Dan Boyle (Green Party)

I thank all who contributed to the debate this evening. It has been a rare occasion of harmony descending on the Seanad Chamber in Private Members' time. I cannot remember a Private Members' motion in the lifetime of this Seanad where there was such a degree of consensus. On a personal level I am heartened by it as it will help the eventual progress of necessary legislation in this area.

The debate has been characterised by a number of useful points about what needs to be addressed. The Minister made significant commitments as to how he intends to proceed. He indicated the production of a scoping document is expected at the end of May. This will give us an indication of how an electoral commission can come into being and what kind of commission it is likely to be. When we have that type of detail we might have small ripples of political dissent because the idea of a commission depends on how wide-ranging or all-consuming it would be in its functions and how deep would be its remit. I am still hopeful that the trend of all the contributions this evening would indicate that a general support exists and will continue to exist until we have that necessary reform. All involved in the debate recognise that change is necessary.

Many of the points raised go beyond the formation of an electoral commission but they are worth commenting on because a future commission could deal with such issues, although it is probably our responsibility to deal with them before a commission comes into play. I sense a degree of consensus for spending limits in local government elections and they are easier to put in place than the convenient fiction we have for general elections of covering a three-week campaign in that the date of a local election is constitutionally known.