailout loan deal was secretly negotiated with the International Monetary Fund and the European Union.

With the party’s popularity consistently registering below the margin of error in opinion polls, the two Green Party Ministers, facing the likely end of their political careers, will be acutely aware that their pensions are linked to their period of service in Ministerial office.

It was also reported that Fianna Fail wanted “as long a lead-in time to a general election as possible” to allow more time to boost its record low poll rating.

Fianna Fail is hoping to postpone the election until after the annual St Patrick’s Day trips to the United States. The junkets are considered the highlight of the political calendar by government ministers and the White House event is traditionally a publicity coup for the incumbent Taoiseach.

HELD TO ACCOUNT

Despite its successful passage of most of the legislation around the Budget, there was still a fly in the ointment for the government after it was forced to hold a debate and a vote in the Dail over the IMF/EU bailout.

As was the case with the Donegal South West by-election, it took a legal effort by Sinn Fein to force the Dublin government to live up to its democratic responsibilities.

Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams said the move was a direct result of an action initiated this week by Sinn Fein Dail Leader Caoimhghin O Caolain regarding the constitutional requirement for a Dail vote on such an agreement.

“The Fianna Fail/Green coalition had no intention of facing up to its constitutional obligations,” he said.

“Sinn Fein will be voting against this deal. We call on all TD’s concerned about sovereignty and the rights of Irish citizens to vote against this deal.”

Mr O Caolain said that solicitors acting on his behalf had written directly to the Chief State Solicitor, including by fax and email, demanding that the Memorandum of Understanding relating to the EU/IMF “sell-out deal” be laid before the Dail in accordance with Article 29(5) of the Constitution.

“This legal letter called on the Government to announce on or before close of Dail business on Tuesday the 14th December 2010 that on its completion this agreement will be submitted for a vote by the Dail and that in the absence of such an announcement, that I would take such further action to compel the laying of the resolution before the Dail.”

He said the IMF deal would burden Irish children and grand-children “with mountains of debt incurred by speculators who gambled and lost”.

“We call on all members of the Dail to vote against this deal. We also call on all parties to make a commitment that if they are in Government they will scrap this sell-out.”

Urgent Appeal