Sinn Féin voting against first-stage Bill banning fox hunting ‘deeply troubling', Social Democrats say
A decision by
Sinn Féin
vote against an
Opposition Bill
seeking to ban fox hunting was 'deeply troubling' and potentially undemocratic, the acting
Social Democrats
leader has said.
A Private Members' Bill to ban hunting was introduced to the Dáil on Wednesday by People Before Profit TD Ruth Coppinger.
Bills are not normally voted on at that early stage and are given leave to pass to the second stage for a full Dáil debate.
However, in an unusual development, a vote was called on the Bill by Kerry TD Danny Healy-Rae. Sinn Féin, Independent Ireland and a handful of rural Independent TDs all voted against it at first stage.
READ MORE
However, the two Government parties, and the other Opposition parties and TDs, voted to give the Bill leave and it passed to second stage.
Acting Social Democrats leader Cian O'Callaghan wrote to Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald on Thursday to express his deep concern at her party's decision to block the Bill.
'While the Social Democrats believe strongly that blood sports are barbaric and cruel, we recognise the democratic right of Sinn Féin to take an opposing view,' he wrote. 'However, the decision by Sinn Féin to vote to prevent a Bill going to the second stage was unprecedented and deeply troubling.'
Mr O'Callaghan said allowing the Bill through would not have denoted opposition or assent.
'As far as I am aware a political party has never attempted to block an Opposition TD tabling a piece of legislation. What is really extraordinary about what happened last night is that it was Sinn Féin – an Opposition party – which attempted to block a Bill from another Opposition grouping – People Before Profit/Solidarity – proceeding to the second stage.'
He added that if the practice was continued it would be undemocratic and completely undermine the role of the Opposition.
A spokesman for Sinn Féin said its vote was 'no big deal'. He said the party voted against the legislation in the knowledge that it was going to the second stage in any instance.
'We have a different position and took the opportunity to set out our opposition to the legislation,' he said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
43 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
Elaine Loughlin: Trump's ICE attacks on free speech do not stop at US borders
Humiliation is just another minor consequence of Donald Trump's latest chilling move against freedom of speech, which threatens the entire bedrock on which the US was founded. This week I toyed with taking a look back at some of the best years of my life. Thankfully, the demise of Bebo meant I couldn't find a way to log in to see what ultimately would have been an embarrassing stream of blurry pictures, apparently funny comments, and hot takes on the world that would have left me cringing for days. Thoughts are no longer private The years that straddle adolescence and adulthood is a time in which most people are navigating the world, making mistakes, and forming their own opinions, many of which will change as lived experience alters what can be idealistic and naive interpretations. The current generation of third-level students, who have no recollection of Bebo, are now finding that what could have been a fleeting opinion or throwaway remark may have a lasting impact. Under new rules, all applicants for F, M, and J visas to the US will be instructed to adjust the privacy settings on all of their social media profiles to 'public'. Running contrary to everything from John Stuart Mill's 'On Liberty' through to the US constitution itself, Donald Trump, 'is denying the space and freedom to allow truth prevail'. Picture: Alex Brandon/AP Irish students looking to spend a summer in America on a J1 visa will be required to list all social media usernames or handles of every platform they have used from the last five years on their application form. Applicants must certify that the information in their visa application is true and correct before they sign and submit. Omitting social media information could lead to visa denial and ineligibility for future visas. 'A US visa is a privilege, not a right,' a statement issued by the US embassy read. Threat to first amendment of the US constitution The latest announcement is just part of an ongoing intrusive policy which aims to engender fear, curtail opposing opinion, and ultimately threaten the much-valued first amendment of the US constitution. 'We are watching a major incursion on freedom of expression unthinkable in a Western democracy,' was how Labour leader Ivana Bacik described the changes announced to the student visa system by the US administration this week. Holding up a comical printout of an online meme in the Dáil chamber, Bacik detailed how US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, better known as ICE, had detained a young Norwegian tourist at Newark Airport for five hours before he was ultimately sent back to Oslo. Why? He had on his phone the same meme depicting vice president JD Vance as a baby. While Bacik described the incident as 'extraordinary', such examples are becoming more frequent under the Trump administration, which seems hellbent on stifling alternative opinion. John Stuart Mill explained free speech Freedom of expression, especially in the academic sphere, is crucial if we as a species are to evolve and advance. In his 1859 essay, On Liberty, British philosopher John Stuart Mill put forward a comprehensive three-pronged argument as to why opinions, regardless of how incorrect or misaligned they are, should never be silenced. 'In any argument there are only three possibilities. You are either wholly wrong, partially wrong, or wholly correct — and in each case free speech is critical to improving or protecting those positions,' he wrote. 'Only through diversity of opinion is there, in the existing state of human intellect, a chance of fair play to all sides of the truth.' ICE arrests Trump, through a series of measures is denying the space and freedom to allow truth prevail. This began in March when ICE agents began arresting student protestors who had expressed pro-Palestinian views. In one of their many notorious actions, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) held Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil, a lawful permanent resident, for three months. Picture: Ted Shaffrey/AP This included the high-profile case of Mahmoud Khalil, a student activist at Columbia University who was returning home from dinner with his eight-month-pregnant wife when he was taken by four ICE agents and forced into an unmarked car. Although Khalil, a lawful permanent resident who was born in Syria, was released after three months in custody on June 20, the administration has indicated that it will appeal this and has cited a provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 in its effort to deport Khalil. The clause allows the secretary of state to remove individuals from the country if they have reason to believe the person's actions or presence undermines foreign policy interests. Since Khalil's arrest, hundreds more students have been detained over their pro-Palestinian campus activism, with often vague allegations tabled against them. In late April, plans to further expand the reasons under which international students can be stripped of their legal status in the US were unveiled. Since then, there have been pauses on visa interviews and a move to 'aggressively' revoke visas for hundreds of thousands of Chinese students. More than 60 third-level institutions, most notably Harvard University, have been threatened with billions of dollars in financial penalties. In refusing to bow to Trump's pressure, Harvard is battling moves to freeze research grants and suspend foreign students from enrolling in the Ivy League college. Under such constraints, a brain drain has begun, with many lecturers and researchers looking to Europe and further abroad for refuge. Beyond academia, the administration has banned news outlets from covering White House events and sought sanctions against attorneys and law firms who do not represent Trump's view of the world. The land of the free and the home of the brave is becoming a place where those brave enough to speak out are suppressed and punished.
Irish Times
2 hours ago
- Irish Times
Letters to the Editor, June 28th: On lack of action in Brussels, doing the right thing and choice language
Sir, – Your newspaper today (June 27th) provides a stark juxtaposition as to the situation in Gaza, and the hypocrisy of the EU. Your reporters in Brussels set out the lack of action by the EU to sanction Israel for its failure to allow aid into Gaza (' Government briefs 'like-minded' EU states on Occupied Territories Bill '). We see where states who are 'sympathetic' to Israel effectively veto anything more than carefully crafted words, as being the strongest action possible. The hope being that these words will bring the Israeli government to its senses and allow aid, at appropriate levels, to be let into the enclave, and maybe a ceasefire. And as if to show the Israeli government holding two fingers to the EU, your Reuters report sets out how Israel has stopped any aid being allowed into the north of Gaza ('Israel halts aid to northern Gaza as clans deny Hamas is stealing it'). Those strong words from Brussels really hit the mark! READ MORE The hypocrisy of the EU is then laid bare with unanimity easily forthcoming in extending sanctions against Russia for their invasion and ongoing war with Ukraine. While Mr Netanyahu can strong arm those leaders who are 'sympathetic' to Israel, the EU will never take collective action against Israel. It is time for those EU states who are minded to take action against Israel, in the form of concrete sanctions, must do so unilaterally. – Yours, etc, PHILIP BRADY, Donnycarney, Dublin. Sir, – I read with interest Dr Ed Abrahamson's letter (June 26th). His analysis of Ireland's relationship with Israel in light of ongoing events in Gaza and the political discussions of the same in Ireland was revealing. I was particularly interested in his view that the 'deep freeze' he describes between Ireland and Israel may never end. He posits that the fracture in the relationship between the two countries may affect the economy and also gives an example of the welfare of patients in Irish hospitals who may be deprived of medical advances which come from Israel. It is true that the Government and many politicians have spoken out on issues in Gaza and many people in Irish society are very upset and angry about what is unfolding. For many across society, this has meant taking a stand and speaking up for what we consider to be wrong in terms of current events. Surely to be human and to have moral courage and clarity means that taking a stand on any issue should come down to moral considerations alone? The view that being seen as taking a stand against Israel's current actions might affect us in a material way is a factor to be borne in mind, is to totally miss the point and the moral clarity that taking a stand on any issue demands. Moral courage is the willingness to take a potentially costly moral action simply because it is the right thing to do. I learned this lesson very early in childhood when I was visiting Dublin with my parents and ran towards the door of Dunnes Stores on Henry Street and my father gently pulled me back and said 'We are not going in there, never cross a picket, do you hear me now ? never.' He gently explained about South Africa, apartheid and oranges and how these people were doing what was right, even though it would affect them directly in their income. I was fortunate to have such an early lesson and the clarity and admiration with which he spoke about those Dunnes Stores workers has stayed with me as a seminal memory, almost 40 years later. Taking a stand means doing the right thing even if the consequences of that stand affect you directly, the world is often transactional and full of compromise and moral cowardice. Doing the right thing means we abandon such obfuscation and speak with the same clarity and simplicity as though we are speaking to a child, explaining the difference between right and wrong and why doing the right thing matters even if it affects you directly. – Yours, etc, JACKIE GORMAN, Athlone, Co Westmeath. Sir, – Justine Mc Carthy is to be congratulated on her forensic account of how the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, has exceeded her legal mandate and undermined the role of the EU high representative and the rights and responsibilities of individual member states in relation to foreign policy ( 'What gives Ursula von der Leyen the right to egg on Binyamin Netanyahu with his killing crusades ?' June 27th). The big question is what can be done about it? A motion of censure is due to be tabled by a number of MEPs in respect of the 'Pfizergate'controversy. This concerns Ms von der Leyen's professed inability to release copies of texts between her and the Pfizer chief executive officer during the Covid crisis. There are also issues arising in relation to the alleged bypassing of the European Parliament and the increasing centralisation of power in the commission. It is now clear that the Fianna Fáil MEPs who voted against von der Leyen's reappointment were absolutely correct in their judgment. Given the Government's strong position on the recent report on Israel's violations of human rights within the EU trade deal, all our MEPs should now consider supporting this motion and help trigger a substantive and comprehensive debate in the European Parliament on this important issue. – Yours, etc, MARTIN Mc DONALD, Dublin 12. Contactless travel Sir, – Dr Mark Thompson asks why it will take so long to introduce contactless payment on public transport (Letters, June 27th). His question is, however, like the line judges in Wimbledon, redundant (' No line judges at Wimbledon: you cannot be serious ,' June 27th). We don't need contactless payment; we need a simple Berlin-style smart phone ticketing app. Once downloaded you can buy a ticket that lasts for two hours on any form of public transport. You can buy a ticket immediately before you board a bus, tram or train. You don't have to tap machines at stations, on buses or trams. Random inspection polices the time-based system. With a Berlin-style app, payment is easy and foolproof. Unlike the traditional Wimbledon fans upset by the removal of the line judges, the Berlin app does not need to replace the cumbersome existing infrastructure. Better, it does not need the addition of contactless payment which is rapidly becoming a legacy technology. – Yours, etc, SEAN KEAVNEY, Dublin 15. Sir, – Ken Buggy bemoans the delay by the National Transport Authority introducing contactless payment on public transport here (Letters, June 27th). He suggests that if Ryanair were involved it would be in place 'tomorrow' and with 'no shopping bags'. He should be careful what he wishes for; Ryanair might refuse buggys as well. – Yours, etc, PAUL MURPHY, Drumcondra, Dublin 9. Sir, – Dr Marc Thompson rightly takes the Government to task regarding the lack of contactless payment on our public transport system. He wonders why there's no joined-up strategy, and why we can't deliver 'infrastructure at a scale and speed which the citizens deserve'. There can hardly be something called 'joined-up strategy', without joined-up thinking, and, regarding what the citizens deserve, that particular horse has long bolted, and the citizens' expectations do not appear to have any purchase in the minds of those in the corridors of power. – Yours, etc, PETER DECLAN O'HALLORAN, Belturbet, Co Cavan. Remembering Mount Charles Sir, – The sad news of the death of Henry Mount Charles brought to my memory a little incident which showed his wide field of interests and concerns, In the 1990s, the issue of the closure of the Phoenix Park racecourse arose. My sister, May, was very concerned about the closure and started a campaign collecting signatures of protest. Without any contact from my sister, Mount Charles wrote to her offering any help he could give. May was surprised and very pleased to receive such unexpected support. That same day, we read the dreadful news that Mount Charles' beloved Slane Castle was on fire. So he didn't get the wished-for opportunity to record his views on the racecourse closure. A man of many streams. – Yours, etc, EILEEN LYNCH, Dublin. Aesthetics and architecture Sir, - The article (' Cost to take priority over 'aesthetics' in future State infrastructure projects ,' June 27th) could be interpreted as the Government abandoning its national policy on architecture published in 2022. 'Aesthetics' are not something nice to have but an essential component of public buildings and an easy target to blame for high costs. In fact, the architectural and special quality of the children's hospital is one of the few positives that counterbalances negativity around the high cost. The real drivers of cost are not standards and aesthetics but rather the delays in procurement and planning. Each year a ¤1 billion project is delayed adds about ¤70million to the cost and we regularly see these public projects take countless years to go from the start to commencement of construction. We don't need soviet-style grey boxes to put our sick children in. It won't solve the cost-control issue either. – Yours, etc, JOE KENNEDY, FRIAI, Co Dublin. Sir, – It is well established that the long-term consequences of ignoring aesthetics in the construction of major infrastructure, such as hospitals, include reduced usability, lower satisfaction, and higher costs in the long run. At least Jack Chambers' (Minister for Public Expenditure) false dilemma of cost versus aesthetics adds a new entry to the bingo card of construction costs in contemporary Ireland: Beauty! – Yours, etc, DR CONNELL VAUGHAN, Lecturer in Aesthetics, Technical University, Dublin. Shine on Sir – British prime minister Keir Starmer's Irish chief of staff Morgan McSweeney appears to be losing his shine (' Irish fixer under fire as welfare rebellion looms in U K,' June 27th). According to army protocols and even Collins Dictionary, 'polished shoes make its wearer look more presentable and can elevate a person's public standing'. A tin of black should do it then. – Yours, etc, MARION WALSH, Dublin 4. Capping judicial review legal costs Sir, – Recent commentary blames judicial review for delays in infrastructure and housing projects, prompting proposals to cap legal costs for successful applicants at ¤35,000 (' Government plans for €35,000 fees cap to halt High Court delays to building projects, ' June 20th and ' Failure to tackle objectors will have dire results, ' June 27th). Judicial review exists not to frustrate policy, but to meet Ireland's obligations under the Aarhus Convention which requires access to environmental justice to be 'fair, equitable, timely and not prohibitively expensive'. Given our inordinately expensive legal system, capping legal fees at €35,000 would effectively deny access to justice for many – including individuals, community groups and NGOs. Meanwhile, the State would remain free to spend unlimited sums on its own legal team. This imbalance undermines the constitutional guarantee of equality before the law and the principle of 'equality of arms' in legal proceedings. Instead of undermining this essential right, we should address the real issue: Ireland spends just 0.07 per cent of its GDP on its legal and judicial system – the lowest in Europe. Chronic underfunding, not judicial review, is the main cause of court delays. – Yours, etc, TONY LOWES, Friends of the Irish Environment, Co Cork. GAA and the Mayo board Sir, – The choice of language used by the Mayo County GAA Board in sacking its management team was disgusting. Exactly what might be expected of the owners of an English Premier League club when sacking a manager; and indeed, even then not always so. Gaelic football is an amateur sport. An amateur sport that is now garnished with the worst aspects of corporate professionalism and elitism. Major fixtures behind pay walls. Highly paid officials. Corporate boxes. Exorbitant ticket prices. All totally based on the efforts of unpaid amateur players. GAA president Jarlath Burns needs to have a chat with his full-time permanent officials. Pundits speak of managers losing the dressingroom. If GAA HQ are not careful, they may well lose a lot more than that. Mayo are a proud GAA county. An apology should issue from headquarters . And an assurance that county management teams will be treated with respect in future. An opening phrase that a manager 'has been relieved of his duties with immediate effect' undermines whatever weasel words may follow. – Yours, etc, LARRY DUNNE, Rosslare, Co Wexford. Wouldn't do a tattoo Sir, – Despite multiple back-packing trips to Thailand where guest houses often had tattoo artists in situ, despite several weekends in Amsterdam where impulsivity reigned and despite 40 plus years as a biker surrounded oftentimes by bearded brethren covered in ink, I have never felt the desire, nor the need, to get a tattoo. And now at 62, taking gravity into consideration and looking at my inked friends (bar one who is an ultra marathon runner with a lean taut physique) I am happy I didn't follow the herd. Speaking of which, is that a sheep or a cloud on your shoulder? And why does that wolf on your back look like he got implants in Turkey? – Yours, etc, LORCAN ROCHE, Dublin. Choice language Sir, – My oh my, how far the standards of The Irish Times have fallen. I am still in shock having seen the word 'arse' in one of Fidelia's Crosaire clues in this morning's paper. Where do we go from here? – Yours, etc, MJ Tomlin, Dublin.
Irish Times
7 hours ago
- Irish Times
The Irish Times view on the next election: anyone for the presidency?
Who would run for president of Ireland? Not many , to judge from the long list of potential candidates who have already ruled themselves out of the contest to succeed Michael D Higgins when his second term ends in November. There are a multitude of reasons for early contenders to opt out. Some know they would not win. Others have been told, or have come to realise, that they would not secure their party's nomination. For frontline politicians or those with ambitions to serve in government, the thought of occupying a largely ceremonial role in the relatively sleepy surroundings of the Phoenix Park for at least seven years may not be all that enticing. The high financial cost of running a campaign is also no doubt a factor. But it is surely undeniable that the bruising, even brutal, nature of recent Irish presidential campaigns is also deterring prospective nominees from putting their names forward. There is a long list of candidates from previous elections, including people of real standing and professional accomplishment, who say the campaign left them feeling damaged or humiliated. To anyone who values the democratic system, that's regrettable, and everyone– including parties, candidates and the media – must reflect on it. At the same time, it is vital that candidates for such an important office are subjected to serious, robust scrutiny. Candidates complain that it's all about playing the man – or woman – and not the ball. The problem is that, in presidential elections, there is no ball. The president has no executive powers and virtually no influence on policy. Their influence is softer, more nebulous and symbolic. Campaign discussions about housing or healthcare or taxation are useful only insofar as they provide an insight into the personality and worldview of the individual. READ MORE Ultimately, a presidential election is about finding the personality whom the electorate deems most suitable to represent the country and its values at a particular moment. In their different ways, each of the last three presidents have done exactly that, embodying an outlook or a set of preoccupations that both reflected – and helped to define – their eras. To say that the president's power is largely symbolic is not to imply that the role is less important. On the contrary. It is vested with important constitutional functions that require sound judgment and sharp political instincts. It is in many ways a harder role to fill than most other public office because the holder must have that rare ability to both understand politics and stand above it, to show a deep, sophisticated knowledge of the Irish experience and the ability to articulate a national vision that transcends day-to-day preoccupations. If that person is to be found, the strongest candidates must enter the contest.
