Frank Feighan (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome this important Bill and thank Deputy Andrew Doyle for the work he has done in preparing it. The purpose of the legislation is to try to connect people to various aspects of the electoral system. People are turning off elections. In the past, people took a great interest in politics and knew who their local politicians were. Politics has become much more controversial and assumed "X-Factor" characteristics in recent years. The Government and all politicians must try to ensure that everyone aged 18 years and over - some argue the voting age should be reduced - gets out and votes.

I used to be a member of a traders' organisation in my home town. We tried to hold meetings at times that allowed traders to attend. For example, we used to hold breakfast meetings and sometimes met at 6 p.m. on week days or 8.30 a.m. on Sundays. Regardless of what time we set, it never suited some people. I always made the point that if we offered the people who never came an incentive of €1,000 to attend, they would show up at 3 p.m. on Christmas Day if necessary. This ambivalence applies also to elections. Polling hours of 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. or extending polling to two days would still not suit some people. An incentive is required. In some countries, people are penalised for not exercising the right to vote. We must examine all options.

The electoral register has been skewed throughout the 15 year period I have been in politics. Many of the names on the register should not be on it and many people are not on it who should be on it. I do not have a solution to the problem. I am often asked why a person is not on the electoral register given that he or she has been living in the same house since birth. When I ask whether the person has received a letter about the electoral register, I am told that he or she did not respond to it. We all have a responsibility to check whether our name features on the electoral register. Before the most recent election, I had to check whether my own name was on it because I had been telling everyone else to do so and would have been embarrassed if my name was not on it.

Having represented two counties, I am aware that it was much easier to obtain a postal vote in one county than in the other. This issue has not been addressed. People who are on holidays on election day should not be entitled to a postal vote. If an election is called, people should be able to work around their holidays. While I have not considered the issue at any great length, I fear that people would simply apply for a postal vote and go on holiday.

It is cheap to argue that the Government has not introduced electoral reform. My home town of Boyle had the only town council in my constituency. The Government has abolished town and urban councils and decided, in the interests of fairness to areas with larger populations, to reduce the number of seats on Roscommon County Council from 28 to 18 seats. The number of seats on the country council in Leitrim, which I also represented, has been reduced from 22 to 18 and across the border in County Sligo the number of seats on the council has been cut from 25 to 18. These changes affected the number of councillors from my party who were elected as some councillors with a rural base did not secure a sufficient number of votes to get elected.

The Government has introduced significant electoral reform and lost a large number of councillors as a result. For example, the Fine Gael Party holds only ten council seats in three county councils in which it previously held 30 seats. While I accept that the electorate voted against the Government parties, the reforms we introduced did not help the re-election prospects of many councillors.

The number of Deputies in the Dáil will be reduced from 166 to 158 following the next election. In order to reduce the number further, a referendum will be required. I currently represent the constituency of Roscommon-South Leitrim. After the next general election, it will be the Roscommon-East Galway constituency. I am looking forward to meeting the lovely people in east Galway.

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