Perhaps giddiness brought on by the works outing to Dublin Castle on Tuesday saw the Dáil return on Wednesday with a hearty outburst of hilarity and guffaws from all sides of the House.
The Ceann Comhairle knew what she was doing when she dropped the line that had them rolling in the aisles.
She had read the prayer, and the meagre turnout of TDs present for the opening session of their truncated week were just resuming their seats after the pause for silent reflection.
“Thank you deputies,” Verona Murphy began. “And as it’s International Men’s Day, I’d just like to wish ye all a very happy ...”
She didn’t get the finish her sentence as everyone was falling around the place laughing – notwithstanding International Men’s Day being next week.
The Ceann, still chortling away, called on Mary Lou McDonald to kick off Leader’s Questions.
“Be nice now!” the Taoiseach quipped from across the floor.
“Every day is men’s day,” the Sinn Féin leader deadpanned as the lads were still bursting their sides.
“Right now. Righty-o. And on that note...” she dramatically sighed, before putting on her spectacles and turning to more serious matters.
“It’s the first thing we agreed upon this year,” whooped ‘Boxer’ Moran, the Minister for State for the OPW to more convulsions from the benches.
As Verona pointed out, it was International Men’s Day.
It was a funny moment, in fairness.
But the Dáil was never going to set aside an afternoon for speeches marking International Men’s Day and all that goes with it.
Just a relaxed, funny moment.
No words needed.
Which said a lot.
An interesting contrast to International Women’s Day.
And on the day that was in it, the lads were very much on our mind – the four lads from Independent Ireland.
And in particular, we fretted over how Michael Collins will manage to get through the Christmas if Dáil Éireann doesn’t grant him his heart’s desire and issue the writ for the Galway West byelection?
This is a very anxious time for the leader of Independent Ireland. The recent news of another outbreak of bird flu must be having a terrible effect on his nerves.
For when he heard Catherine Connolly was going to win the presidential election and leave a Dáil seat up for grabs, Michael got so excited he laid an egg.
So did the rest of his Independent Ireland compadres as they contemplated the imminent addition of a fifth TD to their ranks.
The presidential election result was declared on Saturday, October 25th, and they’ve been counting their chickens since.
The dust had barely settled after President Connolly’s stunning victory before the poll-topping deputy for Cork South-West was above in Galway discussing “the vitally important” byelection with his party’s candidate. With the video of their meeting up on social media two days after Catherine was deemed elected.
When the Dáil resumed last week, Michael wished the new President all the best before saying what he really wanted to say: “We in Independent Ireland believe that this byelection should take place immediately.”
Those eggs won’t hatch themselves.
Their man (who lost out by a whisker last year in the general election) is already “working on the ground”, he declared, having earlier paraded the candidate around the plinth in an effort to get him noticed.
He wanted the Dáil to hold a debate immediately on calling the byelection so the people of Galway West can “get the representation they fully deserve”.
Naturally, he helpfully supplied the name of the county councillor he has in mind.
Michael didn’t get his debate.
Never mind. Now that the small distraction of Tuesday’s Presidential inauguration is out of the way, perhaps the Dáil might consider a more urgent matter of national importance?
“We would like statements in the House regarding the moving of the writ for the byelection. It is a hugely important issue for the constituency,” Deputy Collins urged on Wednesday when everyone was still recovering from the Dublin Castle ceremonials and facing into Thursday’s launch of the Government’s much-anticipated action plan on housing and homelessness.
Chief Whip Mary Butler couldn’t help.
“It doesn’t come within my remit,” she explained. But she was sure the Taoiseach (sitting across from Michael) heard what he said.
Of course he did, but Micheál Martin didn’t look like a man who was going to crack the whip over moving the writ to start the race in Galway West.
One would hardly expect him to dive right into another election campaign after the nightmare of Fianna Fáil’s presidential debacle. He’ll still be experiencing flashbacks over his turkey and plum pudding.
Minister for the Environment Darragh O’Brien won’t be going out of his way to smooth the way for Independent Ireland either. His department is in charge of organising the election.
Darragh has six months to act, starting from the time the President was deemed elected. That would give him up to April and then three weeks or so must be allowed for the campaign to take place.
Sure it might be May until polling day. Who knows what could happen between now and then, and poor Michael and his colleagues frantically counting their electoral chickens before they have even hatched.
The word around Leinster House is the byelection will happen “sometime in the new year”. Which isn’t exactly definitive.
In the meantime, will we have to endure weekly pleas from Deputy Collins for immediate action on the writ front?
Will the other parties nursing hopes of a win be inclined to indulge support for him while they are getting their campaign strategies in order?
Will certain Fianna Fáil deputies back the call for prompt action in an effort to retraumatise their leader?
Will Michael’s eggs be coddled by the time a decision is made?
It’s turning out to be a momentous week in Irish politics.
Holly’s mammy visited the Dáil on Wednesday.
The leader of the Social Democrats was so thrilled to see Madeline McKeever in the public gallery she just had to mention her for the record.
“Very briefly, I welcome my mum, Madeline, to the Gallery. It is extra special that she is here because she is joined by some of her oldest friends, her childhood friends, who are all very welcome,” said Holly Cairns, who would return to the worrying issue of climate change during her stint at Leaders’ Questions.
Whereupon the Ceann Comhairle took up the cudgels on behalf of Holly’s mammy’s friends. It was the phrase “some of her oldest friends” which raised a red flag.
“I’m sure you didn’t mean ‘oldest’,” Verona Murphy said with a gentle correction. “Some of her BEST friends. And they’re very welcome.”
Fine Gael’s Hildegarde Naughton was very impressed.
“Well done, a Cheann Comhairle.”
International Men’s Day or not.
