Racy exchanges as Boyd Barrett's treaty claim excites members

SKETCH:WHO SAYS that the fiscal treaty cannot be sexy? Complex arguments from the Yes and No sides gave way in the Dáil yesterday to racy exchanges which provided a new dimension to the sometimes heavy referendum debate.

References to the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) and the six-pack were cast aside for exchanges laden with sexual innuendo. There was talk of orgies, arousal and excitement.

Events in Germany prompted it all.

People Before Profit TD Richard Boyd Barrett noted that the “architect of the treaty and guru of austerity, Chancellor Angela Merkel”, could not even get the treaty through her own parliament.

Challenging Eamon Gilmore, he claimed the “Tánaiste’s comrades in the SPD” had spoken of their refusal to support “a cutbacks orgy”.

Boyd Barrett urged the Tánaiste to make the kind of “momentous announcement” they had not heard from Fianna Fáil’s Éamon Ó Cuív earlier this week and abandon the discredited and doomed treaty.

The Tánaiste responded with a “momentous announcement”, although not along the lines which Boyd Barrett had sought.

“It may be that what is happening in Greece is a cause for arousal in Deputy Boyd Barrett or some other members of this House,” he said.

Fianna Fáil’s Dara Calleary, taking a leaf from the parliamentary book of his fellow Mayo FG TD Michelle Mulherin, remarked that “there will be fornication yet”.

Sinn Féin’s Brian Stanley urged: “Keep it clean.”

Gilmore stuck to his core theme. The treaty had to be passed if Ireland was to avoid Boyd Barrett’s warning of “an orgy of cuts”.

Boyd Barrett referred to the “fetish of the Tánaiste and his comrades in the SPD for interesting vocabulary such as orgies and arousals”.

Ceann Comhairle Seán Barrett urged Boyd Barrett to ask a question of the Tánaiste rather than continue to comment.

“I am getting excited waiting for the question,” said Barrett.

Boyd Barrett claimed that the Tánaiste had not explained why, if his comrades in Germany believed the treaty would require “an orgy of cuts”, he remained committed to it.

Gilmore reverted to more traditional treaty speak.

“The immediate issue for this country is maintaining access to the ESM,” he said. “The euro zone needs to have an emergency fund to support its members.”

Elsewhere, Taoiseach Enda Kenny was turning down TV3’s invitation to him to debate the referendum with Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams.

“I don’t do Vincent Browne,” he declared.

Browne offered to stand aside for Ursula Halligan.

The Taoiseach was last night reported to be taking political language lessons from the Tánaiste.

There is a growing Cabinet consensus that the way to sell the treaty to a weary public is through sex.