The junior partners may have negotiated new ethical measures in their talks, but they are missing the big picture
SOMETIMES I feel sorry for the Greens. Late on Friday night after the negotiations for the revised programme for government were concluded after more than a week of talks, Senator Dan Boyle had a few drinks with some party members around the corner from Government Buildings. He was tired but excited and looking forward to the Green Party convention the next day.
When I asked him why it took them so long to come to an agreement, he said the trouble with Fianna Fáil was that “they think that everyone else thinks like them”. The implication, therefore, was that after 40 or 50 hours of negotiations and brinkmanship that the Green Party had somehow managed to successfully change aspects of the Fianna Fáil mindset.
To prove his point, Dan then outlined some of the measures contained in the revised programme and was particularly proud of section eight, “Enhancing our democracy and public services”.
It’s difficult not to like proposals that begin with phrases like “radical reform” and “dynamic public service”. Proposals to establish a beefed-up independent electoral commission that consolidates the cumbersome and complex ethics legislation is to be welcomed. An electoral commission with enhanced powers of inspection would go some way in satisfying this incredible shortcoming in Ireland’s ethical framework.
It has not always been clear how or where Irish citizens should complain about those in public life. For example, how many people complained or inquired whether John O’Donoghue had wholly complied with the Department of Finance guidelines, the Cabinet handbook rules on the appropriateness of spouse travel and use of the Government jet and the codes of conduct as laid out in the Ethics in Public Office Act?
The Standards in Public Office Act 2001 defines wrongdoing as a “specified act”, without actually ever defining what this means. The Standards in Public Office Commission has described this vague proviso as “rather nebulous”.
A clear statement of values that defines what our ethical values are would be helpful to all those politicians who did no wrong and broke no law. Indeed, just 49 of the 141 complaints made to the Standards in Public Office Commission from 1997-2007 were valid. The British committee on standards in public life have done so (www.public- standards.gov.uk). The Seven Principles of Public Lifeis a one-page statement of values that "apply to all aspects of public life" and include selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.
These seven principles shone in spades during Ryan Tubridy's interview with a well-known public figure on last Friday's Late Late Show. Brian Cody, the Kilkenny hurling manager, spoke of the "leadership, genuineness and honesty" and the "respect, honesty and spirit" of his hurlers. While one man defended how good his hurling team was on the show, a former taoiseach then exhausted his interview defending his legacy.
The revised programme for government also seeks to overhaul the ridiculous charade of how political donations are disclosed. Ireland does not have a publicly available full income and expenditure annual financial statement by political parties like Britain.
The absence of full disclosure has made the existing legislation meaningless. It has unnecessarily created the perception of political impropriety and is wholly counterproductive.
For example, of the €10.1 million spent by parties and candidates in the obligatory three-week accounting period before the 2007 general election (never mind that spent in the previous two years) just €1.3 million was disclosed to the standards commission. That’s €8.8 million in donations that were not disclosed.
Other aspects of the revised programme for government are also eye-catching. The reform of unvouched expenses for TDs and Senators, addressing the limits in Freedom of Information legislation, the introduction of a register of lobbyists and a more transparent system for appointments to public bodies are long overdue. But no whistleblower legislation?
The pooling of corporate donations into a political fund to be distributed to political parties in accordance with their electoral performance in the previous Dáil election is a rather curious proposal. Perceptions of implicit influence within political funding are there for a reason. Forty per cent of all Fianna Fáil’s disclosed donations in the 10 years since disclosure to the standards commission was introduced have came from developers and construction-related donors and Fianna Fáil has been in receipt of 55 per cent of all donations given to political parties.
But back to Dan Boyle.
He had just reason on Friday night to enjoy his few pints having spent over 40 hours negotiating these reforms.
The Greens may even relish their political manoeuvring. It emerged that talks were conducted in the Leinster House office of Minister Eamon Ryan because his party felt that this prevented Fianna Fáil from having any territorial advantage.
And that’s why I feel sorry for the Greens.
The belief that you can change the mindset of a party entrenched in pragmatic conservatism, which has been in government for 20 of the last 22 years, because you hold the talks in your office.
The belief that the fundamental reform of a debased political system in crisis and devoid of any semblance of moral authority had to be negotiated in the first place.