Below I’ve pasted the announcement by the government for Dáil reform. One thing to note I suppose is that it is the government that does this and not the Dáil itself making its own rules. On the reforms themselves, the phrase ‘a day late and a dollar short’ comes to mind. ——————— Dáil Reform Note…
The Taoiseach and Tánaiste announced Dáil reform measures today – two and a half years after the 2011 election. According to the Irish Times report by Stephen Collins, the measures will only come into force if the electorate gives a mandate to abolish the Seanad. At first glance the commitment to consult experts and civil society before the pre-legislative…
Post by Dr Peter Stone (TCD) In Aristotle’s day, people took it for granted that democracy meant selection by lottery, and aristocracy meant elections. Today, most people assume that a democratic society elects all of its officials. But a growing movement believes that we should revisit selection by lottery as a means of curing the…
Elaine Byrne, University of New South Wales: 4 September 2013 “10 reports in 75 years – NO reforms introduced to the Seanad” is Fine Gael’s slogan to abolish the Seanad. That’s not true. The Seanad was reformed in 1947 with the Seanad Electoral (Panel Members) Act, 1947. A longer version of my Sunday Independent article will be…
By Michael Gallagher Never in its history has the Seanad been the focus of so much attention. Is it a vital bastion of democracy without which governments would be able to trample all over everyone’s rights, or conversely an expensive anachronism draining resources that could make a huge difference elsewhere? Probably neither. It does a…
Post by Iain McMenamin (Dublin City University) The hydraulic theory of political finance holds that money, like water, will always find its way through cracks in the regulatory system. Humans have become very good at waterproofing buildings. It should also be possible to moneyproof politics, to ensure that political finance only flows through the approved…
Originally posted on Irish Elections: Geography, Facts and Analyses:
As the adriankavanaghelections.org website nears its 100,000th hit, I have decided to mark the occasion with a post detailing what would be the issues that I would most like to see being prioritised in relation to the areas of electoral and political reform. My approach here…
The month of August saw the latest poll from the Red C series of opinion polls as well as two new Sunday Independent-Millward Brown polls, with these continuing the trends observed in polls during 2013, in which Fianna Fail and Fine Gael support hovers around the mid 20s mark (with Fianna Fail faring decidedly better in the…
In an op ed in today’s Irish Times, Dr Anthony O’Halloran reminds us of the important constituency service role played by our TDs (see here). He argues that Irish political commentators are universally negative about this role, painting it in negative tones and tending to suggest that such behaviour is atypical. While the article makes…
Declaration of interest: I am one of the members of the academic team advising the constitutional convention on its work programme. The Irish Constitutional Convention is most of the way through its work programme. Many journalists and other commentators were critical of the Convention when it was launched. But among those who have witnessed its…
Irish Politics Forum 