07/01/2011

Election Being 'Pushed Back' - Labour

The Labour Party is claiming the expected election is being "pushed back" by the Government, after it received the Dail Schedule of Business for next week.

The Opposition Whips received the schedule yesterday, and suspicions have been raised as the documents includes none of the urgent business which Fianna Fail and the Green wanted to enact before dissolving the Government.

Labour's Chief Whip Emmet Stagg that the document indicated that the promised date for the general election may be pushed back even further.

In November, Green Party leader and member of the Coalition Government, John Gormley, announced that his party would force the Government to dissolve for an election in the second half of January 2011.

Despite the Taoiseach Brian Cowen agreeing that an election would be called after the budget was passed, the date is still not set for the general election, but Friday, March 25th, is considered the most likely date.

Speaking this morning, Emmet Stagg said the reasons both Fianna Fail and the Green Party had given for reneging on their earlier commitments to an election was that there are still a number of items of urgent legislation they wish enact before the Dail is dissolved.

"However, the Dail Schedule of Business for next week contains none of these items. While, it would probably have been difficult to have the Finance Bill produced in time for next week, there is no sign of the Bill to restrict contributions to political parties; no sign of the Report Stage of the Dublin Mayor Bill; no sign of the Climate Change Bill; no sign of the promised Environment (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill.

"One would have thought that if the Green Party were serious about an early election, they would have insisted that some of these pieces of legislation would have put on the Schedule for next week."

Mr Stagg said it seemed clear that Fianna Fail was determined to cling on to office for as long as possible.

(DW)

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