Leo Vardakar under fire for saying the Government may reject Citizens’ Assembly on Drugs findings | Hotpress

by youbigfatmess

6 comments

  1. I dislike Leo as much as the next guy getting ripped off for power and rent, but I don’t really get the outrage? He was asked for a guarantee that the government would create legislation based and the citizens assembly and he responded by saying there was no obligation for them to follow the assembly’s result. There’s LOADS of reasons not to like Leo, there’s no need to go hunting for more

  2. I don’t like having to agree with the Taoiseach on stuff, but he’s dead right on this:

    >there shouldn’t be any assumption or obligation on any democratically elected parliament or government to accept every recommendation that a body makes. It wouldn’t be right or make sense in my view.

    The Dáil is elected. The Oireachtas is the only venue in which legislation can be made. The Government who are appointed by and accountable to that Dáil shouldn’t ever bind itself to some unelected body’s determination without even having seen what that determination will look like. To do so would effectively be delegating its functions to people who are not elected by or accountable to the people.

    I hope I agree with the assembly’s recommendations, and that if they recommend that drug laws should be liberalised that the Government brings legislation accomplishing that to the Dáil. However if they don’t that will influence how I vote, and it will still influence how I vote in the exact same way if the assembly recommend hardening drug laws and government accept that recommendation. It is the job of elected politicians to make policy and legislate, they’ve to be accountable for that and can’t delegate the responsibility to anyone else.

  3. Not this again. It was posted earlier. People who agree are basically saying they don’t understand how the CA works and its role with the government.

  4. I hope they recommend legalising ketamine for toddlers

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