The ripple effects of the Moriarty Report may be felt for quite some time in the political system but its unlikely to have much effect on Michael Lowry's chances of re-election in Tipperary North. Of course that doesn't meant there aren't many voters in that constituency who are shocked by the tribunal's findings but equally it seems that many of those who voted for him last month would happily do so again and may even be joined by newcomers who feel sympathetic or defensive about a local hero under attack. Michael Lowry's case is not unique - several TDs who have got into trouble nationally have been stoutly defended by many local voters including Dubliners like Haughey, Burke, Lawlor and Bertie Ahern.
Many decry this as the worst excess of "Parish Pump Politics" - the perception that local voters care nothing about how their TDs perform on the national stage so long as they deliver the goods at home. And corruption is only the most extreme context. It's often said that the roots of our economic crisis lie in our habit of electing people who can be guaranteed to fill potholes and attend funerals locally but have no expertise or ability on the national legislative issues - including regulating banks and managing the public finances - that they are in theory elected to deal with.
Is that an elitist attitude? Do TDs actually become better national legislators by having very direct contact with their constituents everyday concerns? Or is "parish pump politics" an evil that must be expunged from our system? That's what we'll be talking about in the company of Michael Healy Rae TD, Labour's Ciara Conway and Andrea Pappin of Election2011.ie as well as an audience of people who are very engaged with this subject on both sides of the argument.
Also, Emmett Oliver of The Irish Independent and UCD's Karl Whelan will be with us to look forward to the publication of the bank stress tests on Thursday. We'll be asking whether the moment of truth has finally been reached in our seemingly never-ending banking crisis .
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Enjoy the show
David Nally
