Letters

Government and Opposition are stuck in a political bubble

Remote, arrogant and at odds with common sense

Tue Mar 12 2024 - 00:12

Sir, – Voters with disparate political views voted a No landslide in both referendums and common sense prevailed. Most No voters and many misled into voting Yes for fundamentally flawed propositions are moderate, reasonable, decent people who reject political extremism and fantasy politics. They are not currently properly and fairly represented by any political party in the Dáil. The outcome of the family and the care referendums irrefutably proves that. – Yours, etc,

ALAN SHATTER,

Dublin 16.

A chara, – Voters have shown a yellow card to a team for wasting time and resources on matters of no core interest to the general public.

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If they don’t provide adequate shelter and basic healthcare for our people, it will be upgraded to red. – Yours, etc,

JOHN CRONIN,

Dublin 6W.

Sir, – Una Mullally claims “The vote was nuanced” (“Five lessons from the referendum defeats”, Opinion & Analysis, March 11th).

She is imputing motives and nuances in two binary choices.

Some humility is in order. Una Mullally, who was an active participant in a previous referendum, seems to imply some sort of ability to examine her own heart and decide what the Irish people really wanted. How ironic that the spirit of de Valera really does live on! – Yours, etc,

MATTHEW GLOVER,

Lucan,

Co Dublin.

Sir, – Three of Una Mullally’s five “lessons” concern messaging, strategy and campaign practice. This simplification misses the point entirely and insults the intelligence of voters. The message was understood; it was simply not acceptable. Strategy and campaign weren’t going to change that. – Is mise,

DARA O’DONNELL,

Dublin 8.

Sir, – Is it time for some to unearth that well-used car sticker, “Don’t blame me, I live in Dún Laoghaire”? – Yours, etc,

GEOFF SCARGILL,

Bray,

Co Wicklow.

Sir, – Una Mullally says “the vote was nuanced”.

Maybe in Dún Laoghaire it was, but in Donegal it wasn’t (No: 80 per cent and 84 per cent). – Yours, etc,

Dr JOHN DOHERTY,

Gaoth Dobhair,

Co Dhún na nGall.

Sir, – While it is ultimately the Coalition’s responsibility, it is wholly disingenuous of the Opposition to now lay the blame entirely on the Government parties for the refusal of the electorate to pass the family and care amendments to the Constitution. From the outset, the proposals were vague and confusing, with suggested wording that had yet to be defined.

This naturally led to the public’s reticence and caution, realising, as time went on, the genuine responsibility to handle the Constitution with care. Despite their recognition of its obvious shortcomings, Opposition parties encouraged voters to come out and support what they were accepting were ill-defined proposals and unpredictable interpretations. Was there a fear that the alternative to supporting the amendments would have aligned the Opposition with minority, extreme groupings with which few of us care to associate? For similar reasons, did many of us No voters keep our intentions to ourselves?

One positive outcome from this poll has been a heightened awareness of the need to support carers and those with extra needs. Generous welfare payments do not equate to systems and services. It would be redemptive if politicians moved beyond the calls to sign up to various charters and made a concerted effort to enact legislation that would practically change the lived experience of those with extra challenges. – Yours, etc,

KATE GLEESON,

Dublin 9.

Sir, – I assume the referendums were held in response to NGO pressure on the Government to change the Constitution. The negative results would indicate that the NGOs speak for a very small minority of the electorate and are indeed out of touch with the thinking of the great majority of the people. Congratulations to the great majority of the people who have a mind their own and were prepared to vote No. – Yours, etc,

MARTIN CROTTY,

Blackrock,

Co Louth.

Sir, – Following the swift excuses by so many politicians and journalists whose advice we ignored, the people of Ireland want to know how much this debacle cost. This includes the briefings, the documentation, the closure of schools and the policing of associated meetings and the count on Saturday. – Yours, etc,

CARMEL BEDFORD,

Clonbur,

Co Galway.

Sir, – Politicians, current and prospective, who typically turn up in droves for an “opening of an envelope photo opportunity”, were as rare as hen’s teeth at the tally of the Sligo-Leitrim constituency results.

As the No ballot papers tumbled from box after box, they disappeared like scalded cats, before the 76.52 per cent and 71.89 per cent of No votes were made known, in the care and family referendums respectively.

The Sligo-Leitrim electorate, in line with the rest of the country, said loudly and clearly, “Tally No and off you go!” – Yours, etc,

SINÉAD TRACEY,

Leitrim.

Sir, – Are citizens’ assemblies consistent with our democratic system? These are selected groups of unelected people whose views are given considerable weight. Elected governments appear obliged to heed their views and are publicly chastised for not adhering to every word of their recommendations. We have tasked TDs with decision making on our behalf and they should not delegate difficult decisions to other bodies such as citizens’ assemblies. NGOs have also been given prominent roles in our system to represent certain groups in society and are given public funding. They are often dignified with titles such as “council” which can cause confusion by implying an authority which they do not possess. They are also unelected and there is no way to ensure they accurately represent the views of their supposed constituency.

Both of these represent departures from our constitutionally ordained democratic system. Maybe the real message from the voters is for our elected representatives to do the job for which they were elected and make the hard decisions within the Oireachtas. – Yours, etc,

DENIS MURPHY,

Dunboyne,

Co Meath.

Sir, – Perhaps now the Government will put some effort into building up marriage instead of seeking to erode it. – Yours, etc,

GEORGE MORRISON,

Kill,

Co Kildare.

Sir, – The choice of wording in the care referendum was unwise. Yet the sad fact is the State, in reality, “strives” already when it comes to vindicating a lot of other rights too. It is time the people rejected that attitude too. – Yours, etc,

ULTAN Ó BROIN,

Blackrock.

Co Dublin.

Sir, – The result of the referendums should prompt some thoughts about why our politicians, and in particular politicians serving in Government, are so out of touch with public opinion. A number of things seem to me to explain it.

First, the longer politicians are in power, the more they lose touch with the public. Fine Gael has now been in power continuously since 2011. The leaders of Fianna Fáil and the Green Party also have long service in government.

Second, politicians are too influenced by public opinion polls, which are no more than a snapshot at a point in time. They reflect short-term concerns and are generally acknowledged to be poor guides to election outcomes.

Third, the plethora of political advisors, some of whom come from NGOs with special interests, are also a problem. Faceless apparatchiks without the discipline of the Civil Service and unaccountable to the electorate, they nevertheless wield great power behind the scenes. Finally, within the Government system there is little tolerance for contrary ideas. While civil servants must accept and implement Government decisions, they need to provide objective advice to the best of their ability. I fear civil servants today tend to ask themselves first what does the Government want to hear, and they tailor their advice accordingly. – Yours, etc,

FELIX M LARKIN,

Dublin 18.