Here is an article from the Irish Times today outlining what we have all long suspected that senior Irish cabinet ministers indulge in a peculiarly Irish form of pork barrel, directing funds at their home constituencies. Voters are assumed to vote for candidates who have a good chance of becoming a minister in order to…
By Michael Gallagher Leaving aside the broader issue of electoral reform (I’ve put some thoughts on this here), the question of how to fill casual vacancies has been discussed. At present, by-elections are used to fill such vacancies, and this has been criticised as an anomalous way of filling vacancies arising under a PR system.…
I have recently returned from a research fieldtrip to Australia. The following is an extract of an article of mine from The Irish Examiner, April 2 2010. I have examined the experience of the Australian Senate, of interest in Ireland because of Fine Gael’s proposals to abolish the upper house. (Given the likelihood of a…
The following is taken from an article of mine in The Irish Examiner, April 9 2010. It may be of interest considering the Tasmanian experience of PR-STV. THE DEVIL’S IN THE DETAIL The first thing that struck me about Australian politicians is their responsiveness. Last January I e-mailed a large number of parliamentarians, both past…
Before last Thursday’s leaders’ debate the LibDems privately conceded they’d lose some seats to the Tories on May 6th. Their best case scenario was that they’d be in the position of King-maker in a hung parliament and the price of their (external) support would be electoral reform. However, it’s probable that any party would have to offer…
Phil Hogan today: Fine Gael’s ‘New Politics’ plan is the most ambitious political reform package since the 1930s and will place the Citizen firmly at the centre of government, Party Environment Spokesman, Phil Hogan TD said at its launch today (Monday). See document here What do you think?
Elaine Byrne wrote today that “deep-seated institutional change must rebalance the relationship between the government and the Dáil….by reducing the power of the whip and allowing more issues to be decided by free votes.”
Formal submissions by members of the TCD Junior Sophister Irish Politics class at the formal sitting of the Joint Committee on the Constitution in the TCD Exam Hall- Declan Harmon, David Dehoe, Barra Roantree, Julianne Cox, Eliska Drapalova, Talya Houseman, Kimberley Moran, Ciara Begley, Barry Cahill, Daniel Philbin Bowman and Colm Quinn. This was the…
TCD JS Irish Politics class & TCD Department of Political Science with The Joint Committee on the Constitution of the Houses of the Oireachtas Public consultation @ the Public Theatre (Exam Hall) Trinity College Dublin Tuesday, February 2nd @ 7pm. Ticket only event, places limited, please rsvp at tcdirishpols@gmail.com Directions. The Department of Political Science…
Th Irish Times today says The Greens have won commitments on electoral reform http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/frontpage/2009/1010/1224256346911.html It is also understood that the Greens have won some far-reaching concessions on electoral reform. The Electoral Commission will be asked within the next year to advise if the number of TDs in Dáil Eireann, currently 166, is too high. It…
Irish Politics Forum 