Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The matter I want to raise with the Taoiseach is the promise to extend the franchise for presidential elections. As the Taoiseach knows, we are something of an outlier in not allowing any opportunity for citizens living outside of the jurisdiction to participate in any electoral contest.

There had been an agreement and wide consensus that the election of the first citizen, Uachtarán na hÉireann, would be the occasion on which we would extend the franchise, particularly to the North of Ireland. Irish citizens living in Ireland should be given this democratic opportunity, at a minimum. This is a programme for Government commitment. We were told in April 2022 and Government vowed, no less, that the referendum would take place before 2024. In April last year, we learned that was unlikely to be held in time to impact the next presidential election.

Why is there a delay? Why has this been consistently pushed down the pipe? It is not a contentious matter. I will grant that the framing of the franchise needs to be carefully considered. We all accept that. This was a settled matter. I feel it is particularly acute for Irish citizens living in the North of Ireland that this matter is still being stalled. It is not acceptable.

See this speech in context