Niall Blaney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Fianna Fáil supports this motion recommending the appointment of four candidates nominated by the Public Appointments Service to the board of An Coimisiún Toghcháin. An coimisiún is scheduled for establishment in early January 2023, which is welcome. It must be established as a matter of priority to facilitate the review of Dáil constituencies in line with our constitutional and legal requirements. Its necessity was made clear by the recent census and I hope it is commissioned as soon as possible with a view to bringing forward recommendations on those new and amended constituencies.

I welcome the gender balance in the appointments. I also welcome the Northern Irish representation on the commission. Many of us have advocated for the vote in presidential elections to be extended to all Thirty-two Counties on this island. Northern Irish representation is important and welcome.

It is also important that the new commission will take a close look at constituency boundaries, particularly with regard to counties that are broken up. It is important that representation in Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann, particularly the Dáil, is in line with local authority areas. I speak in particular of the areas I know best, which are Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim and Roscommon. Many people in those areas are not satisfied with representation being broken between county councils. That south Donegal can be represented by people who normally would be elected in a different boundary area that is not aligned with the local authority area is an unsatisfactory situation. I hope that will be an issue that the seven people who will sit on the board will be conscious of when they make new decisions in respect of boundaries in the future.The Electoral Reform Act requires the commission to conclude its work no later than three months following the publication of the final census. I believe the final census results are expected at the end of quarter 1 of 2023. The constituency review work is expected to be completed by summer 2023.

More broadly, the commission will be sensitive to the functioning of and public confidence in our electoral process. Our next scheduled electoral event, which is the local and European elections, will take place in summer 2024. It is vitally important that the commission is in place and gets to do its work, particularly with the new function relating to online political advertising and ensuring integrity of our electoral events, and, as such, protecting our democracy. The Electoral Reform Act provides a legal basis for significant electoral reforms in line with the commitments in the Programme for Government: Our Shared Future. It includes the establishment of an independent electoral commission and modernisation of our electoral registration process. It will deliver greater accessibility and improve integrity, including improved voting arrangements, for persons with mental health difficulties. That is particularly important work. It is too easy for our current system to be tampered with, particularly in the run-up to general elections when people apply online. It is not currently serving us well.

The regulation of online political advertising to provide for transparency in political advertising in the online sphere during electoral periods will support open political discourse in our democratic process in a way that will protect it from hidden influences. There are also commitments regarding integrity of elections, public health restrictions, political donations and island voting. The idea of having a vote on our islands on the same day as the inland vote is taking place needs to be welcomed.

I welcome the independent appointments of the four persons mentioned. I look forward to the work of the commission. The work it intends to do is needed, particularly at the moment, to ensure we have effective public representation in protecting our democracy and institutions. I commend the motion to the House.