Green ‘mix-up’ over bill vote

IT INITIALLY looked like the first internal rebellion of this Government but it turned out last night to be a bad mix-up involving the two Green senators.

The controversial bill that contained a provision designed to allow former minister Michael Woods collect €75,000 in pension back-payments was debated in the Seanad yesterday.

Green Party chairperson, Sen Dan Boyle was highly critical of the provision, arguing that it should not have been included in the Markets in Financial Instruments and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill 2007.

However, when a vote was called on this section of the Bill, neither Sen Boyle nor his Green Party colleague Sen Deirdre de Búrca were present.

The abstention was interpreted by opposition members as a protest gesture. However, a clearly embarrassed Green Party leader John Gormley last night put it down to a mix-up and said that he had apologised to Fianna Fáil’s leader in the Seanad, Sen Donie Cassidy.

The party’s Government spokesman said Sen Boyle and Sen de Búrca had been called to a parliamentary party meeting, at which new civil partnership legislation was announced.

“If he had been in the chamber,” said the spokesman,” he would have voted with the Government.”

Sen Fiona O’Malley (PDs), was scathing of Tánaiste Brian Cowen’s inclusion of the provision.

“In the past 18 months I have written to the Minister for Finance on several occasions on behalf of constituents who could not obtain their pension entitlements because they had failed to claim them before a specific deadline.

“The minister indicated, quite correctly, that he could not possibly change the regulations because that would open up a can of worms. If that response is good for ordinary pensioners, why is it not good enough for Deputy Woods?” she asked.

However, Sen O’Malley ended up voting with the Government.