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NEARLY THREE QUARTERS of Irish people want to see TDs adhere to a dress code.
That’s according to a new Claire Byrne Live/Amárach Research poll, released last night.
The issue was raised once more after a group of TDs wore Repeal jumpers into the Dáil chamber.
Speaking to TheJournal.ie Brid Smith, one of those TDs, said that the idea was a distraction from the work of the Dáil.
“What someone likes or chooses to wear is subjective. There are hundreds of parliaments around the world. For example, in Papua New Guinea’s parliament, they hardly wear anything,”
However, the poll shows that 73% of people want to see a dress code enforced, while just 22% disagree with the idea. A further 5% say they are undecided.
Dáil rules state members should dress “in a manner that reflects the dignity of the House”.
The closest a dress code came to being implemented was in 2011 when a proposal was drafted to request TDs and Senators to wear appropriate business attire, but the proposal was rejected.
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Wrong heading… Most people want to see TDs held to account.
They’ll feckin expect an expense account for their wardrobe next, leave them wear what they want..
Jesus, you’d swear sometimes Clare Byrne polls were the Oracle at Delphi.
They’re not.
Believe me, the majority of people do not care one whit what a politician wears into Dail Eireann as long as they do the public some service.
“in a manner that reflects the dignity of the House”.
There’s very little dignity in Irish politics currently and no increase in Armani suits is going to alter that fact.
And let’s be honest here, if a dress code was applied the first thing our politicos would do is orchestrate a clothes allowance, probably about 5 grand a month (to keep apace with changing sartorial trends)
Cmon, we all know that.
@Daniel Fontaine: i would like a larger sample size but if I had to choose between a survey of 1000 people and your opinion based on no research, i would choose the survey.
@Daniel Fontaine: To me it’s a sign of disrespect when you wear a tee shirt into The Dail. It’s unintended I’m sure. They do it to demonstrate to their constituents that they’re just ordinary people but it’s always smacked of “I can’t be arsed and that’s handy because I’m going to make a political statement out of it.”
Saying that, I have a bit of respect for Clare Daly (despite disagreeing with almost everything she has to say about how The State should be run) but I think as a stunt it’s got bad optics. To the wider public, at least according to this poll, it comes across as arrogant and lazy.
“a manner that reflects the dignity of the House”
Clown suits then.
I couldnt care less if they turned up in mankini’s or hot pants as long as they turn up, make a worthy contribution, stay out of the Dail bar, actually make some good decisions and stop with the smoke and mirrors tactics.
Smoke and mirror tactics? You’re giving these muppets far too much credit if you think they are clever enough to employ tactics of any sort, they make it up as they go.
They’re being paid enough
@Joe Murphy:
Just get rid of the FG/FF/LAB then worry about the dress code
SF voter?
FG and the bogus Independents should be obliged to wear Apple logos.
Does the AAA PBP have a headquarters or are ye still stuck in someone’s bedroom like moping teenagers ?
AAA headquarters are just the socialist party headquarters on Thomas st
Does wearing a suit make you work harder? No
Does wearing a suit make a TD make decisions for the country and not for political gain? No
Who cares what they wear? Why is this even a thing that is in any media?? What matters is the work they do and the decisions they make. As others said, I guarantee if there was an enforced dress code, a clothing allowance would follow. Lets stop wasting time (and potential money) on this non-issue
Clothes do not make the man. Actions and deeds do.
@molly coddled: Indeed, look what Mick Wallace has achieved and he looks like he’s been dragged though a briar bush backwards.
@molly coddled: The state of their undies does lol.
Unfortunately the worst crooks in the country wear tailored suits
A domino mask, striped top and an over the shoulder bag marked ‘SWAG’ in bold lettering would be fitting.
However, I’d still prefer to see them dressed in the pyjamas with the vertically pointing arrows. That would be ‘appropriate dress’.
TDs..parasites of the country
Why? Would you not prefer they concentrate on doing a good job?
@Lisa Saputo: One does not have to come at the expense of the other.
No doubt if you enforce a dress code they will end up with a clothing allowance. I would prefer they do there jobs. I cant believe people think wearing a suit and tie makes any difference.
dress well but keep it simple, just like are politicians,
Bertie’s Teflon Suit was an amazing innovation of fashion and technology interwoven to protect the wearer from heinous accusations of corruption, treason, crashing the country etc. Unfortunately, issuing these suits as standard would be far too costly for the taxpayer.
They shouldn’t be allowed to wear anything they should have to do their job in the Dail completely naked. Maybe some of them may feel a bit of shame.
Too right, whatever about certain lunatics beliefs, it is time these individuals showed just a little respect for the Dail. Bad enough some of them have absolutely no taste but adding scruffyness to the mix is outrageous, I’ve spoken to some friends abroad who are aghast at the disgraceful disrespect some TDs show the Dail.
I honestly couldn’t care what they wear in the Dáil. I just want them to show up!
As long as they don’t have to wear charvet shirts a la Charlie Haughey, courtesy of the taxpayers.
“Dáil rules state members should dress “in a manner that reflects the dignity of the House”.
That explains why the dignity of the House is so low, the way some of the members dress.
They should introduce kilt day…on a Wednesday…in January
Could the journal.ie not show one of our female Tds doing up her skirt so sexist….
They could wear black plastic bags for all I care as long as they run the country properly.
Right. For a start, anyone watching Claire Byrne is intellectually challenged, and their opinions are tainted. These people swap FF governments for FG governments, both of which have repeatedly proven themselves both incompetent and corrupt in equal measure. They scoff at any ideas other than theirs, even though theirs have driven this country off a cliff on several occasions over the years
They also invariably are impeccably dressed.
Judge the man, not his dress. He may have stolen his clothing.
So you can spend decades lying through your teeth but as long as you’re in a suit it’s all good. In addition, from a fashion perspective a mans suits is extremely boring not that any Irish political is known for their style.
obvs. they should be allowed to expense their new wardrobe, armani anyone?
have your say