Dan Boyle (Green Party)

Members of the House have expressed their satisfaction at the approach being taken by the Minister in seeking to achieve consensus to bring about Seanad reform and it is preferable that such consensus can be achieved. However, the House should further welcome the point that consensus is not being defined as obstructionism. Throughout its history, this House has seen 11 reports on Seanad reform and the 23rd Seanad should make a commitment that a 12th report will not be introduced and that Members finally will initiate a process of change that has not yet been initiated during the 70-year or so history of this House.

When Seanad Éireann was established in its present incarnation in 1938, its original 60 Members were elected on the same basis as obtains at present, whereas Dáil Éireann then had 138 Members. I accept the points made by other Members regarding extending the size of the House, especially given the present economic and financial climate. However, the complete absence of change since 1938 reflects badly on our political system and shows a lack of willingness on the part of this House to reform itself. I am more than encouraged that in his contribution tonight, the Minister stated that in the event of a failure to reach consensus, he will take it upon himself to define as closely as possible how such consensus will be reached. He also stated that legislation will be produced by the end of this year and that by the election of the 24th Seanad, there will be an extended electorate for the university franchise at the very least.

As part of the concluding process of the group that is meeting at present, Members should examine other areas. While Members are constitutionally bound in a manner that restricts the number of changes that can be made in one fell swoop, I am encouraged by the consensus that exists already within the aforementioned group to the effect that beyond the 24th Seanad, efforts should be made to have an all-embracing constitutional change to replace the pages of the Constitution that are devoted to the election of Seanad Éireann with the single clause that exists in respect of the election of Dáil Éireann. Wide-ranging and deeper reform of Seanad Éireann will not take place until this constitutional change happens. Although that is beyond the life of this Seanad, Members should set it as a goal.

In the meantime, there are small areas that Members can consider. For example, they could consider the composition of the vocational panels or their electorates. I refer to their extension to all public representatives and the possible use of votes by the nominating bodies. Moreover, the nominating bodies themselves should be examined in respect of which bodies participate in the process and which do not. Members should ascertain whether bodies exist that are not deemed to be nominating bodies within existing legislation but which should be. These constitute small and narrow reforms that can and should be entertained in legislation that could be produced this year. It will be necessary to achieve such balancing on one side of the reform of this House to counteract the major reform that will occur in respect of the university franchise. I am confident this can happen and that the goodwill exists for it to happen.

However, I also take on board the views of Members of this House that reform is not only structural but also pertains to the system of work in which Members engage. Measures to which Members should have access, such as written questions to Ministers, would improve the role of accountability of this Chamber. I also refer to the possible involvement of people who have served the State with distinction, such as former taoisigh and tánaistí. Such areas also should be addressed in the legislation and if agreement can be reached and if the Minister is in a position to define that agreement within the timeframe he has allowed himself, the Seanad Éireann that will be formed after the next general election could be one of the most radical Houses to have been elected since 1938. Members should set themselves that goal because to do otherwise is to play into the cheap commentary that exists at present about the need for and value of a second Chamber.