Pádraic McCormack (Galway West, Fine Gael)

The main purpose of the Bill is to revise the Dáil constituencies in the light of the 2002 census and, in this context, to implement the recommendations in the constituency commission report on Dáil constituencies of 2004. The commission was established under Part 2 of the Electoral act 1997 to report on the constituencies for the election of Members to Dáil Éireann and the European Parliament. The Bill also addresses an issue which has arisen in regard to the definition of electoral expenses.

The trend in this debate has been that Deputies whose constituencies are not affected or who may gain some advantage from the commission's recommendations have very much welcomed the Bill, while those for whom the report's recommendations in respect of their constituency's boundaries seem to put them at a disadvantage have vigorously condemned the Bill and the process by which its provisions have been devised. I have no personal axe to grind in this regard.

This is the first occasion on which there has been no change in the five-seat constituency of Galway West since its formation in 1981. Since I was first elected in 1989, there has been some change in the constituency at every election. Headford, Caherlistrane and Claran have variously been part of both Galway West and the Mayo constituency since 1989 and have been in the Galway East constituency since 2002. Areas such as these are significantly disadvantaged in being moved from one constituency to another and even from one county to another.

In his passionate contribution, Deputy Finian McGrath questioned the independence of the commission. I accept the Minister's word that there was no political input into its report and that he had no personal influence in this regard. However, I wonder if the commission's report was considered by the former Minister before it was agreed by the Government. While I take this Minister's word on the issue, I might not take the word of some of his predecessors. With the exception of Deputy Ellis, all the Government Members who have spoken on this Bill have welcomed the commission's report. Irrespective of our positions, however, we must go by what the public believes and there is a general perception that the Minister and Government of the day have some say in the commission's recommendations. This is an issue we must tackle.

Over the last 30 years, on the occasion of every revision of constituencies since I entered the House, and indeed since my term as a county councillor when county boundaries were redrawn, I made detailed submissions which included maps, figures and population data. On each occasion, however, the commission did the opposite to my recommendations. In this instance, however, I made no recommendations and find I could not be more in agreement with its report. I can only speak from my experience but the commission never took heed of any of my submissions. Deputy Naughten said earlier that his detailed submissions were not borne out in the latest report but I cannot say whether this has been the general experience.

I am not entirely pleased with the commission's recommendations. I received a letter from members of the Save Leitrim campaign in which they expressed a desire to meet the Oireachtas Committee on Environment and Local Government, of which I am a member. I would be delighted to meet them but I may as well inform them that such a meeting would be a waste of time. Deputy Ellis made a passionate contribution on the case for County Leitrim during which he observed that the county was not represented in 1977 because it was divided between Sligo and Roscommon. However, he was lucky enough to be elected to the Seanad in 1977 which meant County Leitrim was represented at Oireachtas level. I was also a candidate in the 1977 election in what was then the Galway-Clare constituency but I had to bide my time and it was five elections and 12 years later before I entered this House.

If Deputy Ellis is serious about representing the view he so passionately expressed, he should simply vote against the Bill. It is his duty to do so. He owes it to those voters involved in the Save Leitrim campaign to vote against every Stage of this Bill or to table an appropriate amendment. Everybody understands he is entitled to do so because of his passionate commitment to County Leitrim. He is obliged to take such action and there is nothing to prevent him voting against the Bill on Second Stage to demonstrate his dissatisfaction with the commission's decision and to show the Minister he will not accept the division of Leitrim without protest.

Other Members referred to the register of electors. The last election in which I canvassed was the Údarás na Gaeltachta election in Galway some weeks ago. For urban areas within the Gaeltacht, including parts of Galway city, Knocknacarra and Tirellan Heights, the register is entirely out of date and must be rectified. There was a provision for putting people on the register within 14 days of an election. There should also be provision to take people off the register within 14 days if they are not living at the address under which they are registered, which can be discovered on the canvass.

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