Niall Ó Brolcháin (Green Party)

I am delighted to welcome my colleague the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Governemnt, Deputy Gormley, who is absolutely committed to Seanad reform. I have spoken to him about the matter on many occasions, most recently when I saw this motion on the Order Paper. I contacted him by text message and suggested we support the motion. He was quick to reply and agree. I will certainly support the motion which is a good one.

There are many issues to be debated on Seanad reform. Senator Twomey has broadened the debate, but what does Seanad reform mean? Does it only refer to the way in which elections are held? I think not. Senator Twomey spoke about the way in which the business of the Seanad was conducted, but that can be reformed without recourse to legislation or a constitutional amendment. We could do this tomorrow if we so wished.

There is no doubt that members of the public want the Seanad to perform a useful service on their behalf. In advance of this debate I was asked by a member of the public what my constituency was. I thought that was an interesting question. I was elected to the House in a by-election just before Christmas. The voters were Deputies and Senators. Members of the university panels are elected in very big constituencies by university graduates. Most Senators, however, are elected by councillors, Deputies and Senators, in other words, by all of the elected representatives.

Senator O'Toole made a valid point when he said every person on the electoral register should have one vote in Seanad elections. That is a good principle, which I would support. I have a background in many areas, one being information technology.

I can see that the various Seanad panels were established at a particular point in history, but they are now outdated. It is time for reform. Last year Deputy Enda Kenny stated he would like to abolish the Seanad within one year of assuming power. I stand to be corrected, but he certainly said he would like to abolish the Seanad if he was elected Taoiseach.