Josepha Madigan (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator McDowell for raising this issue, which I am taking on behalf of the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage. As the House will know, and as the Senator indicated, the Supreme Court delivered its judgment on 31 March in a case brought by Mr. Thomas Heneghan, a graduate of the University of Limerick, against the State, seeking an extension of voting rights at Seanad university panels elections to graduates of third level institutions other than those of Trinity College Dublin and the National University of Ireland. The applicant had claimed that by not extending voting rights to other third level institutions, the State had neglected to take account of the outcome of the referendum held in 1979, as noted by Senator McDowell.

The Seanad Electoral (University Members) Act 1937 sets out the current legislative provisions governing the election of university Senators to Seanad Éireann. In the recent judgment, the Supreme Court determined that sections 6 and 7 of that Act, which provide for the election of Members of the Seanad by certain university graduates, are unconstitutional because they are not consistent with Article 18.4.2° of the Constitution. That article was inserted into the Constitution in 1979 following a referendum approving the amendment contained in the Seventh Amendment of the Constitution (Election of Members of Seanad Éireann by Institutions of Higher Education) Act 1979. The Supreme Court has suspended its declaration of invalidity and, therefore, the practical effect of the judgment, until 31 July 2023 in the first instance.

The Minister, Deputy O’Brien, recognises the significance of the Supreme Court ruling and the need for a comprehensive response to it. The Minister, together with the Minister of State with responsibility for heritage and electoral reform, Deputy Noonan, and their Department, is currently considering the judgment with a view to preparing options for consideration by the Government, which was one of Senator McDowell’s questions. What they are, I do not know yet, but they are under active consideration and I understand this work is being progressed as a matter of priority in the Department.

I do not wish to pre-empt any proposals of the Ministers or, indeed, any Government decision at this stage. Suffice to say that the judgment of the Supreme Court will be responded to in a comprehensive manner.As the Senator will understand, this Government's electoral reform priority to date has been the establishment of an electoral commission. An Coimisiún Toghcháin was established on a statutory footing on 9 February 2023. Independent of Government, it reports directly to the Oireachtas and will be central to the administration development and the protection of our democratic processes and institutions.

I thank the Senator, once again, for raising the issue. I appreciate that it is a complex matter. I acknowledge that a long period has passed since 1979 when the referendum was voted on, and that it is five weeks since the judgment. The Senator also mentioned that the graduates of five universities and five technical universities cannot vote, which, as he said, amounts to around between 1.2 million and 1.8 million people. The Senator's concerns about whether there will be postal ballot and so forth will be considered.