Election 2016 – a time for choosing

Sir, – Micheál Martin looks surprisingly relaxed on the Fianna Fáil election posters. Does he know something that we don’t? – Yours, etc,

PATRICIA O’RIORDAN,

Dublin 8.

Sir, – There is a culture in Leinster House that is unique, being a mixture of schoolyard and law court, conservatively rigid and outrageously rude, but aspirationally dignified in its proceedings.

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A drama unfolds from Tuesday to Thursday, with little side-shows occasionally on Fridays.

Mostly the drama is played in a sparsely populated chamber.

The election of a significant number of first-time Independents and those from smaller parties is an effective tool that the electorate can employ to bring about change and, in the short term at least, make a resounding statement on the need for a better way of doing things.

The electorate did it at the local elections. Will they do it again? – Yours, etc,

CAITRÍONA McCLEAN,

Lucan,

Co Dublin.

Sir, – Could the moratorium on election coverage, normally imposed by the media on the day before polling, be brought forward – to now? – Yours, etc,

ANTHONY MALONE,

Douglas, Cork.

A chara, – A common mantra underlying the forecasts is that stable government is a necessity for every democracy. Stable government is taken to mean the use of the party whip to ensure that TDs vote in line with party orders, often against their own consciences. Voting for Independents, under this view, would cause chaos and instability.

There is nothing wrong with the idea of a government formed of Independents. If enough of them presented themselves for election to gain a majority of seats in the Dáil, they could form a government without whips. The “chaos” that would ensue would be a breath of fresh air. The new style of government would introduce legislation that could be voted on freely and according to conscience. If, because of the free vote, some of it was defeated, it would not be the end of the world. The government would remain in place and try again. It was the Independents – the rebels and the mavericks – who lit up the 31st Dáil with their powerful words and actions. It is time for other independent-minded candidates to enter the race in every constituency and give a voice to the many who have no stomach to vote for the wreckers of the country, either past or present.– Is mise,

JUSTIN MORAHAN,

Dublin 16.

A chara, – Marie O'Halloran outlines well how the last government's majority was whittled away during its lifetime ("The gradual reduction of 31st Dáil's historic majority", February 3rd). Particularly interesting was her detailing of how the biggest single loss was over "the controversial Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill in 2013", when four TDs were expelled from the parliamentary party for voting against it.

This loss was entirely preventable and due to the government’s failure to allow a free vote on the issue. By way of contrast, when Alan Shatter broke the party whip in the early 1990s to vote in favour of a Bill to ban live hare coursing, while he was disciplined, he was not expelled. An issue relating to the prevention of cruelty to animals, it seems, deserved to be treated as a matter of conscience; while one relating to abortion clearly did not.

Whoever forms the next government, it it is unlikely to have such a large majority as the one just gone, if current opinion polls are to believed. Hopefully, this will make those in power more inclined to grant a free vote on any controversial issues that arise, if only to preserve their majority. It would certainly be worth asking the representatives of the various parties when they come to our doors exactly how theirs are proposing to treat issues of conscience. – Is mise,

Rev PATRICK G BURKE,

Castlecomer, Co Kilkenny.

Sir, – I’m fed up already. Thank God for Miriam Lord. – Yours, etc,

RONNIE SIMPSON,

Bray,

Co Wicklow.