Caít Keane (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire Stáit. I thank him for the patience and diligence he has shown in listening to the arguments.

When the Seanad was founded in the early years of the State, it was envisaged that it should offer real opportunities for building bridges for all citizens. It was supposed to have developed into a political platform where the citizens representing different sectors of society, be they from the north, south, east or west, abroad or at home, but that did not happen. That is not how it evolved and is not the Seanad we have today.

This year we had an attempt by the Leader of the House, Senator Cummins, to address this lack of participative democracy. Various groups have addressed the House with valued input from our EU representatives, but that has not been enough. We did not get the help we need to ensure it was and it could have been more.

We all knew when we signed up to put ourselves forward for election to the House that there would be a referendum and, true to his word, the Taoiseach has followed through on that. I will vote "Yes" to ensure the people of the country are given the choice. I ask that the people of the country are fully informed when they vote and are provided with the full facts and information on the functioning and cost of the House, and the cost of government as a whole, and the democratic deficit that will follow if the House is abolished. Some 72 areas of the Constitution will be changed. How is it proposed to inform the people? Is it proposed to publish the 72 areas in booklet form by the Referendum Commission or whoever will provide the information?

I will give some evidence on the positive elements of a bicameral system of parliament. The evidence suggests that bicameralism is not on the decline. That is a verifiable fact. Currently 40% of parliaments in the Interparliamentary Union have two legislative chambers. Of 34 developed countries in the OECD, 19 have bicameral parliaments and 11 are unicameral. Ireland is one of 13 EU countries to have a bicameral system and over five sixths of the population of the European Union live in countries with a bicameral system. I congratulate the Minister of State on the role he and the Taoiseach played during the Presidency of the EU.

Studies illustrate the positive effects of bicameralism on parliamentary democracy in terms of representation, such as the process of legislative bargaining and the quality of legislative oversight of the executive. Bicameralism affects policy and law. Of course, this will be made more significant when one chamber has enough leverage over the other to act unilaterally. This has proven to be true even where one chamber has to decide policy after the other has voted, as is the case in the Irish system. Bicameralism also has the potential to protect minorities. This could have been stronger had we had a reformed Seanad. Many Governments had the opportunity to do so but did not take it. I want to see wider representation in the Seanad if the people choose a reformed Seanad. It is up to them.

We passed Second Stage of a Bill tabled by Senators Zappone and Quinn. Homework has been done on how it could be implemented if the people choose not to abolish the Seanad. They may not know the Bill exists. People have spoken about the fact that the legislative process is not covered by the media. The Order of Business is covered. I was in the Chamber for three weeks when I asked for the Order of Business to be abolished. Such a move may result in media covering the legislative process.

When I was elected, people asked me what we do in here. People do not know what happens here. If the foundations of the democracy continue to be weak whatever we build on them will also be weak.

Senators focus more on legislation than on local issues, unlike Deputies, present company excluded. I congratulate the Minister of State for his focused attention to his brief, not just in government. He has done Trojan work in the EU, as I mentioned. His input ensured Ireland performed in an excellent manner during the Presidency. As as a constituency colleague, I know the Minister of State's ability and capability are not everyday happenings.