Niall Collins (Limerick, Fianna Fail)

This issue has arisen in Leitrim and in my constituency. What was west Limerick is now part of Limerick, while another part went into north Kerry. The same applies to south Offaly, east Carlow and west Waterford which went in with Tipperary. County boundaries have not been recognised in parts of the country and therefore it is a highly contentious matter. We should tighten up the terms of reference. I know the Minister is asking the commission to adhere to county boundaries where possible and practical, but we should examine a mechanism to make it tighter. Due to the urban sprawl of the greater Dublin area, it has spilled over into neighbouring counties. In rural areas, however, the breaching of county boundaries is a bigger issue. The last occasion it arose was in the south Offaly example. From that point of view, we will have to examine the possibility of tightening up the terms of reference involved.

The proposal to run by-elections within six months of a vacancy occurring is a good one. We are generally in agreement with that idea, which is the right thing to do. We should not tie our hands completely on the six-month period, however, if we are running close to a local or European Parliament election. If, for example, the six-month limit arose three before a local or European election, it might make sense to have some discretion to defer the by-election for a further three months. This might make for a more efficient running of the event.

We will be opposing the Bill on a number of fronts. We will also be tabling a number of amendments, namely, on the number of Deputies, Presidential election spending limits and the production of an interim report.

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