Coalition’s end-of-term report not impressive

World of Politics with Harry McGee – harrymcgee@gmail.com

The Coalition Government has little to boast about on its legislative record in 2017.  Until last week, only16 Acts had been signed into law this year, half of them technical, and very few substantive.  In addition, a small number were unscheduled emergency acts, notably the act that make the Government the financial underwriter of the Rugby World Cup bid. That was signed into law only last week by President Michael D Higgins.

Now my colleague Fintan O’Toole was unhappy about that, saying the Government was happy to rush through legislation when it was for something like rugby but not prepared to do similar for a real emergency like homelessness.

That seems like a strong point on the face of it but the rugby legislation was quickly done. Not quite a stroke of the pen but it was not complicated. It essentially gave the Government power to underwrite the competition should it make a loss. If it does, we will be tapped for over €300 million. That won’t be pleasant if it comes to pass.

Sorting homelessness, unfortunately, can’t be done with the stroke of a pen but requires complicated, time-consuming solutions involving a lot of people, a lot of money, a lot of systems (not all of which are guaranteed to work) and (very sadly) a lot of time.

Anyway back to the legislation. Where were we? Yet there only 16 Acts passed before the beginning of last week. The figure approached a modicum of respectability by that Friday. In the usual final week flurry before the Summer recess, there were no fewer than nine Bills rushed through the House. Six of them went through on the final day.

So many debates on legislation crammed into such a short space of time despite repeated pledges. By a miracle the guillotine was avoided. The Legal Metrology Bill (don’t ask) is hardly one that starts off a conversation in Donoghue’s Pub in Abbeyknockmoy.

The record on publishing new Bills was hardly an improvement. In January, then chief whip Regina Doherty promised 31 pieces of priority legislation, which would be published as Bills in the Spring and Summer sessions.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.