Dynasties help maintain the old political order

WITH the current discussion about political ethics, I wonder if a political scientist in one of our universities could help me with a query?

Intuitively it seems to me that a very large number of politicians in local and national government in Ireland belong to ‘dynasties’ — much more so than in other developed countries in which I have lived.

Is this actually the case?

I recall Mary Harney commenting in the past on how difficult it was for her to break into mainstream politics because of the stranglehold of political families on the representative system. She made it. How many other excellent, fresh-thinking people have been prevented from contributing new ideas and new standards by a system that is difficult for people without family connections to break into?

It’s understandable that someone from a family in which brothers, fathers, uncles and grandfathers were politicians may want also to get involved.

Is this form of closed society healthy?

If the political scientists confirm my intuition, do they believe that political systems with a higher ‘hereditary’ component have an increased propensity for ‘favours’ and ‘corruption’ than ones with a larger proportion of people from different backgrounds?

Again intuition says they probably do — that ‘new brooms sweep clean’.

Maybe we are getting the political system we deserve?

Donal Fellows

Ul. Prosta 70 00-838

Warsaw

Poland