The Irish Policy-Making System (Essay Example)

‘The Irish policy-making system involves many actors. Examine the role(s) of each actor and critically assess which actor(s) have the most power and influence. Support your answer with relevant facts and evidence.’

Policy-making in Ireland involves a variety of parties, classified as ‘decision makers’ or ‘influencers.’ The power any particular actor has depends on many factors, including the issue being discussed and the electoral success of particular political parties. Weber and Nozick are some key figures involved in the discussion of government power.

Decision makers are the individuals who are directly involved in the development and implementation of national policy, and who exactly decision makers are depends on the issue being discussed. In Ireland, the government are the main decision makers and as a result are the most powerful group when it comes to decision making. Policies proposed by the government are based on the ‘Programme for Government’ document which is an action plan agreed on by a new government based on the electoral manifestos of their respective political parties. Ireland as a member of the EU also has to comply with EU treaties and policies decided by various EU institutions. Most of the time the European Commission proposes new laws, then the European Parliament and the Council of the EU enact these laws. Due to Ireland’s EU membership, this legislation has a large impact on decisions made by the Irish government. Nozick would be against this concept because he believed in a minimal state with very minimal policies and control over the public.

Decisions on policies are typically made by the relevant Minister, and the implementation is generally done by the relevant Department and state agencies. For example if the Minister of Education decides on a policy, the execution is the responsibility of the Department of Education or a state agency such as the National Council for Special Education or PDST. When Ministers are making decisions on particular policy issues they often look to senior civil servants or special advisors to guide the direction of their decisions. Senior civil servants are often highly experienced experts in their particular field and usually stay in this position full-time, arguably making them more powerful than the Minister as Ministers change from election to election. Weber’s rational-legal authority describes this transition of power, as once a person leaves their position of authority they also lose their power.

Influencers are groups that attempt to sway the position of decision makers on particular issues. Each influencer has their own concerns and will attempt to contribute to government policy making. Lobbyists are private interest groups that attempt to influence the government to ensure a favourable outcome for their concerns. They use a range of approaches such as financially supporting the election campaigns of politicians who favour their view on an issue or directly organising meetings with politicians. For example, former President of the USA Barack Obama declared that his worst mistake as president was failing to persuade congress to approve tighter gun control laws - meaning the NRA (National Rifle Association) had such a strong influence on congress that they had more of an impact than the president at the time. In Ireland, The Regulation of Lobbying Act 2015 guarantees public transparency when it comes to lobbying. Information such as the people or groups conducting lobbying, the issues being discussed, the lobbyists’ requests and the politicians, government officials or civil servants involved. This law covers individuals, social groups, unions, charities, companies and businesses. Lobbyists are required to register their lobbying activities and the information is made public at Lobbying.ie. According to the Regulation of Lobbying Report 2020, Health, Economic Development and Industry, and Agriculture were the top three areas lobbied about in 2020.

The media is also an influencer as it can focus attention on particular policy issues and apply pressure on the government to act. Other influencers such as opposition political parties or interest groups use the media, particularly social media to highlight their particular concerns or organise protests and gatherings. ‘Traditional media’ such as newspapers or radio broadcasts are often accused of having a bias to try and sway the general public in a particular direction. For instance on the 11th of March 2015 an anti-abortion rally was held outside Leinster House to protest what the campaingers claimed was a ‘pro-abortion bias within media’. 

Actors in the Irish policy-making system have varying levels of power and influence. Most people in positions of power change from election to election, but arguably the least talked about roles of special advisors end up being the most important.