Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)

They certainly would not come home at 8 o'clock in the evening to vote. They do not come home at 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. on a Friday night to vote. Many Dublin people seem to go down the country for the weekend or do something else. They are not at home and are not dedicated enough to go out to vote even if we open the polls at 7 a.m. The notion of holding the poll on a Friday seems great from one point of view but it has not delivered. If the Taoiseach has expressed reservations, it is from that point of view. It looked like a good idea and it was when we did not have a shilling in our pockets and had nothing else to do except go out to vote. However, in recent years people have become mobile and have weekend and holiday homes. Even the people who remain in Dublin are otherwise engaged. While one group is facilitated by the choosing of a particular day of the week, another group may at best be inconvenienced or even disenfranchised.

There is no clear evidence, nor has any been provided by the Deputies opposite, supporting a direct link between weekend voting and increased voter participation. The House has been given detailed turnout data in regard to Irish elections and international perspectives in this regard. What is clear is that our current legislation, which provides for the holding of a Dáil election on any day of the week, allows all relevant factors to be taken into account at any given time. Limiting the holding of elections to a particular day, or to Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, as proposed in this Bill, would be a backward step from the flexibility provided under the current legislation. That is why we cannot support the Bill.

Elections have been held on five of the seven week days. Perhaps we should try Sundays and Mondays because many of the other days have not worked. If we have the flexibility to hold an election on any of the seven days, why restrict ourselves to only two or three days? There is a bank holiday coming up and perhaps that would suit everybody. People have different ideas on this.

Levels of voter turnout are important in a democratic society. We have witnessed declining rates of political participation in recent years. Weekend voting, however, is not the panacea for problems of low participation and it is wrong to suggest otherwise. While it might suit some, it might work or militate against others. The solution lies in working at a much more fundamental level towards having an electorate who are well informed, interested, engaged and willing to play their rightful role as active citizens. It is in everyone's interest that voters are motivated to play their part and there is a great onus on all of us to achieve this.

There have been advances in this area in recent times. For example, at each referendum, the Referendum Commission now has a mandate to prepare and disseminate information on proposed constitutional amendments, to promote public awareness of the referendum and to encourage the electorate to vote at the poll. I am glad the Deputies opposite have acknowledged the improvements to the accuracy of the register which have been achieved over the past year.

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