Martin: Dáil chaos a 'subversion of the Irish Constitution'
Taoiseach Simon Harris and Taoiseach-elect Micheál Martin speak to the media after nominations of the Taoiseach and of other members of the Government broke down today in the Dáil after multiple suspensions. Picture: Sam Boal/Collins Photos
Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin will not become Taoiseach until Thursday after the Dáil was suspended for the day following a row over speaking rights.
Here's how today's events at Leinster House unfolded:
A group of opposition leaders - Mary Lou McDonald, Labour leader Ivana Bacik, Soc Dems deputy leader Cian O’Callaghan, Independent Ireland’s Michael Collins, and People Before Profit’s Richard Boyd Barrett - have now requested a meeting with Simon Harris and Micheál Martin to to resolve the row over opposition speaking time.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald accused the Government of trying to “ride roughshod over the collective opposition” and said they would be “failing the democratic process” if they did not take a firm stance on the row over opposition speaking time.
Asked if the incoming government would compromise with the opposition on the speaking time row, Micheál Martin said he believed it was “absurd” that a new coalition would intervene in that issue.
He said that, on another day, any government trying to involve itself in adjudicating technical groups would be “rightly” opposed.
“It’s a matter for the Dáil and it’s a matter for the reform of Standing Orders,” he said.
Mr Martin said that agreement was reached on establishing a Dáil reform committee, with a meeting planned for midday on Thursday.
However, the Tánaiste said that the issue on speaking time did not justify “the failure to fulfill the constitutional obligation”.
“The actions of the opposition, the actions of Sinn Féin were wholly disproportionate to the issue at hand, which could have been resolved through proper [talks].”
Simon Harris said Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald went into the Dáil with the intention of preventing Mr Martin from becoming Taoiseach.
He described the chaos in the chamber as “stunt politics on speed”.
Mr Harris said that it was “spin” from Sinn Féin to question the incoming coalition on whether Michael Lowry would be considered either a government or opposition TD.
The Fine Gael leader said this would need to be resolved by the Ceann Comhairle and the new Dáil Reform Committee.
The Tánaiste pushed back on assertions that the incoming government was naïve for not dealing with the speaking rights issue, saying it is not for the coalition to resolve.
Mr Martin said new Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy had been "bullied" by the opposition from the outset.
He also criticised language used throughout the day, particularly highlighting the fact that TDs due to support the government were labelled as "cronies".
"That kind of language, which was used from the get go today by Sinn Féin, told me what they were at."
Speaking to the media outside the Dáil, Micheál Martin described the scenes in the chamber as a "subversion of the Irish Constitution", while strongly criticising Sinn Féin in their role.
"The most fundamental obligation of the Dáil is to elect the Taoiseach and indeed, to elect a Government," he said.
"That opportunity was denied today by a premeditated, coordinated, and choreographed position by the opposition, and particularly by Sinn Féin."
Mr Martin said there were numerous attempts to facilitate a resolution to a dispute on speaking time arrangements, but added: “It became very clear to us that there was no intention ever to reach agreement on the nomination of a taoiseach or a government today.
“This is the first time, I think, in over 100 years, that the Dail has failed to elect a government, to fulfil its constitutional obligation.”
Simon Harris said the failure to nominate a new taoiseach is “unprecedented”.
“What happened in Dáil Éireann was utterly farcical. The people’s representatives gathered to discharge their constitutional duty and obligation to elect a taoiseach and to elect a government.
“There was a clear majority of the people’s representatives ready, willing to elect Micheál Martin as taoiseach and to elect the next government and get on with the people’s work.
“There is much work to do.
“Instead, what we saw was an effort to obstruct, an effort to shout down, an effort to disrespect the Ceann Comhairle and her constitutional office, and ultimately preventing a majority of the democratically elected representatives of Dáil Éireann to discharge their duty and their mandate to elect a taoiseach.
“Today was unprecedented, unseemly, and tomorrow, Dáil Éireann must reconvene and must elect a taoiseach and get on with the urgent work of government.”
The Taoiseach will not be elected today following the adjournment of the Dáil by Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy.
Ms Murphy made the decision after the opposition benches rose to their feet following the decision to begin the process of nominating a Taoiseach.
The Dáil had resumed after five-and-a-half hours of stop-start proceedings with a number of meetings held in the hopes of reaching a resolution regarding the speaking rights row.
It had been understood that an agreement had been reached to allow the election of a taoiseach to proceed but this turned out not to be the case.
Speaking in the Dáil chamber, chief whip Hildegarde Naughton said that all parties had agreed to allow the business of the day to proceed.
She then added: "There were a number of agreements and it is my understanding that that is now in dispute."
Opposition TDs were heard to say that there was no agreement while Ms Naughton asked the Ceann Comhairle to proceed with the nominations for taoiseach.
However, as Ms Murphy called on Fianna Fáil TD Albert Dolan to nominate Micheál Martin, Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald rose to her feet.
As Ms McDonald's calls to be heard did not get a response from Ms Murphy, more opposition TDs stood and voiced their disagreement.
Mr Dolan attempted to deliver his speech to nominate his party leader for taoiseach, he could barely be heard over the outraged shouts of opposition TDs.
The chaos carried on for a couple of minutes before Ms Murphy made the decision to adjourn until Thursday morning.
The Dáil will reconvene at 4pm with the Order of Business set to be re-read.
A Dáil reform committee will be established that will meet tomorrow, but it is understood that Sinn Féin has not changed its position and may try to prevent a vote.
TDs are now gathering in the Dáíl chamber ahead of a resumption.
Michael Lowry has placed the blame for today's tumultuous and prolonged proceedings in Leinster House on Sinn Féin.
Sinn Féin has decided to disrupt the proceedings today, said the TD who is part of the technical group at the centre of the controversy, labelling today's events at Leinster House "shameful and disgraceful."
According to Mr Lowry, the Clerk of the Dáil proposed a compromise so that a Taoiseach can be elected and a government formed before the day is out.
Mr Lowry said that there had been an understanding that today's Dáil business of electing a Taoiseach and naming a Cabinet would go ahead and then the Dáil Reform Committee would sit down to discuss the issues.
"It had been agreed that we would all sit around in good faith at that committee meeting and find a solution that is politically acceptable both to the Government and opposition," he said.
However, Sinn Féin has said it will not participate in today's scheduled business until an agreement has been reached.
The standing orders can only be changed by the Dáil Reform Committee which can only be reconstituted after a government has been formed, Mr Lowry said.
"What we are saying is those issues can be resolved but the only way you can resolve them technically is through the reconstitution of the committee," the Tipperary TD said.
It was agreed that a motion would go before the Dáil tonight, after business had concluded, and the Dáil Reform Committee could then meet at midday tomorrow, he said.
Mr Lowry defended the Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy saying that she has correctly interpreted the current standing orders.
In another twist, Aontú have confirmed that they have left the Regional Independent Group.
Aontú leader Peadar Toibin confirmed the move, saying that his party of two TDs will now move and join the Independent Group - which consists of Independent Ireland and Paul Gogarty.
Mr Toibin said that Independent Ireland agreed to let his party join their group, providing Aontú with speaking time in this Dáil.
In the latest twist in what has been a day of drama, the Business Committee is going back in to yet another meeting after no agreement was reached on how to move forward with today’s Dáil schedule to appoint Micheál Martin as Taoiseach.
It is understood the opposition as a group had been happy to progress on the basis that members of the Regional Independent Group did not get speaking time today in opposition time.
The matter would then be dealt with before the next Dáil sitting.
However, Michael Lowry has refused to agree to this proposal and so the deadlock remains.
Having consulted with their parties, the situation remains at a “stalemate”, according to one TD.
The whips are now holding another meeting to see what can be done to reach a satisfactory conclusion.
The business committee has ended without agreement this afternoon.
The Government's proposal around speaking time was to put it to the Dáíl Reform Comittee, which was not agreed.
The Opposition want Michael Lowry to declare himself part of the new Government.
The have explained the entire situation and why there is an argument here.
As of 2.20pm, there is yet to be a breakthrough in the ongoing row around speaking time as meetings continue between government and opposition whips.
The Dáil remains suspended, with no indication when it might return for Micheál Martin's nomination for Taoiseach.
Returning briefly, Government chief whip Hildegarde Naughton confirmed that an emergency meeting of the Business Committee will now be held "to see if we can find a resolution".
The Dáil has suspended once again for a period of 45 minutes to allow for a 30-minute meeting of the committee and then 15 minutes for the parties to meet afterwards.
Movement in the Dáil chamber!
The Dáil is set to have another 45-minute suspension, where there will be an emergency meeting of the Business Committee to deal with the Regional Independents speaking time row.
Sources have indicated that the government is willing to work "constructively" with the opposition to resolve the matter and allow the Dáil's business to resume.
The Dáil's main business today is electing a Taoiseach and subsequently a Cabinet, so Micheál Martin will have a wait before his election can take place.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has deleted a post on X in which she congratulated the Fianna Fáil leader on his appointment as taoiseach, which has not happened.
Ms von der Leyen had posted a picture of the pair with a caption that included: “Looking forward to working with you again.”
Mr Martin has yet to be formally nominated for the position due to the row on speaking time.
The Dáil remains suspended following the rows over speaking rights. Here's a brief summary of what the issue is:
After the Regional Independent Group and the Healy-Raes agreed a programme for government with Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, four members of the regional group and Michael Healy-Rae were made junior ministers.
The four remaining TDs having agreed to support the new government, are now seeking speaking rights as a new technical group in the Dáil from the opposition benches.
Opposition parties have sharply criticised this saying the independent TDs are part of the government due to their input into the programme for government.
The matter is currently with Ceann Comhairle and the technical group which also includes Aontú's two TDs, independent TD Carol Nolan and Mattie McGrath, have been granted temporary opposition speaking rights.
Opposition whips have sought a meeting with the Ceann Comhairle over the ongoing row around Regional Independents sitting on the opposition benches.
One opposition TD says that interruptions are going to continue unless an emergency meeting is held.
A government TD said Verona Murphy must take action to deal with the interruptions, citing that individual suspensions for TDs are on the cards.
After resuming at 11.55am, there were immediate calls for the new Ceann Comhairle to publish legal advice on Regional Independent TDs sitting on the opposition benches.
Amid further disorder, Ms Murphy opted to again suspend the Dáil — this time for a further 30 minutes.
The suspension was initially meant to last for 15 minutes but it had not resumed 25 minutes later, with no time specified for its return.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter) during the suspension, Fianna Fáil TD Niall Collins accused the opposition of "fake anger" and seeking to deny other TDs their place.
"This seems to confirm that their model of opposition will be destructive daily aggression. A bad start for them," he said.
Dáil proceedings were forced to be suspended for 15 minutes after the chamber descended into chaos as opposition parties shouted down Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy.
Ms Murphy confirmed the suspension amid significant disorder within the Dáil chamber, with Sinn Féin TDs heckling the new Ceann Comhairle over her role in the controversy around speaking rights.
Mary Lou McDonald was the first to speak as proceedings got underway and began by saying that it is "unacceptable" that the Dáil intends to go on a two-week break following today's sitting.
The Sinn Féin leader then labelled the attempt of the independent TDs who were involved in drafting the programme for government to have opposition speaking rights as a "cynical and unprecedented ruse".
"I have seen brazen actions by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael in past governments but this takes the biscuit," Ms McDonald said.
Addressing Ms Murphy, she said: "You say that you will be independent and fair in your deliberations. What is proposed today is anything but fair, anything but independent, and is completely unacceptable to those of us in Sinn Féin and, I believe, to the opposition as a whole."
Labour TD Duncan Smith said there is deep division and anger among the public over the speaking rights issue.
Mr Smith called on Ms Murphy to commit to a deadline as to when a decision will be made.
Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon said the government is off to "an incredibly bad start" while People Before Profit-Solidarity leader Richard Boyd Barrett called it "farcical".
Independent Ireland's Richard O'Donoghue said that there was a "conflict of interest" with Ms Murphy making a decision on the matter, highlighting that she was a TD from the Regional Independents and was recommended for the role by Michael Lowry.
Ms Murphy is yet to rule on where the Regional Independents who are not serving in Government will sit, with temporary arrangements for today seeing them remain on the opposition benches.
There were calls for Ms Murphy to set a date for when she would make an adjudication on the issue. She earlier said she will act with “utmost impartiality” to decide whether or not the Regional Independents will sit on the opposition benches.
Speaking on his way into Leinster House, Michael Lowry addressed the ongoing controversy over speaking rights in the Dáil saying that the matter is for the Dáil reform committee with a decision expected "in the next couple of weeks".
Mr Lowry repeated the claim that there is precedent for Independent TDs who support the government to sit in opposition, something opposition parties have rebuked saying that previously TDs were not involved in drafting the programme for government.
"Fianna Fáil did that in their supply and confidence arrangement. I have been doing it here for 25 years — Brian Cowen, Bertie Ahern, Enda Kenny, Leo Varadkar — I supported them all from opposition and I'll do the same in the next government," he said.
It was put to first-time TD Barry Heneghan that a TD cannot be involved in the programme for government and still sit in opposition, to which he responded: "I'm Barry Heneghan and I will always do the best for the people who put me in this position."
Earlier, Kerry TD and incoming junior minister Michael Healy-Rae also pushed back on suggestions that there is controversy over speaking rights — amid an ongoing row between the new government and the opposition.
“There is no controversy because if things were to be different, there would have to be a change made on what was existing already.
“In 2016, there was a confidence and supply arrangement. So Fianna Fáil were supporting the government at that time, but then they were also raising issues on the floor of the Dáil.
“In 2020, you had TDs who were supporting the government and they were also entitled to stand up and raise issues on the floor of the Dáil.
“This whole controversy as far as I can see, what they’re actually looking for is to change things to make them different to what they were because the system that was there allowed for this to happen.
“I believe what the Ceann Comhairle is doing is allowing that to happen. There is nothing unusual about it.”
Mr Healy-Rae also pushed back on suggestions the government was taking a two-week break as the Dáil does not resume until February 5.
He said he would be working for the people of Kerry whether or not the Dáil was sitting, adding that he had no clarity on when he would become a junior minister.
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