Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)

In the Constitution the people ordained the principal electoral mode for most elections is single transferable vote in multi-seat constituencies. Whether we like it or not, it entails an elected public representative maintains close and intimate contact with his or her electorate. The increasing proportion of the electorate in the workforce means of necessity a public representative must devote many evenings to maintaining contact with his or her electors. This is not family friendly for any representative, male or female. However, it is the nature of the system and of politics. If one is attracted to the vocation——