TDs are not elected to be local heroes

WHAT should have been the annual innocuous trip to Washington DC to press the flesh and hand over a bowl of shamrock ended in embarassment for the Taoiseach. For no obvious reason, other than his oddly needy desire to seem important and be liked, Mr Varadkar’s story about petitioning Clare County Council to block a proposed wind farm near Donald Trump’s Doonbeg resort backfired.

First he claimed he had phoned the council; then he said an aide did. Finally, it emerged he actually had sent an email to Fáilte Ireland.

None of this is illegal, but his embellishment of the story, and the fact he told it at all, shows a serious lack of judgment – and also once again shines a spotlight on the problem at the heart of Irish life, namely the fact that TDs become involved in issues at local level that are best left to councillors, councils and State bodies.

As we have reported here before, almost 100 man hours a week in the HSE are spent solely on dealing with representations by TDs on behalf of constituents looking for medical and GP cards. We are told these petitions have no effect on the decision to grant the free services, so why do politicians bother? Because they then can copy their letters to the constituent to prove they tried, guaranteeing a vote at the next election.

Responsibilities for tackling serious national issues – health, brexit and homelessness – demand strategic planning and decision-making from our politicians. TDs’ regular absence from the Dáil to attend clinics in their constituency frustrates efforts to tackle our problems effectively.

Constituents should have access to TDs – they elected them after all – but there should be strict guidlines on when it is deemed appropriate and it should be thoroughly transparent.