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The Green Agenda and its advancement since entering government.

  • 12-10-2010 11:10pm
    #1
    DeVore
    Business & Finance Moderators, Entertainment Moderators Posts: 32,387 Mod ✭✭✭✭


    Do you feel it was worth it getting into government with FF?

    What do you feel you (personally, or as a party) achieved by entering government in concrete terms?

    DeV.


Comments

  • #2
    johnnyskeleton
    Moderators, Entertainment Moderators, Politics Moderators Posts: 14,550 Mod ✭✭✭✭johnnyskeleton


    Prompted by Coles2 from tpp:

    Are you going to apologise for voting for the Green party to enter government with FF and for any/all the decisions made by your party to date?


  • #3
    PaulGogartyTD
    Company Representative Posts: 115 Verified rep ✭PaulGogartyTD


    DeVore wrote: »
    Do you feel it was worth it getting into government with FF?

    What do you feel you (personally, or as a party) achieved by entering government in concrete terms?

    DeV.

    Elsewhere in another thread I have listed the rolling list of achievements since entering office. It is long and substance is interspersed with smaller, relatively insignificant things.

    The biggies so far for me are the Planning Bill, Civil Partnership and, personally, protecting Education. In the first year we achieved extra funding for education; there was a rushed budget in 2008 due to financial situation and we were forced into major education cuts, many of which we managed to turn around in the PfG negotiations.

    Do I feel it was worth it? Better to go in and achieve 15% of what you want than to be a constant naysayer, hurling from the ditch, maintaining a 100% purity rating in your own eyes, while achieving absolutely none of your objectives.

    From the perspective of trying to do good, to represent the country and our constituents, and based on the numbers, it was absolutely the right thing to do.

    Politically, in terms of the recession and the hammering we are getting by association with FF, it was pretty dumb, in hindsight. But people joined the Green Party because they were idealists wanting to make change through the political system, rather than politicians seeking an issue to grandstand on to achieve political power for its own sake.


  • #4
    PaulGogartyTD
    Company Representative Posts: 115 Verified rep ✭PaulGogartyTD


    johnnyskeleton wrote: »
    Prompted by Coles2 from tpp:

    Are you going to apologise for voting for the Green party to enter government with FF and for any/all the decisions made by your party to date?

    Loaded question lol.

    FF were the only game in town based on the numbers. An alternative with FG was possible if the PDS, Ind and Sinn Fein were brought in along with Labour. Enda Kenny asked Trevor Sargent to talk to Sinn Fein but did not do this himself. He later denied phoning Trevor, even though I was standing beside Trevor when the call came through.

    So FF got a mandate through whatever means of persuasion in 2007 and they were the only one with the numbers.

    I don't apologise for trying to implement Green policy or for trying to enter Government rather than whine impotently from the sidelines.

    I don't apologise for NAMA or the banking bailout or the budgets as these decisions were in my view necessary. I know the crisis was contributed to by FF and at local level was also contributed to by FG/Labour. But the solution remains and you either do the right thing or you don't.

    I do apologise for the Green Party taking too long to learn how Government works and not really using our clout until the revised PfG. Although it is fair comment that we did not have as much numerical influence until 2009.


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