To nobody’s great surprise, Verona Murphy comfortably survived this evening’s motion of confidence in the Dáil, the first such vote in the history of the chamber. While the words exchanged during the debate were sharp, the atmosphere was less heated than during last week’s unruly exchanges.
Opposition speakers focused on the circumstances of Murphy’s election as Ceann Comhairle and her performance in the role, while the Government rejected their criticisms as unfair and overblown.
The Government will hope the vote brings to a close two months of bitter procedural wrangling sparked by its foolish decision to allocate Opposition speaking time to Michael Lowry and his fellow Regional Independents.
That remains to be seen. It is true that there is a law of diminishing returns for Sinn Féin and the other Opposition parties if they continue to labour the point. They will not want to test the tolerance of the public, many of whom want the Oireachtas to get on with the business of legislating.
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But Murphy has not emerged unscathed from this affair. The position of Ceann Comhairle as a non-partisan chair elected in a secret ballot is a relatively recent innovation, introduced in recognition of the fact that the old two-party domination of the Dáil had come to an end. Murphy’s election to the post was part of the price paid, along with the speaking rights stroke, in order to achieve a comfortable Government majority. That makes it harder for her to present herself as a genuinely even-handed arbiter.
Responsibility for the chaos and barracking during last week’s Dáil proceedings cannot be laid entirely at her door. But the confusion over whether the order of business had been properly conducted has added to concerns about her suitability for the role.
Her job is unlikely to get easier. Sinn Féin, smarting from its election setback, is taking a more confrontational approach to its position as the main Opposition party. Economic storm clouds will give the party plenty of ammunition to attack the Government if it adjusts spending plans downward in response. Further bitter exchanges across the floor of the house are inevitable and Murphy’s performance in the chair will be keenly watched from now on.
Meanwhile, anxious voters, fearful that a full-blown transatlantic trade war is about to break out, may lose patience with any further scenes of disorder and disruption in the Dáil. It is expected that the parties will now move to set up the various Oireachtas committees. A return to a more normal order of business would be welcome. But the fact that this parliamentary term began amid scenes of such bitterness and disarray will not be easily forgotten and will cast a long shadow over the months and years ahead.
