Part-time politics lets down voters
Tomorrow brings another classic example of the holiday camp syndrome at Leinster House as elected representatives move smartly to shut up shop after a two-day session which comes to an abrupt end following their brief return from the hustings and the celebration of St Patrick's Day.
Without as much as a twinge of embarrassment, they will decamp en masse for costa del Ireland where ministers will bask in their Mercs for the duration of the Easter holidays.
A rest may be in order in the wake of two by-elections. But for Independent TD Catherine Murphy and Fine Gael's Shane McEntee, who were returned in Kildare and Meath respectively, tomorrow's adjournment means they will barely have time to warm their new Dáil seats before heading home again.
What a way to run a country.
No doubt, TDs will roll out the time-worn argument that holiday periods are devoted to grassroots work necessary to keep the political machines ticking over in their home constituencies.
They will also produce the hoary old chestnut of parliamentary committee work during holiday time. But that argument is a hollow one because the number of committee meetings which take place, especially during the summer adjournment, are few and far between.
In any case, given the slow passage of promised bills through the House, voters could be forgiven for taking the committee line with a large grain of salt.
All in all, politicians attend the Dáil for only 90 days in the year and some notable TDs seldom appear in the chamber.
In the minds of voters, cynical over the fat salaries, generous pensions and hefty perks which politicians have steadily amassed, they would be better employed doing the job they were elected for namely, enacting legislation and serving the interests of the public who voted them into office.
Doubtless the Government will blame negative publicity on the media, offering the rationale that such criticism is unfair.
Politicians should realise by now, however, that it is entirely warranted in view of their penchant for taking the kind of holidays the average person could only dream about unless they won the Lotto. Is it any wonder election turnouts are dwindling?
Following their Easter recuperation from the grindstone of Dáil business, they will return to Leinster House for a spring session on April 12 only to break up again after 10 weeks.
Come next July they will decamp for the lengthy annual sojourn of three long months in the summer sun. Nice work if you can get it.
The issue of transparency is further compounded as Taoiseach Bertie Ahern becomes less visible in the Dáil thanks to a drastic reduction in the time devoted to the thorny issue of Taoiseach's questions.
Under an arrangement struck with the Labour Party, Mr Ahern appears on Tuesday afternoons and Wednesday mornings but he never does Thursdays. In effect, his visible accountability as leader of the Government has been diluted.
To paraphrase Fianna Fáil's election slogan, if a lot has been done, there is much more to do. The policy of winding up the business of Dáil Éireann for lengthy adjournments is utterly indefensible.
That politicians should take such long holidays beggars belief and explains why the business of politics is steadily losing respect in the jaundiced eyes of the public.
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