Dáil sketch: Theatrical performance would fill no one with confidence

Tánaiste Leo Varadkar

Arts Minister Catherine Martin's job may have gotten slightly easier last night as the Dáil appeared to pull off the first coronavirus-safe theatre performance since March.

There were a number of low blows, soft landings and cringe-inducing applause from TDs who must have forgotten the public could actually see this spectacle in real life.

Fine Gael's oven-ready attack lines of "but Sinn Féin..." were well crafted, some delivered better than others. Jennifer Carroll MacNeill was a standout for noting: "Sinn Féin are not concerned by detail but only by theatre."

Sinn Féin's Pearse Doherty was on his usual flying form: "I just looked at the record of Fine Gael minister, Michael Darcy, who spent three years in the Department of Finance, three years being lobbied by the fund industry, and three months after leaving the office, he becomes the chief lobbyist.

"Fine Gael minister Brian Hayes spent three years in the Department of Finance. Where is he now? The chief lobbyist for the bank and vulture fund industry. 

"The revolving door keeps spinning. It is the politics of Leo Varadkar, those on the inside will always have an ear."

Roisin Shortall had a list of queries which were summed up in her first few sentences: "He should have admitted that it was wrong, apologised, and that probably would have been the end of it. 

"However, he never admitted he was wrong. Instead, he concocted a false narrative, of a cock and bull story, which clearly misrepresented the truth on a number of counts.

"Arguably, that was the greater error because the truth matters. Firstly, he tried to make out that the confidential documents, which he leaked, were somehow not confidential. In spite of it being clearly marked confidential, not for circulation."

Peadar Toibin landed a stinger on Fianna Fáil's big Jim: "Listen to Jim O'Callaghan, who has positioned himself recently as the conscience of Fianna Fáil, if that's not an oxymoron at this stage. This is his opportunity, this vote tonight to put his money where his mouth is."

Towards the end, Simon Harris summed up the entire evening: "I'm genuinely worried about political discourse in this country. I'm worried we now live in a world where some strive to see those with political differences as enemies rather than decent people with opposing views."