Destructive opposition is of benefit to no one

With a few notableexceptions, the quality ofopposition currently being provided in the Dáil is nothing short of disgraceful.

To be a true opposition surely it is necessary to be constructive and if one opposes something then one needs to be able to put forward viable alternatives? We are not seeing much of that in Ireland at the moment.

It is quite incredible to see Sinn Féin and numerous independents riding high in the opinion polls, purely on the basis of opposing absolutely everything that the Government is doing. The last time Ireland had a responsible opposition was arguably when Alan Dukes pursued the ‘Tallaght Strategy’, which was very good for the country, but which ultimately did serious damage to his political career.

However, over the past year the behaviour of most of those in opposition has plunged to new depths and the role of opposition has become totally destructive. Most of the opposition politicians oppose absolutely everything but have singularly failed to suggest any sensible or workable alternatives. The country deserves better than this.

We are now about to embark on a referendum campaign that will be characterised by more of the same type of opposition from Sinn Féin and their ilk, but one wouldn’t be advised to hold one’s breath until constructive and workable alternatives are suggested by those same people.

Holding a referendum in the first place is a strange decision, but presumably there would have been a court challenge if a referendum was not held. The fiscal compact itself is really much ado about nothing. When EMU was launched back in 1999, we all signed up to a stability and growth pact that was meant to impose fiscal discipline.

Unfortunately, it was observed more in the breach than in the observance. The ‘new’ compact seeks to enshrine rules into European law that will aim to ensure that the structural budget deficit, that is the deficit when the impact of the economic cycle is removed, does not exceed 0.5% of nominal GDP, and that the Government debt does not exceed 60% of GDP.

There is so much difficulty in estimating a country’s structural deficit in any event that it is also a pretty meaningless concept to have built into a rules-based system. The EU is trying to create a rules-based approach to fiscal management. It has about as much chance of working as Éamon Ó Cuiv has of becoming president of the EU.

This fiscal compact is really just an invention intended to placate Angela Merkel’s electorate, which is not overly enamoured with the prospect of bailing out Greece, Portugal, Italy, Spain and Ireland who have behaved so irresponsibly over the past decade.

While Europe may be disappointed that Ireland has decided to hold a referendum, it is not a game-stopper. After all, 12 of the 17 countries will be sufficient to pass the treaty into law. This is very unlike the Lisbon situation where Ireland held Europe to ransom. It is a pity that more countries did not listen to Ireland at that stage.

The type of campaign that the Irish Government runs will be crucial to prospects for a ‘yes’ vote. Already, the ‘yes’ side should be concerned. I heard Eamon Gilmore arguing that this is a treaty for jobs. It is nothing of the sort. Basically the simple question that we will have to answer is if we want to remain part of the euro or not. I find it hard to see in the longer term how a country could remain part of the euro and yet not sign up to this treaty.

The message for the ‘yes’ side is that it should keep it simple and provide the electorate with a stark choice. That might just concentrate minds, but we will still have to endure the totally destructive opposition that currently has so much appeal for a large part of the electorate.