Donna McGettigan (Clare, Sinn Fein)

Everyone in this House opposes partition, or at least they pay lip service to that position. Partition was a disaster for our country and the sooner it is ended, the better. That is the viewpoint from which we should approach this debate on presidential voting rights. Irish citizens are denied the right to vote for the President simply because they live in the North. This seriously undermines their fundamental rights - rights this House is supposed to protect and uphold. It arises from the forced partition of our country and the imposition of a Border by the British Government of the day. However, continuation of the denial of Irish citizens' rights is happening under this Government. It is way past time to end it.

To put this in perspective, if I were to stand in a presidential election, many of my family members and friends in the North would not be able to vote for me. This is nothing new. When Martin McGuinness stood in the presidential election of 2011, he raised the issue repeatedly. Mary McAleese was elected President in 1997 and represented the entire Irish nation despite the fact that Irish citizens in her hometown of Belfast had no say in her election. This is not an academic question but an issue that has arisen in real life in presidential elections for decades and nothing has been done about it.

The fifth report of the convention on the Constitution formally recommended extending voting rights to Irish citizens in the North in November 2013. Despite supportive statements from Government parties, almost 12 years on nothing has changed. In May, the Stormont Assembly passed a motion supporting the call for the extension of presidential voting rights to citizens in the North. This would have been unthinkable a short while ago and indicates the strength of the momentum for change. It is well past time for the Government to call a referendum to enact the expressed will of the people, North and South.

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