Gilmore vows action against party rebels

Embattled Labour leader Eamon Gilmore has vowed to move against party rebels after he suffered another blow to his authority.

Limerick senator James Heffernan defied the leadership and voted against cuts to child benefit and respite carers allowance, but the controversial budget measures passed the Seanad.

Faced with open defiance on several fronts after five TDs including Labour chairman Colm Keaveney have lost the party whip after voting against the Government in the past 12 months, Mr Gilmore told TDs he would take action in the new year.

He told a parliamentary party meeting it was “impractical” for Mr Keaveney to stay chairman, and then faced the embarrassment of having to attend a Labour national executive meeting presided over by him.

Mr Heffernan added to the sense that Mr Gilmore does not have a full grip on the junior coalition partner when he defied intense pressure to back the individual budget cuts after he had voted with the Government on the overall package the previous day.

He said he could not vote for the measures “in good conscience” as Labour was breaking its election promises by bringing them in.

Mr Heffernan insisted the move contained an inherent “unfairness” as it hit carers and children when the money could have been raised by increasing taxes on high earners.

“I will remain a Labour man and will commit all efforts to reversing unjust cuts,” he told the Seanad as two party colleagues who had expressed misgivings about the welfare bill opted to back the Government.

Despite six of the Taoiseach’s nominees to the Seanad voting with the opposition, the welfare measures were passed.

Independent senator David Norris called for the social welfare bill to be sent back to the Dáil for revision and that he would be “ashamed” if that did not happen as the upper house would look like a “rubber stamp” for TDs.