Aontú have committed to calling a motion of no-confidence in Tánaiste Simon Harris as soon as the opportunity arises for them to do so. This comes after public outrage directed at Harris following the death of Harvey Sherratt in July, while the Dáil was in recess.
Harvey Sherratt, who suffered with spina bifida and severe scoliosis, sadly passed away after spending almost three years on a waiting list for spinal surgery. Harvey eventually had his surgery in December of last year but died after a deterioration in his health. This led to the hashtags ‘#JusticeForHarvey’ and ‘#ResignHarris’ trending on social media and saw people gather in Dublin City Centre in August to remember Harvey and protest the suffering of children on waiting lists. Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou MacDonald, People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy and Aontú leader Peadar Toibín all spoke at the protest.
The anger directed at Simon Harris stems from a claim he made back in 2017, while he was Minister for Health. While speaking on RTE Radio 1 in 2017, Harris claimed that by the end of that year, no child would have to wait longer than four months for scoliosis surgery, a claim which has still not been delivered eight years later.
Last year in the Dáil the Tánaiste also said that he would meet with Harvey’s parents, Gillian Sherratt and Stephen Morrison , another promise he didn’t keep. Harvey’s parents have said recently that Harris has agreed to meet with them on the 29th of this month. Harris spoke to the family by phone following Harvey’s death, but Ms Sherratt said that the conversation was ‘too little too late,’ when she appeared with Mr Morrison as guests on the Late Late Show. She also said that ‘it’s a pity that it took our child dying to have him willing to meet us now, because he ignored me when I tried last year.’
Earlier this month, Aontú leader Peadar Toibín committed to calling a motion of no-confidence in Simon Harris at the earliest opportunity. Holding the government accountable for children, like Harvey, who suffered because of CHI, Tusla, homelessness and the cost-of-living crisis were outlined as the motivations for calling the motion.
When asked about the motion, Aontú councillor Emer Toibín said that:
‘Aontú is fully committed to calling a no-confidence motion against Simon Harris. However, that opportunity will not arise until October. That is how the system works, and we must await our designated turn.’
Dáil Eireann returned from recess last Wednesday, but government business will take precedence meaning Aontú won’t realistically have a chance to call the motion until October. Issues such as the upcoming Budget, the death of missing boy Daniel Aruebose and the alleged online threats directed at Simon Harris will be among topics discussed in the Dáil in the coming weeks.
When Aontú do call the motion of no-confidence in Simon Harris, it will be the second motion of no-confidence called in the Dáil this year after five opposition parties tabled one against Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy in March. The five main opposition parties – Sinn Fein, Labour, Solidarity-People Before Profit, Independent Ireland and the Social Democrats tabled the motion of no-confidence in the Ceann Comhairle, alleging that she colluded with the Government to introduce new speaking rights for independent TDs who support the Government which were supposed to be for opposition TDs only. The Government countered the no-confidence motion with a motion of confidence, which was passed by 96 votes to 71.