By Michael Gallagher Recall of elected representatives occasionally surfaces in discussions of political reform, and has been given topicality by the adverse publicity surrounding the Wexford TD Mick Wallace and his tax affairs. It also arose last month (June 2012) in the US state of Wisconsin, where attempts, ultimately unsuccessful, by local Democrats to pull…
So I recently learned that The Electoral (Amendment) (Political Funding) Bill 2011 will soon be passed as law. Looks like some really progressive stuff, especially when you look at the ongoing hyper monetization of politics that is taking place in the usa. I can’t wait to see the parties publish comprehensive accounts, which should let…
Posted by Elaine Byrne Dr Niamh Hardiman of UCD wrote a piece yesterday for the Sunday Business Post on governance which is posted in full below. Her edited collected, Irish Governance In Crisis, published by Manchester University Press (2012) is launched this week. Niamh Hardiman teaches in UCD School of Politics and International Relations. What…
Posted by Theresa Reidy Last week, several ministers confirmed that the children’s rights referendum will go ahead in Autumn 2013. And, we are told that Seanad abolition will go before the people in 2014. Despite the proposed referendums ahead, we have heard very little about improving the structures we use for running referendums. Ireland has…
Edited by Gemma M Carney and Clodagh Harris (co-convenors of the Participatory and Deliberative Democracy Specialist Group of the Political Studies Association of Ireland). This review was compiled by Aoife Crummy, NUI Galway. Posted by Jane Suiter This e-book emerges from a symposium, ‘Beyond the Ballot: diverse forms of civic engagement between democratic elections,’ held…
Adrian Kavanagh, 25th June 2012 The Sunday Business Post-Red C (24th June) poll notes a recovery in support levels for Fine Gael, with Sinn Fein support levels falling relative to the party’s high level in the 26th May poll. The poll puts national support levels for the main political parties and groupings as follows: Fine Gael 32%…
The Constitutional Studies Group in UCD School of Law is hosting a conference on The Irish Constitution: Past, Present and Future from Thursday to Saturday this week at Kings Inns in Dublin city. This includes sessions on political reform. Details of the panels, papers and how to register are available here.
Here is a link to the ‘The Week in Politics’ coverage of the political reform debate on RTE last night – Brian Dowling’s report touches on a lot of key themes, and much of the discussion explores important ideas. Definitely worth a watch IMO. I’ve posted some reactions of my own below…
Posted by Elaine Byrne Carl O’Brien’s report in today’s Irish Times suggests that the government will implement robust legislation on lobbying. This is very welcome. The policy proposals have yet to released but include: Charities, professional bodies and commercial lobbyists will be on the register of lobbyists A two-year cooling-off period for public servants or ministers…
I just finished reading an article in today’s IT on the constitutional convention. In the article, Dr. Conor O’Mahony claims that the government’s plans on the constitutional convention will be little more than a ‘charade’, indeed, Dr. O’Mahony goes on to describe the planned convention as a ‘joke’. I have to agree with most of Dr.…
Irish Politics Forum 