Former MEP Patricia McKenna will not be putting her name forward as a possible candidate for the Green Party in next year’s European Parliament elections, Hot Press can exclusively reveal.
However, in a move that will inevitably send shockwaves through the Greens, McKenna is contemplating the possibility of quitting the party and running under a different political guise in next summer’s European elections.
Hot Press understands that McKenna has been approached by at least two political parties, who are eager for her to run under their banner. If she agrees, it will undoubtedly split the Green voters and could ultimately scupper their chances of regaining the European seat which McKenna held for an impressive ten years, before losing in it 2004 – even though she attracted 9.4% of first preference votes in Dublin Central at the time.
McKenna, who made political history in 1994 when she topped the poll, and became Ireland’s first ever Green MEP, confirmed to Hot Press that she wouldn’t be seeking election as a Green candidate because she would “be unable to toe the party line” on various issues.
“I would be faced with a strong list of issues which people who voted for me are concerned about, such as co-location of hospitals, incineration – which were still not sure of the final outcome of yet – the use of Shannon and also rendition flights, to name but a few,” she told Hot Press.
“If I ran for the Greens, I would be asked to toe the parliamentary party line and – if issues arise in relation to militarisation and Lisbon – to stay quiet in the European Parliament. But I would – as I have done in the past – have to speak out. How would party members feel about me making things difficult for the members of Government? The Greens in cabinet would be read the riot act by Fianna Fáil and told to shut me up.
“If I adopted that line now, I would feel like a hypocrite and realise that I am just the same as all the rest. I can’t say what is necessary to get elected just for the sake of it. It’s just not worth it. People in this country are cynical about politicians and they have just cause. I don’t want to contribute to that feeling of disillusionment and cynicism, even if I feel it myself.”
Hot Press understands that Déirdre de Búrca is now favourite to secure the Greens’ candidacy when the Selection Convention for the European Parliament ends on August 22. In an e-mail sent to party members, de Búrca wrote: “The decision which I have to make is whether to put myself forward in the Dublin Region or in Leinster. I am making my mind up about this at the moment. If any local media contact you for comment, perhaps you could outline the position I have done above and make it clear that any decision to run for Dublin would not be confirmed until August 22, the date the Dublin nomination process closes. In fact, it may be wiser to refrain from any public comment until that date.”
POLITICAL NIGHTMARE
Whatever about internal wranglings among the Greens, Hot Press has learnt that certain Fianna Fáil interests have been putting pressure on their junior coalition partner to ensure that McKenna does not receive their European nomination. “It would be a political nightmare having Patricia McKenna, as an MEP, speaking out against her party colleagues in the Dail,” explained one inside source in the Greens.
It was always doubtful that she would be the party’s candidate. While it will come as a relief to some that she now won’t be seeking a nomination, the Greens must surely be extremely worried that McKenna is considering running regardless. Last year, McKenna garnered a respectable 36% of votes when she contested the leadership of the Greens, won by John Gormley. It is conceivable that many of these disillusioned Greens, who voted for McKenna’s anti-coalition stance back then, could decide to support her in next year’s election.
Apart from possibly taking a seat away from the Greens, McKenna could also cause further embarrassment by being a thorn in the side of former colleagues in government.
McKenna believes that her being elected to the European Parliament would be a nightmare scenario for the government. During her stint as an MEP. McKenna is best remembered for her victory in the Supreme Court in 1995, when she argued that it was unconstitutional for the Irish government to spend taxpayers’ money to promote only one side of the argument in referendum campaigns. This successful legal battle led to the formation of the Referendum Commission.
“During my previous ten years in the European Parliament, I was to the fore in embarrassing the Irish Government and forcing action on its failure to comply with EU environmental laws,” she says.
If she does get elected next year, the government will have to face up to the fact that McKenna, as an Irish MEP, will be openly hostile to the Lisbon Treaty.
“The uncertainty of the government plan in relation to the Lisbon Treaty is one of the most worrying issues for me and a core reason why, at this moment in time, being a Green Party candidate in the Euro elections would leave me without credibility,” she maintains.
“It looks like the government have no intention of respecting the result of the referendum and accepting the democratic verdict of the people, and they will force us to vote again. Or they may try to push parts of it through the Dáil without a referendum – although there is no doubt that the constitutionality of this approach would be challenged in the courts and I for one would be supporting such a challenge.
“The refusal of the Greens to say the Treaty is dead means they have agreed with Fianna Fáil that they will get it through, regardless of our rejection via a democratic vote,” she says. “This is very worrying, and by running for a party, which through its silence is conspiring with the political elite to overturn our decision, I would be giving tacit support to this betrayal of the people.”