John Minihan (Progressive Democrats)

I join with Senator Brian Hayes in highlighting the issue of the electoral register. Democracy and our system of voting begins with an accurate register. Those of us who stand for elections are conscious of results and have seen how seats have been won by a margin of a couple of votes. Considered alongside the inaccurate figures on our register, the principle of democracy and elections is called into question. Regardless of whether the method of voting is electronic or manual, the starting point is the register. I encourage the Leader to invite the Minister to the House to debate this issue. We can then see what action is being taken to ensure an accurate, honest register is presented to the people so that the general election can be held in a fair manner. It is too easy to have misrepresentation and we should not facilitate it by failing to ensure a proper register.