Healy Eames eager to put some order on the House

FIDELMA HEALY EAMES is busy these days. The Galway-based Senator organised a successful series of Chinese language and culture classes this week in Oranmore, in conjunction with the China-Ireland Relations Initiative.

But she is also looking at ways to improve the running of the Seanad. To this end, schoolteacher Fidelma has produced her own 12-point plan and she wants to put manners on her colleagues.

Her suggestions include reducing the length of the Order of Business.

Members who speak for more than two minutes will have their microphone cut off, while Senators who constantly raise irrelevant points of order should have their behaviour “monitored.”

The bold ones could be “suspended for one month from raising a point of order”.

Naturally, a “way must be found to achieve more media attention during the course of the Senate day”.

Of course it should.

Healy Eames believes Senators should not be subject to a party whip, and the position should be abolished.

This, of course, would be of great benefit to very busy Senators who keep getting into trouble with their whip because they have more important things to do than turn up for votes.

Finally, she wants “real power to be accorded to [the] Senate along lines of other more successful senates around the world”.

Good luck with that, Fidelma.