Seanad debates

Tuesday, 17 May 2022

Regulation of Display of Electoral and Polling Posters and Other Advertisements Bill 2022: Second Stage

 

2:30 pm

Photo of Róisín GarveyRóisín Garvey (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

That did not represent what was actually happening. I wish to make a few points. Senator Ward stated that posters do not get people elected. If they do not, then nobody here should have a problem with us restricting them. The second point is that we are not seeking to ban posters. We are seeking to limit the use of posters to designated areas, which we have seen working all over Europe. It is a bit like the way some schools in Ireland demand that girls wear skirts. Outsiders look at us in Ireland and wonder if we are mad. It is the same with the use of posters. All it is is littering. The posters are litter made from fossil fuels. All plastic is made from fossil fuels. We are using fossil fuels when we should be moving away from using them. We should only be using alternatives in the future. This plastic is used all over the place. I know there are regulations, but they are not adhered to. Senators should not think for a second that because there are regulations, they are adhered to. I grew up with Fianna Fáil always having the best poster spots, so I was determined that if I ever ran for election, I would get my posters up first, with plotted placement and all that. We had it all measured. We put the posters up at the lowest possible height. We were OCD about it. We had the ladders up and put the posters up in exactly the right place. Lo and behold, people who did not get up at the crack of dawn put their posters up over mine, and not one was removed. Let us not kid ourselves into thinking that we have any control over the putting up of posters. Posters are littering our country every four or five years. Their use is backward. People use social media now. It is a joke to think that just because the over 50s are on Facebook we cannot reach the masses. Young people have no interest in posters. I was actually embarrassed putting up posters the last time. Posters only feature the candidate's face. They tell people nothing about the candidate or what he or she stands for. The posters just display the name of the candidate's party. No woman or member of the Green Party has ever been elected in north County Clare. My point is that everything has changed. If we do not make the change now, when are we going to do it? Will we wait until we have run out of fossil fuels to make the plastic posters?

The use of posters is also unfair on new candidates. They do not have the money that people who are already elected have. First of all, those who are elected have a political wage, and in some cases, they have parties helping them with the cost of posters. If we allow posters to go up everywhere, first-time candidates are placed at a disadvantage. I really believe that.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.