The Seanad has become the opposite of its intended purpose

Irish politicians often have a boomerang-like quality when it comes to their careers – that is to say, the harder and more aggressively they’re thrown out of office by the electorate, the faster they come flying back into power against the public’s will. They always have a way of returning to sender, even when it’s been made abundantly clear that they’re not wanted.

In Ireland’s most recent general election, a number of Government TDs were unceremoniously chucked out of the Dáil and onto their ear by voters, and then just 10 days later, they were appointed to the Seanad by Taoiseach Simon Harris, ending up back in Leinster House before the dust had even settled.

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