Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

I appreciate that time is very short for such a substantive item. I wish to remind the Taoiseach of the ringing declaration that the Fine Gael Party made some time ago when it said a Fine Gael Government would hold a referendum on Constitution day within 12 months of assuming office, in which the people would be asked to approve the abolition of the Seanad and other changes to Articles of the Constitution covering institutions of the State, principally the Executive, the Dáil, the Presidency and the Judiciary. Would the Taoiseach accept that we have come a long way from the lofty rhetoric that he so solemnly and determinedly articulated not so long ago? From our perspective, that goes to the heart of the inadequacy of the proposal that the Government has put before us concerning the constitutional convention. I do not believe the process the Taoiseach has embarked upon is comprehensive enough, nor does it have any sense of vision or definite direction.

The Taoiseach has said that the constitutional convention is likely to meet in September. Many of the non-governmental organisations which have been interested in this feel there has been an inadequate degree of consultation with them. They include the Irish Council of Civil Liberties and Amnesty International, among others. People feel that the human rights dimension of constitutional reform should at least be considered by the convention.

Has the Taoiseach considered substituting the two issues he wants to initiate with the work of the convention - that is, reducing the voting age from 18 to 17, and reducing the presidential term of office? They are not really fundamental or substantive in terms of the Constitution itself, and could even be agreed outside the convention. Other issues dealing with the electoral system - or, in the Taoiseach's own words, the Seanad, Judiciary and the Executive - could be dealt with, as well as some human rights issues.

In the existing Constitution we have universal access to primary education, but have we ever considered that in regard to health? We have heard a lot about the new republic that was somehow to be encapsulated by a new Constitution, but we are nowhere near any of that now. What has been proposed is underwhelming and there is no sense of a timetable, although perhaps the Taoiseach could outline one for me. How does he see any changes that may be recommended by the convention coming to fruition over the next two years?

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