John Gormley (Dublin South East, Green Party)

The main purpose of the Bill is to implement the recommendations in the report of the independent Constituency Commission published in October 2007 on revisions to Dáil and European Parliament constituencies. In addition, the Bill amends the law relating to the constituency revision process and provides for the introduction of alternative procedures for the nomination of non-party candidates at European Parliament and local elections.

Parts 2 and 3 of the Bill provide for implementation of the recommendations of the Constituency Commission's report on Dáil and European Parliament constituencies. In considering these Parts, it may be helpful for the House if I outline the principal constitutional and legal requirements in these matters.

Article 16.2.3° of the Constitution provides that: "The ratio between the number of members to be elected at any time for each constituency and the population of each constituency, as ascertained at the last preceding census, shall, so far as it is practicable, be the same throughout the country". This provision was considered by the courts in two cases in 1961, namely, the High Court case of John O'Donovan v. the Attorney General, and the Supreme Court reference case relating to the Electoral (Amendment) Bill 1961. It was again considered in a High Court case in 2007 taken by Deputy Finian McGrath and former Deputy Catherine Murphy where it was argued that the constituencies on which the general election was being fought did not comply with the constitutional requirement contained in that article. In none of these cases did the courts quantify the precise degree of equality of representation required by the Constitution. Examples of significant disparities in terms of population to seat ratio based on census 2006 include: 21% above the national average in Dublin West; 18% above the national average in Dublin North; 14% above the national average in Meath East; and 10% below the national average in Dún Laoghaire.

Article 16.2.4° of the Constitution provides that: "The Oireachtas shall revise the constituencies at least once in every twelve years, with due regard to changes in distribution of the population". This, in effect, requires that the constituencies be revised whenever population changes, as shown in a census, lead to population to Deputy ratios in individual constituencies that are significantly out of line with the national average. That is the case at present and the Oireachtas must respond accordingly.

Section 5 of the Electoral Act 1997 provides that, on publication of the relevant Central Statistics Office report on a census, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government must set up a commission to report on Dáil and European constituencies. The terms of reference of the commission are specified in the Act and subordinate to the relevant constitutional provisions.

As the House is aware, for more than half a century after the founding of the State, changes in constituencies were formulated and advanced by the Government of the day. The first Constituency Commission was set up in 1977 to report on constituencies for the direct elections to the European Parliament in 1979. The first Dáil Constituency Commission was established in 1980 on a non-statutory basis and such commissions continued to report on constituency revisions until the enactment of the Electoral Act 1997. The commission which reported in October 2007 was the third statutory commission established under the Act.

Volume 1 of the 2006 census reports was published in April 2007. This showed an increase in total population from 2002 of more than 322,000, giving a total population in the State of 4.24 million. Thus, each of the 166 Deputies represented an average of 25,541 persons in 2006.

As I stated, the detailed population figures for each constituency showed that there were serious variances from the national average population per Deputy in a number of constituencies. Nineteen constituencies had variances from national average representation in excess of 5% and 11 had deviations in excess of 8%. The most under-represented constituencies were Dublin West and Dublin North with variances of +21% and +18%, respectively. The most over-represented constituencies were Dún Laoghaire and Cork North-Central with variances of -10% each. Clearly, significant changes have become necessary in some areas to secure equality of representation between constituencies based on the 2006 census. Therefore, in accordance with section 5 of the 1997 Act, a Constituency Commission was set up in April 2007, chaired by Mr Justice larfhlaith O'Neill. The other members of the commission were: Mr. Kieran Coughlan, Clerk of the Dáil; Ms Deirdre Lane, Clerk of the Seanad; Ms Geraldine Tallon, Secretary General of the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government; and Ms Emily O'Reilly, the Ombudsman. I thank the commission members for the conscientious and impartial manner in which they carried out their work.

The main features of the commission's report on Dáil constituencies are as follows. First, there should be no change in the existing level of Dáil membership, that is, 166 seats. Second, the total number of constituencies should remain at 43 and no change should be made in 19 constituencies. Third, there should be an increase of one seat in both the Louth and Dublin West constituencies, together with changes in the areas covered by the constituencies. Fourth, there should be a reduction of one seat in both the Dún Laoghaire and Limerick East constituencies, with the latter to be renamed as Limerick City, and there should be changes in the areas covered by the constituencies. Fifth, the area and name of two constituencies should change, with Kerry North and Limerick West to be amended to Kerry North-West Limerick and Limerick, respectively. Sixth, changes, many of them small, should be made to the areas of 18 other constituencies.

The main features of the commission's report on European Parliament constituencies are, in a context of 12 Irish Members of the Parliament, a reduction of one seat in the Dublin constituency and the transfer of the population of counties Longford and Westmeath from the East to the North-West constituency. The Government has accepted the commission's recommendations as a single package of interlinked measures bringing Dáil and European Parliament constituencies into line with the prevailing population patterns, in accordance with constitutional imperatives and other legal requirements. We can all recognise that it might have been possible for the commission to suggest solutions other than those recommended in the report and I appreciate fully the concerns that arise, including relating to breaches of county boundaries. However, the commission has completed its work in accordance with its statutory terms of reference and its independent determination of the issues should now be respected. Cherry-picking individual recommendations would undermine the reasons for establishing an independent commission in the first place. It is the Government's firm view that the precedent of adhering to the commission's advice should be adhered to.

Part 4 revises the procedures to be followed by constituency commissions. In terms of the form of this element of the Bill, it was decided that in view of the importance of these procedures, the amendments should be made by way of repeal and re-enactment with amendments of the full part of the Electoral Act 1997 dealing with the constituency revision process. In this way, the two Houses, in considering the Bill and others subsequently, will be able to see in one place the full text of the law regarding a commission.

As regards the substance, most of the existing law in this area is being retained. The main change is that in the future commissions will be established on publication by the Central Statistics Office, following a census of population, of the census report setting out the preliminary result of the census in respect of the total population of the State. A commission will have to report as soon as possible after publication by the CSO of the census report setting out the final result of the census in respect of the total population of the State and not later than three months after such publication. Previously, commissions had to await final results before starting work and then had six months to complete their task. This change responds fully to the High Court judgment in the case of Murphy and McGrath v. Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and others in June 2007. The court concluded that, having regard to constitutional requirements and the high quality of CSO preliminary population data, consideration should be given to initiation of constituency revisions on publication of the CSO preliminary report on a census, with the revision work being completed when the final data were available. This is an important new provision which I hope will be welcomed on both sides of the House.

The opportunity is also being taken in the Bill to update and improve the consultation processes followed by a commission in the course of its work. The Bill requires a commission to allow at least three months for the making of submissions to it. At present, a commission has discretion as to the length of time allowed which is inevitably influenced by the six-month time limit on a commission to produce its report. With future commissions commencing work on the basis of preliminary data, greater time can be made available for consultation with interested organisations and individuals, for which specific provision has been made in the Bill. This will ensure a fuller opportunity for political and wider public input to the revision process.

The Bill also expressly provides that background information statements prepared by the commission are to be made available free of charge. Previous provision that fees had to be paid to obtain copies of submissions made to a commission has been replaced by a requirement that they also are to be made available free of charge. A requirement in the existing law regarding physical inspection of submissions at specified times and places has been revised to allow the commission to decide on the detailed arrangements for making these publicly available. In this way, best use can be made, for example, of the Internet to allow access to submissions. Taken together, these are significant and worthwhile improvements to the consultation processes followed by constituency commissions during the course of their work, while retaining the essential features of commission procedures which have operated effectively for many years. This part of the Bill also updates the fines provisions in sections 14 and 15 of the 1997 Act and references in the law to specific offices and other legislation that have changed in the decade since the Act came into operation.

The final elements of the Bill, Parts 5 and 6, deal primarily with providing alternative procedures for nomination of non-party candidates at European Parliament and local elections. The need for alternative procedures for nomination of such candidates arises from a judgment of the Supreme Court in November 2006 in the case of King, Cooney and Riordan v. Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, the Attorney General and others. The judgment deals with the assentor requirements for the nomination of Dáil candidates who are not members of registered political parties. In particular, the court upheld the main requirement for obtaining assentors to help ensure the proper regulation of elections but struck down the provision requiring personal attendance by all assentors at a single location in a constituency on the basis that it could involve excessive demands on the time of assentors. The court found the provision was disproportionate to the objective to be achieved, namely, the due authentication of nomination papers and declared the relevant section of the Electoral Act 1992 to be unconstitutional.

The implications of the Supreme Court judgment were dealt with by the enactment of the Electoral (Amendment) Act 2007. Owing, however, to the limited time available and the urgent need for enactment and implementation before the 2007 general election, the text of the 2007 Act provided for alternative nomination procedures, nomination deposits or assents, for non-party candidates at general elections only. Corresponding procedures for European Parliament and local elections are required in advance of the upcoming elections and are included in the Bill on that basis. The procedures proposed follow those enacted in 2007 for general elections.

Parts 5 and 6 provide for two alternative mechanisms to regulate the nomination of candidates at European Parliament and local elections who are not in possession of a certificate of political affiliation. The first mechanism is by way of assents requiring the completion of statutory declarations, 60 in the case of European Parliament elections and 15 in respect of local elections, by assentors in the constituency or local electoral area which may be witnessed by a commissioner for oaths, peace commissioner, notary public, garda or local authority official. The second mechanism is by way of the candidate, or someone on his or her behalf, lodging a deposit with the returning officer. The amount required is €1,800 for European Parliament elections, €100 in the case of the election of members of a county or city council or €50 in the case of any other local election.

The nomination procedures for candidates not in possession of a certificate of political affiliation standing at European Parliament and local elections are being brought into line with the procedures in place for such candidates at a general election. This alignment of the nomination procedure, in Parts 5 and 6, represents a necessary improvement on previous arrangements and fully meets the relevant constitutional requirements. Parts 5 and 6 also include two other provisions. Section 13(a) increases the number of replacement candidates at European Parliament elections. Section 20, reflecting developments in the law relating to use of primary and secondary legislation, provides that local election regulations shall have statutory effect as if they were an Act of the Oireachtas.

The programme for Government contains a commitment to examine spending limits at local elections as part of the Green Paper on local government. Such limits already apply to other categories of election. Submissions made in the course of preparing the Green Paper which was published in April 2008 were generally supportive of some expenditure limit.

I met the Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Environment, Heritage and Local Government on 7 October last, at my request, to seek the committee's views on the introduction of spending limits at local elections. Members of the committee were generally in favour of this. Following on from that, I indicated that I intend to introduce spending limits at local elections and to have the limits in place in time for the local elections to be held in June. I also indicated that my preferred legislative route was to introduce the required changes by way of amendment to this Bill on Committee Stage during its passage through this House.

However, I have recently been advised by the Attorney General that in view of the important issues provided for in the Bill it is essential that it be enacted at an early date and that the spending limit provisions should be brought forward in a separate Bill. Work is therefore proceeding on the preparation of such a Bill to implement spending limits at the forthcoming local elections and I intend that it will be before the Houses for consideration as soon as possible.

I stress the need to maintain the long-established practice of implementing in full the recommendations of constituency commissions. The Bill now before the House does this. The Government believes this is the right approach. The Bill also makes significant and worthwhile improvements to the processes followed by constituency commissions in their work, as well as implementing measures to facilitate the holding of the upcoming European and local elections.

I commend the Bill to the House.