Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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I move amendment No. 3:

In page 4, between lines 1 and 2, to insert the following:

“(1)The Act of 1992 is amended—

(a)in section 28 by the substitution of the following for subsection (1A):

“(1A)Each local authority shall, in making a scheme under this section, appoint as polling places only such areas as shall allow the returning officer to provide polling stations which are accessible to wheelchair users.”,

and

(b)by the repeal of section 28(5A).

I appreciate the ruling. It is wise and sensible. We have come up against this issue regularly, whether on the basis the amendments place a charge on the Exchequer, they are not adequate or are irrelevant to the subject of the Bill. Amendments can be reasonably ruled out of order, but perfectly sensible and relevant amendments are being ruled out of order too often.

These amendments relate to what I believe to be the most fundamental of democratic rights, which is the right to vote. It is the case that there are many polling stations that are not accessible to all of the public. This is not the kind of public service that one can go and get elsewhere. If one cannot access the polling station to which he or she has been allocated there is no alternative open to him or her. Unfortunately, this is not an uncommon phenomenon. In the 2016 election there were 15 polling stations in Galway, ten in Kerry, five in Carlow-Kilkenny and four in Dublin which were not wheelchair accessible, and that created considerable difficulty for a number of individuals. These two amendments seek to put that right and to provide that all polling stations should be wheelchair accessible. That is reasonable and fair, and very much in keeping with the spirit of the Bill.