Cian O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay North, Social Democrats)
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On posters, they are so resource-intensive and so expensive to buy and potentially to pay people to put up, as well as the issue of getting volunteers to put them up, that it can be a barrier for new entrants who are not able to match the resources incumbents have. Incumbents may have a stockpile as well and while you have to apportion a cost to them in your returns, effectively you do not have to buy new posters if you are reusing them. There are arguments for and against whether postering favours incumbents.

A lot of newer candidates can sometimes be more proficient at social media than incumbents might necessarily be. Some of them might have advantages there as well. I urge strong reform in this area because even from a safety point of view, volunteers are putting posters up and pedestrians, cyclists and motorists are getting hit by them. It is amazing we have not had more serious issues with them.

I have a few questions. I thank all the staff involved in the election process. They do very long days in the count centres and polling stations, which is very much appreciated. On spoiled votes, are clear rules set out on what constitutes a spoiled vote? Four criteria are listed on the Electoral Commission's website and everything is broken into that. Is it the case that it is just those four criteria and that is it?