Arthur Morgan (Louth, Sinn Fein)

I also wish to inquire about the opening hours of polling stations. I was in Armagh city until 10 p.m. last night when the polling booths there closed, having been open since 7 a.m. yesterday. People's lifestyles have changed and I will take as an example people in the constituency I represent from the northern end of County Louth, who live in places such as Faughart, Kilkerly and the Cooley Peninsula. Under the existing opening hours, such people, who are obliged to commute to and from Dublin to do their day's work, find it difficult to get to a polling station. Is the Minister actively considering an extension of polling times to match the practice in the North, where they open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.? The change in lifestyle is a major factor that must be brought to bear on the entire electoral process.

I wish to raise another issue that I have raised previously with the Minister, namely, the supplementary register. Perhaps I will have more time to elaborate than was the case the last time I broached the subject. The supplementary register is particularly important because of the wholesale changes to the register of electors, which almost amounts to its rewriting. I suggest the transfer of responsibility for the supplementary register from the county registrar to the local authority as the latter is the body that has proficiency in this regard.

At present, the supplementary register is open from the time of the declaration of the election. The Minister should consider an 11-day or 12-day period during which applicants may apply for inclusion on the supplementary register. After 11 days, four days should be given to the local authority to process such applications and thereafter——

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