Michael McDowell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

This is our first occasion to meet for some time. I want to put on the record that, earlier in the year, Second Stage of the Seanad Bill was adjourned until the end of the year. The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, and I had a conversation after that. He indicated it was his intention to have a small group among the parties of the coalition in government consider whether they had alternative suggestions to those set out in the Manning report. Time is going by. We are in September and we are coming up to the end of the year fairly quickly. Second Stage will be due to resume.I just want to put on the record of the House that the matter has not gone away.

There are people in this country who should be given a say in who comes to this House. One does not need to go to university - or even a minority of our universities - to merit a vote in the elections for this House. There is nothing to be feared from giving people a vote. I just want to put on record that I had the honour of getting approximately 8,000 first-preference votes, more than the number of first-preference votes garnered by more than half the Members in Dáil Éireann. I long for the day when the Members of this House will be chosen by citizens, regardless of their educational status and by reference to the need in this House for a wide variety of different kinds of people, including protected representatives for minorities, special interests and special needs.

I am just putting it on record that the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, made that undertaking to me that he would progress the matter in the period of the postponement of the Second Reading of the Bill. I remind him publicly that I have not gone away, you know.