Marie Sherlock (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 32:

In page 42, lines 26 and 27, to delete all words from and including “(1) The” in line 26 down to and including line 27 and substitute the following: “(1) The Registrar shall maintain the Register of Political Parties and shall cause it to be published on the Commission’s website.”.

I will speak to amendments Nos. 32 and 33. We very much welcome that a register of political parties will be established and maintained.According to section 51, the registrar shall maintain the register of political parties and permit any person to inspect the register at such time and under such conditions as he or she may specify. This seems an unnecessarily restrictive and bureaucratic approach to the register of political parties. Part of the purpose of the Bill is to instil greater confidence among the public in our electoral processes and, by extension, our political system. In this context, having the register easily accessible and published on the website is a very simple and straightforward ask. It would be important in ensuring access to the register as opposed to something that may be permitted by the registrar at a point in time.

Amendment No. 33 seeks to extend the call to publish the register on the commission's website. It asks that details relating to individual parties also be published. These could include the constitution or written rules of a party. It is very simple and straightforward. Almost every political party has a constitution or set of rules. Publishing these would be important to bring greater transparency and increase confidence in, and understanding of, how parties operate. Most of us here are members of political parties. If we want people to join parties, this information should be freely accessible. It is freely accessible from some parties and less so from others. It is a very simple ask that we have the rules of a party published on the website. I ask the Minister of State to consider this amendment.