Paddy McHugh (Galway East, Independent)

I wish to share time with Deputy Sargent. We occasionally hear good ideas in this House and we heard one today. The idea that An Post compile the voter register is brilliant. If we want people who are familiar with the country and the residences to do this job there is no better option than An Post. The local authorities are not the best bodies to carry out such an exercise.

The main purpose of the Bill is to make provision for the revision of constituencies as we head into the next general election by way of implementing the recommendations contained in the commission report on Dáil constituencies, 2004. The revision has been carried out by an independent commission established to specifically carry out the task. If we are to accept its independence and that it carried out its work without political interference, our task is simple, we have to accept the report in its totality. Recognising the composition of the commission, one has to accept its independence. It is natural for Deputies adversely affected by the report to be angry and upset but it is unfair to be critical of the commission because it is independent. If we do not like the result of its work, the answer is not to be critical of the commission.

County Leitrim is most affected by the report in the sense that it is cut in two. People in that county say there is a real danger the county may be without a Deputy in Dáil Éireann after the next general election. If that was to happen, it would be disastrous for the county. However, to preserve the independence of the report, it is difficult to see what can be done in regard to it.

In future the terms of reference given to commissions as a framework within which to operate should guard against such an occurrence. In this case, the terms of reference were flawed, given that they led to a position where there was a real danger a county such as Leitrim would be left without a Deputy. Future terms of reference should specifically protect county boundaries as well as relate the population as equally as possible to the number of Deputies elected. We should look at the possibility of electing Deputies on the basis of county boundaries only where the smaller counties would have fewer Deputies while the larger counties would have a greater number.

The Bill will set the constituencies for the next general election. What it will not do is set the day on which polling will take place. It is on that issue I wish to say a few words. There has been a continuing debate as to the most suitable day on which to hold elections. For some time there was mid-week voting at relatively restricted hours. Some improvements have been made with extended voting hours and a move towards Friday voting. However, Friday voting is not working as it may have been anticipated. For example, a person working in Dublin has no hope of getting to a constituency in the west after working hours and before polling closes. That is unfair to a person who wishes to vote in his or her home county.

There is a great need to give detailed consideration to a suitable day which would accommodate the general public. It appears the most suitable day for voting is a Sunday because generally people are off work and those living away from home can travel. The vast majority would be able to cast their vote without any degree of inconvenience. I cannot understand the reason Sunday voting cannot be tried and, so far as I am aware, it has never been tried. It would also have the advantage of not disrupting children in school and there would be no necessity to have the customary day off school to allow voting to take place. For good sound reasons I ask the Minister to ensure polling in the next general election takes place on a Sunday.

Any debate on the Electoral (Amendment) Bill which ignored the electronic voting debacle would be hollow. The greatest scandal associated with elections here has to be that of electronic voting. The taxpayer has been left with a bill of €60 million, a massive bill by any account and that is only the initial outlay. The taxpayer is continuing to foot a bill for storage of the actual voting machines which have cost €60 million and never been used. I doubt if they ever will. The scandal is continuing on a daily basis, reminding us of one of the greatest cock-ups in Ireland.

Given the many needs in various areas throughout the country which we are told cannot be funded due to lack of resources, it is shameful this waste of public funds should have occurred and continues to occur on a daily basis. What is the Commission on Electronic Voting doing? How long more have we to wait to find out if the machines will ever be used? Will the entire process continue indefinitely with no outcome but a daily reminder of the shameful waste of public funds? The Minister has a duty to bring this scandal to an end.

Given the sloppy manner in which funding issues are handled by the Government, State and semi-State agencies, one could be forgiven for thinking there is a crock of gold at the end of the Irish rainbow. The electronic voting scandal for which the Government is responsible has cost €60 million plus. The nursing homes fee scandal, for which all Governments during the past 29 years are responsible, will cost approximately €1 billion. I say all Governments are responsible given that there were four Labour Party Ministers, two Fine Gael Ministers and seven Fianna Fáil Ministers for Health during those 29 years when the issue was known about but not addressed. No party in the House, with the exception of the Green Party and Sinn Féin, can wash its hands of the scandal. All the others are tainted. Perhaps the only reason the Green Party and Sinn Féin can wash their hands of it is that they were not members of any Government. The bottom line is that we are dealing with taxpayer's money. Government and State agencies have a responsibility to taxpayers to manage and spend their money wisely. Unfortunately, that is not happening. The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government has a responsibility to bring the electronic voting scandal to an end.

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