The Constitution sets the date of an election from the first day of the Dail.
So the countdown to the next election starts today. That’s enough to give anyone the shivers. The last year was truly grueling for everyone, winners and losers. So today will bring a sense of relief.
I went to see the amazing play about Tom Crean at the Olympia last night. It was simply wonderful so if you haven’t been to it do try to go when it gets back. It was my first cultural night out for months. Elections just take over your life at a certain stage and all normal activities are suspended. You forget about the cinema, theatre and concerts. So I was glad to restore some of these pleasant features of life to my schedule.

Today will be an anti climax. We know the outcome so the theatrical and ritual parts of Day 1 will dominate. So it should be. The people chose their representatives and the passing of one Dail to another deserves to be marked with due dignity. We don’t go for pomp as in some countries but it still is a pleasant experience to walk in to the chamber and feel a pride to have been chosen in a free and democratic election as a member of parliament. This is my third Day 1 and I still look forward to the day’s events.

The Government that takes office today is a curious mix. 3 very different parties and a mix of independents all with very disparate agendas will certainly add spice to future debates. In the Labour Party we have our own work cut out for us to take stock of another disappointing election result. For myself I am just glad to be back in the Dail. An Opposition TD can influence events. In the last Dail I took up some issues notably those associated with Tax Justice and I achieved some modest reforms from my campaigns. Today’s Programme for Government includes a proposal for a Commission on Taxation which I put forward 3 years ago. That will introduce many necessary reforms and we will see the results slowly over a number of years. I take pride in that and I hope to pursue this and other reforms over the lifetime of this Dail.

Remember William Wilberforce. He’s the MP who promoted the abolition of slavery 2 centuries ago. He never held Ministerial office but advocated this reform over 30 years till he finally won the argument. He is remembered with much greater respect than most of his contemporaries who held high office but achieved little of significance. The power of persuasion is still possible in modern politics and I want to show that in the coming years.

Thank you for visiting this web site so often. There will be breaks during the summer as the dust settles. But I will be reporting here on local and national issues and I hope you will keep in touch as ever.