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Senator encourages the undecided to attend meeting on Lisbon Treaty

9th May 2008

Lisbon TreatySenator Alex White will continue his series of public information meetings on the Lisbon Treaty this week.

After a successful start in Dundrum last week, Senator White invites the public to join him in Loreto Community Centre, Nutgrove on Monday May 12th and Kiely’s, Mount Merrion on Thursday May 15th.

Confirmed guests for the meetings include Blair Horan of the CPSU and Holly Kilroy of Labour Youth, with more to be announced.

“I encourage anyone who wishes to learn more about the upcoming referendum to join us this week,” Senator White said. “So far there has been a lot of talk from both sides of the debate. What my colleagues and I hope to do is to dispel a lot of the myths surrounding this Treaty and explain it in plain English.”

“The referendum is an opportunity for those of us who want to promote a social Europe, to fight for that at the heart of Europe and the only way we can fight at that heart is by voting in favour of the Lisbon Treaty,” he said.

Senator White also said that he was encouraged by the attendance and quality of debate at the previous meeting.

“Our meeting in Dundrum was very successful. The audience was a good mix of people who were curious about the Treaty, those concerned about its consequences and those who sought more detail on its contents.

“I believe that it satisfied the needs of all those people.”

Information Seminars on the Lisbon Treaty, organised by Senator Alex White will take place on Monday 12th May in Loreto Community Centre, Nutgrove and on Thursday 15th May in Kiely’s, Mount Merrion. Both meetings begin at 8 pm and all are welcome.

High Court judgment unlikely to have significant impact on work of tribunal

8th May 2008

Four Courts, DublinLabour always believed that the former Taoiseach’s High Court action challenging the Mahon Tribunal’s right to question him about certain statements he made in the Dail was more about delaying the work of the Tribunal than upholding the constitutional right to privilege of members of the Oireachtas.

The tactic worked in terms of delaying the Tribunal from questioning him on matters of relevant public interest. However, it could not prevent his exit from office much earlier than he had planned, which was largely due to the determination of Labour and other opposition parties to hold him to account politically.

At the time the action was initiated we acknowledged that there were serious legal and constitutional issues surrounding the privilege of members of the Oireachtas. A number of the issues raised by Mr. Ahern’s legal team were conceded by the Tribunal early in the hearing. The High Court judgement on the outstanding matters will now have to be studied to establish the extent to which the questions relating to privilege have now been further clarified.

Given that the Tribunal has access to its own information and the fact that many of the statements made by the Taoiseach in the Dail were also repeated outside, I do not believe that this judgment will have a significant impact on the Tribunal’s further inquiries into Mr. Ahern’s financial affairs.

‘No more curtain calls’

8th May 2008

Seanad ChamberThere have been many congratulations for the former Taoiseach and we now have had a month of praise and thanksgiving. Much of it has been deserved, some of it less so, and some of it has been bordering on the nauseating. It is now time to get down to business. I wondered at one stage over the last few weeks whether the former Taoiseach would outdo Luciano Pavarotti, who has the world record of 165 curtain calls in a single performance. The former Taoiseach went close to that record.

While it is a matter for debate whether this is a new Government, it is an opportune moment for us to have that wider discussion. I ask the Leader to arrange for the new Taoiseach to come into this House and to set out his ideas, his proposals and his vision for the post-Celtic tiger Ireland into which we are facing. Before we can get down to the important debates with individual Ministers, I would echo the call to bring in the Taoiseach to the Seanad for that type of debate. We can then grapple with the challenges that exist in the economy, such as the deepening inequalities that have characterised the last decade of growth, the spectacle of 190,000 children at risk of poverty in a country with such enormous wealth held by so few people.

If we had that debate, we could consider the sort of public service we want to have in this country, how we fund it, how we use the taxation system in order to bring about a fairer society, and whether we want one health service for the well off and one for everybody else. I would like to hear the Taoiseach set out his stall on these issues in this House. The Opposition parties are also under a duty to put forward their ideas and their vision, and this would provide an excellent opportunity to do that. I join with my colleagues in congratulating the new Taoiseach, but I hope we get down to business today. I would welcome the opportunity to have such a debate at the earliest possible occasion.

“Lisbon is not a raid on our sovereignty”

2nd May 2008

EU flags in BrusselsSenator Alex White has asked the public not to approach the upcoming referendum on the Lisbon Treaty with fear.

The Labour representative in Dublin South was speaking during a debate in the Seanad on Thursday.

“There is almost a ‘Little Ireland’ approach from the No Campaign, who say that if it is out there in Europe, we must resist it and put the brake on because it can only go against us,” he said. “Those arguments have been heard repeatedly.

“We make a decision to give up or share sovereignty. It is not taken from us. The Treaty is not a raid on our sovereignty by this big faceless body. We will make any judgment ourselves.”

Senator White is seeking a Yes vote on June 12 and he told the Seanad that the Lisbon Treaty will mean more transparency in the EU and will increase the strength of the country in any future negotiations.

“The No Campaign have stated that we will not have a Commissioner sitting at the table for five out of the 15 years after 2014. Comparisons are made with TDs. People elect TDs to a sovereign Parliament. We must understand that the European Union appoints Commissioners in a different context. They are not there to fly the flag for their country. That is not what they are appointed to do,” he told the Seanad.

Senator White also dismissed claims that a No vote would send politicians back to renegotiate, saying that “the opportunity to negotiate a deal has been taken”.

“It is clear that an opportunity is available for those of us who want to promote a social Europe, to fight for that at the heart of Europe and the only way we can fight at that heart is by voting in favour of the Lisbon Treaty,” he said.

“A Yes vote on June 12 will mean that Ireland will go to the EU in the future with a strong hand. It is about having the self-confidence, and the people should have enough confidence to vote Yes.”

  • Senator White continues his series of public information meetings on the Lisbon Treaty in Loreto Community Centre, Nutgrove on Monday May 12th and Kielys, Mount Merrion on Thursday May 15th. Both meetings begin at 8pm and include some special guests. All are welcome.

Labour Bill on FOI voted down by government parties

1st May 2008

Last night, the Seanad debated the Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2008 brought forward by the Labour party. After a debate of nearly two hours, with some interesting input from both sides of the house, the Bill was voted down by the government parties.

The Bill would have gone some way to redeem the Freedom of Information Act from the bruising it received due to amendments by the Fianna Fáil/PD government in 2003. Those amendments added fees of between €10 and €150 to FOI requests which has resulted in a dramatic fall in the number of requests received, from a peak of almost 18,500 in 2003 to just over 10,500 in 2007.

The Bill would have also extended the remit of FOI to groups such as an Garda Síochána. Ireland is the only country of 27 in Europe which does not include its police force in FOI, and this is something that the Information Commissioner, Ms. Emily O’Reilly has sought as well as Mr. Conor Brady, a member of the Garda Ombudsman Commission.

Below is my own speech to the Seanad last night. I spoke at the very end of the debate.

I represent something of an unreconstructed approach to freedom of information, namely, that the presumption should be precisely that freedom of information. The case should be made for the exception and not the other way around. The rationale behind the 2003 amendments was, and much of the opposition to what we are proposing is, motivated by a completely different approach to freedom of information. The latter is, in part, grudging.

At the very least, it can be characterised by a sense that the individual must make a case for obtaining particular information rather than it being presumed that the information should be freely available, but with reasonable and rational exceptions. The starting point should be to have the widest possible latitude and freedom while a case can be made in legislation and administrative rules for where the exceptions should apply. It has as much to do with our culture and approach to the issue as it has with the individual legislative provisions.

I am sorry to say that the Minister of State’s contribution is from the old school. We know the Act was introduced in 1997 and that extra bodies have been added. We know all these things, which have been set out in the Minister of State’s speech.

To take the fees issue, however, it is difficult to see how the change in fees in 2003 was motivated by anything other than a desire to deter people from making freedom of information applications. Why else was it done? The Minister of State ought to be more direct with us as to why that was done. It comes through in his speech which quotes the extreme but interesting example of a request for access to the diaries of a number of civil servants and Ministers - the very idea of it. It involved reading through thousands of pages of documentation. At least that particular application had the advantage of only ever having to be done once as regards the diaries of civil servants and Ministers.

We understand that there is a burden on the State and the public service in respect of freedom of information. By introducing legislation in 1997 and believing in freedom of information, as Senator Callely said, we must be prepared to accept that a burden goes with the freedom we want to provide. It is no use taking the approach that it is so onerous and requires so many hours of work that we must restrict it. The presumption in any democratic society, especially a modern democracy such as ours, should be to make the information available, accept the burden and live with the cost to the State. I accept there is a cost to the public purse in providing freedom of information, but most entitlements we introduce come with a price tag. We must be prepared to accept that price tag within reason. It is not good enough for a Minister to point to the extraordinary cost or how onerous it is on us.

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Seanad to debate Labour Freedom of Information Bill

28th April 2008

Leinster HouseLabour Senators will introduce the party’s the Freedom of Information Bill in the Senate next Wednesday during Labour Party Private Members Time.

Senator White said: “This Bill is designed to extend the scope of the Freedom of Information Act to a number of key bodies including the Garda Siochana and to repeal the regime of charges for access to information introduced by the Fianna Fail/PD government in 2003.

“The Freedom of Information legislation enacted by the Rainbow government was grounded in the belief that public bodies must be accountable to the ordinary public they are there to serve and that accountability requires openness. Freedom of information overturns the presumption of official secrecy set out in the Official Secrets Act and replaces it with the legal presumption that the public has a right to know.

Senator Hannigan said: “Freedom of information, everywhere it has been introduced, has brought about more open government and better administration of public services. Doing business in the open is the best guarantee of efficiency.

“However, this government has always been hostile the concept of freedom of information and has done its best to undermine the original Act by introducing legislation in 2003 that severely restricted categories of information that could be applied for and by imposing a series of heavy charges designed to discourage people from using the Act.

“This Bill seeks to undo some of that damage and to extend the scope of the Act to key public bodies that this government has so far refused to have included.”

More :: View the Freedom of Information (Amendment) Bill 2008 by clicking here.

A lively start to debates on Lisbon Treaty

25th April 2008

We had the first of four planned information meetings on the Lisbon Treaty, on Thursday, April 24th at the Taney Parish Centre, Dundrum. All of these meetings are open to the public and we hope that people come along to inform themselves and debate the issues.

Liz McManus T.D. and Blair Horan of the Civil and Public Services Union got the ball rolling on Thursday night. Liz pointed out that the core values of the Treaty are in alignment with the core values of the Labour Party emphasising as they do equality, democracy and social justice. The Treaty will make the European political process more transparent. It will also allow for a Citizenship Initiative, whereby European citizens can mobilise to put an issue of concern to them on the political agenda.

Blair focused more on the role of the Lisbon treaty in fleshing the social and economic rights of European citizens. The Lisbon Treaty, he said, introduces for the first time the prospect that citizens can look to the European Union to vindicate social and economic rights. He said he was optimistic about the potential benefits of this for European workers into the future. A lively discussion ensued.

Barry Desmond, former T.D. and M.E.P. expressed his concern about the changing political landscape in Europe, particularly the possibility of an emerging right-wing bloc lead by Silvio Berlusconi in Italy and Nicolas “Starkozy” in France, and potentially supported by euro-sceptics in Poland, and the U.K. Desmond said that Ireland and other European countries needed to remain vigilant as the EU has the potential to fragment politically.

The meeting also discussed Ireland’s role within the EU peace keeping initiatives, the arguments being put forward by Libertas and the tardiness of the government in getting out and joining in the debate on the Lisbon Treaty.

The next information meeting will take place at the Community Centre, Nutgrove Avenue, Rathfarnham on Tuesday, May 12th. I hope to see you there.

White expresses frustration at slow progress of Knocklyon School

23rd April 2008

[youtube=”http://ie.youtube.com/watch?v=gSDTMbnOgBE”]
Senator Alex White has expressed his frustration and disappointment with the lack of progress of extension plans for St Colmcille’s Junior School and Senior School in Knocklyon.

Senator White was speaking in the Seanad yesterday where he highlighted the situation the staff and pupils now find themselves in.

“The difficulty is that the schools wish to apply for planning permission but so far the Minister has not seen fit to permit the school to proceed with this application,” Senator White told the Seanad. “The schools have slightly fewer than 500 pupils in prefabricated accommodation with a total of 16 prefab classrooms and 14 prefab resource teacher rooms. Most of these prefabs were installed 20 to 25 years ago.

“It is vital that this project proceeds,” he explained. The School is awaiting permission to apply for planning permission since last November.

In response, Minister of State Máire Hoctor told Senator White that the school has “a significant amount of accommodation but still has a shortfall” and failed to set a date to allow the school to apply for planning permission.

Minister of State Hoctor cited the current economic situation of the country for the slow progress. She told the Seanad that “further announcements will be made as the budgetary position allows. This school project will be considered in that context.”

Senator Alex White said that describing the school’s accommodation problems as a ‘shortfall’ was “the greatest understatement I have heard for a long time” and was quick to point out to the Minister of State that allowing the school to apply for planning permission would not cost the Government a cent.

“I do not understand why, in circumstances where costs are not entailed, the Minister could not see her way to giving the green light to the schools. The momentum exists in the schools and in the local community which provides fantastic support for the schools,” he said.

More :: Read the full transcript of the debate here.

Welfare of children at risk thanks to penny-pinching HSE

22nd April 2008

Reports that the HSE is unable to respond adequately to hundreds of cases of vulnerable children because of staff shortages and under-resourcing is a further indication that our health services, and our child protection services in particular, are run on the basis of profit and loss accounts and balance sheets, rather than on the basis of the needs of vulnerable children.

The book-keeping culture that prevails in the HSE has led to a situation where the protection afforded to children is largely confined to emergency action. Local child protection teams simply don’t have the resources they require to make early interventions, in order to prevent a problem in a family escalating into a crisis.

Social work teams are hugely under-resourced, and thanks to the HSE staff recruitment embargo, just about every one of them is operating well below full staff complement.

When you consider the massive backlogs in many areas of the country, the lack of an out-of-hours service, and the lack of specialist residential places for children with challenging behaviour, the scale of the problem is massive.

In addition, it is unacceptable that the information which emerged today is three years old at this stage. Under the Child Care Act 1991, the HSE is obliged to report on their child care activities on an annual basis. There is little value to this requirement if the information they provide is not delivered in a timely basis, so that problems can be identified, addressed and resolved quickly.

It is also extraordinary that the report referred to in today’s Irish Times appears to have been sent to the Minister by the HSE in late February, but is only coming to public attention today. While the report was placed on the HSE web-site some weeks ago, both the Minister and the HSE must ensure that there is immediate publication of such reports in the future, especially where their contents are already years out of date.

Discussion Session on Lisbon Reform Treaty

16th April 2008

The constituents of Dublin South and beyond will have an opportunity to discuss many of the issues surrounding the forthcoming referendum on the Lisbon Reform Treaty. Along with my colleague Liz McManus TD and Blair Horan, General Secretary of the Civil Public and Services Union (CPSU), I will be fielding questions on the Treaty and providing a forum for the general public to air their views on Thursday 24 April.

The venue will be Taney Parish Centre, Dundrum and the event starts at 8.15 p.m.

This event is a public meeting so everyone is welcome. I look forward to seeing you all then.

More :: Find out more on the Lisbon Reform Treaty by clicking here.

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