Hayes breaks silence, criticises “do-nothing government”

Dublin Bay South TD Eoin Hayes has finally broken cover since his suspension from the Social Democrats.

Hayes, who was elected as a Social Democrats TD last December in a surprise (beating Sinn Féin’s Chris Andrews to the final seat), was suspended from the party upon the first sitting of the new Dáil in December after he was found to have misled the media over the precise timing of when he sold his shares in Palantir.

In February, Hayes’ suspension was bumped up to “indefinite,” but in recent weeks acting party leader Cian O’Callaghan has called for Hayes to be counted as a member of the Social Democrats for the purposes of who gets to chair Dáil committees.

Hayes has not been logged as speaking on the record in the Dáil since his election (but has submitted a number of parliamentary questions and is treated as a member of the opposition) and his social media presence has gone silent since his suspension from the party in December.

The TD has now called on the government to pass the Occupied Territories Bill, noting it has been now ben 90 days since the formation of the government and both major parties had promised to pass the Bill during the 2024 General Election campaign.

“I am deeply concerned that the Government has proven so far to have no intention of passing any sanctions against the Israeli government led by Benjamin Netanyahu, which is very clearly engaged in some of the most significant violations of international law by any developed world country in the post-war era.” he said.

“It feels as if we are bartering the lives of innocent civilians for influence with those who have no regard for them.” He continued.

Hayes noted that he would only vote for a government that would pass the Occupied Territories Bill within the first 90 days in a Dáil vote.

“The government has had long enough – more than long enough – to tease out any legal issues in the legislation.” Hayes said.

“There was no issue with speeding up legislation within a matter of days to increase the number of junior ministers, which has been cast into enough legal doubt so as to be currently challenged in the courts,” he said.

“This is another example of where the government’s own ability to deliver, to operate quickly and efficiently, is suspect. We see it in housing, we see it in infrastructure, we see it in healthcare and disabilities, and crucially we see it in climate action.”

Hayes dubbed the government a “do-nothing government.”

“Even when the legislation is effectively 4 pages long, has been on the books for nearly 8 years, and was last progressed by the parties of government 7 months ago. At the rate of this government’s inaction, it will be at least 2 years after the onslaught on the civilians of Gaza that Ireland will impose any sanctions.”

“That’s simply unacceptable to any person who values human rights and international law,” he said.

He noted that the Occupied Territories Bill as written by Senator Frances Black and others, “is one of the best steps we can take to challenge the injustice and violence being wrought against the Palestinian people in Gaza, the West Bank, Israel, and in refugee and asylum populations across the world.”

“In the interests of transparency, I’m calling on the Attorney General, Rossa Fanning, to publish his legal advice to the government, his timeline for resolving the identified legal issues in the legislation, and the resources he has allocated to expedite the bill. The Oireachtas must pass the Occupied Territories Bill without delay.”

With Hayes now back in the spotlight, the question remains whether Hayes will be welcomed back into the Social Democrat ranks.