Martin jumped on the ‘Yes’ vote bandwagon and it has backfired

ON April 27, you reported on the 76th Fianna Fáil Ard Fheis. 

You reported that, at a meeting addressed by Senator Averil Power, a number of people voiced opposition to the party’s campaign for a ‘Yes’ vote in the same-sex marriage referendum. I was at the meeting and wish to set out some facts.

Until the referendum campaign began, the vast majority of Fianna Fáil members would have presumed the party opposed same-sex marriage, but leader Micheál Martin, and his inner circle determined that FF should endorse it. His repeated statements that the bulk of members endorsed same-sex marriage, and that this dictated official Fianna Fáil policy, is disingenuous. Same-sex marriage was never debated on the floor of the 2012 Ard Fheis. What happened was that, early on the morning of March 3, 2012, 80 people gathered to discuss same-sex marriage. Ms Power and her supporters were to the fore. A motion to support same-sex marriage was called. Two votes followed and 45 people voted for same-sex marriage. A policy was born, the coup complete.