Robert Dowds (Dublin Mid West, Labour)

I thank Deputy Murphy for bringing this Bill to the Chamber. I want to make it clear that I am a supporter of the institution of the Presidency, which has played a valuable role for this country in a number of ways. As Deputy Cowen said earlier, despite the fact that every incumbent, with the possible exception of Douglas Hyde, had definite political links, to my knowledge each President has always acted above politics and been a unifying figure for this country. It is important that we have a figure who is seen as a unifier for the country, and I have no doubt that the recently elected President, Michael D. Higgins, will act in the same way as his predecessors. I believe he will also keep to the spirit of the type of Presidency that was instituted by Mary Robinson and continued by Mary McAleese. It is fair to say also that had Erskine Childers lived longer he may have operated the Presidency along the lines of our two great women Presidents.

It is important to value the office of the President and it should not be denigrated. It is an advantage for the country abroad also because the President is in a particularly good position to appeal to the diaspora. While the President should continue to work in harmony with the Government and not out-step the constitutional restrictions on his or her office, the office can be used for the benefit of the country economically under the direction of the Government. It is very important that we maintain the Presidency and regard it as an office of great importance to which everybody can look with respect. I thank all the Presidents of the country for the fine job they have done.

I wish to comment on certain aspects of the proposed Bill. In terms of the method of election, the current method in respect of the way people vote should continue.

I am open to the idea of a five year Presidency but if that happened it should probably be at the same time as our local government and the European Parliament elections, which are held every five years, although I appreciate the disadvantage is that there may be too many issues to be considered. I do not have a major problem with the seven year term but I am certainly open to that suggestion.

Deputy Murphy criticised aspects of the nomination process and the way it was too controlled by political parties. There is truth in that but despite some of the blips in the most recent election campaign every candidate who wanted to run managed to get a nomination. Whether it was through getting the support of 20 Members of the Oireachtas or four county councils, the system worked.

An important point regarding Deputy Murphy's contribution is that if the Seanad is abolished, which is a decision that will be made by the people rather than us here, it will be important to change the number of Deputies who can nominate a President because the size of the Oireachtas overall will be smaller. In those circumstances the idea of ten people being able to nominate a candidate for the Presidency is a good one.

I am open to the suggestion that 10,000 by signature should be able to nominate a candidate for the Presidency but it must be carefully examined to ensure the signatures are genuine and people are not signing twice or three times. Another aspect that must be examined is the way that might be organised. A radio or television station might decide to nominate somebody and whip up support. While the idea is a good one, we need to put some checks in balances in place to determine if that would work in a way that was above board because it is important that we keep the Presidency-----

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