David Cullinane (Sinn Fein)

That is the one. That was a six seat constituency. This country has a history of five and six seat constituencies. We should look at best practice in other countries. Many countries have multi-seat constituencies, and we pride ourselves on our PR-STV system. Its logic is to ensure good representation and diversity in the political system. If we just had four, five and six-seat constituencies, specifically the latter two, it would be the best way to address the issue of the representation in the Dáil of people from working-class backgrounds, as raised by the Minister of State. I am not being biased based on my party's position because, in the last general election, for example, Sinn Féin did very well in three-seat constituencies. It is not that my party would lose; other parties could gain. It is a question of ensuring good representation and participation. If we moved towards having three-seat constituencies, the system could become elitist. People from working class backgrounds may not have the money or opportunity to run for election. Those who are not members of political parties do not have access to the funding to run election campaigns.

This issue could be addressed in the context of this Bill. We are pressing the amendment because we believe it to be important in the context of the reforms the Minister of State is proposing. I am interested in hearing his response. I will now allow other people to contribute.