Kathleen O'Meara (Labour)

I wonder would the input be heard. I would be curious to hear the Leader's response on that because it has been a feature of the development of the partnership talks over a number of years that, as has been pointed out by other Members, the Oireachtas has played a very small, if any, role in the process. While it has yielded great results for the country in terms of our prosperity and so on, an issue has arisen in regard to a democratic deficit in particular.

On the subject of democratic deficits, the issue surrounding the electoral register is of major importance. We all know how important it is to have the register up to date, particularly those of us who intend to face the electorate in the coming months. The issue is important enough to warrant having the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government come to the House to tell us what exactly are his plans. It is not enough to simply dump it on the local authorities and say it is their responsibility — it is all our responsibility. In the first instance it is our responsibility to ensure that local authorities have sufficient resources to keep the electoral register up to date.

I am inclined to agree with Senator Finuncane that this is a job for people who are willing and prepared to work in the evenings because that is the only time one will find people at home.