![]() “It is now a matter of urgency that action is taken in advance of the next Seanad elections and that the will of the people 44 years ago is given effect. Mr Byrne said: “The government has indicated that it supports my Bill in principle. The proposed Bill is due to be debated at committee stage in the Seanad in April. Under his legislation - the Seanad Electoral (University Members) (Amendment) Bill 2020 - a single six-seat constituency for graduate voters would be created. Mr Heneghan had argued there was a failure by the State to extend the voting franchise to other universities arising out of that 1979 amendment.Ī large majority voted to extend voting rights for the university seats to graduates of all third level institutions in a 1979 referendum but successive Governments have failed to act on the powers it granted to reform the system.įianna Fáil Senator Malcolm Byrne - who previously brought forward proposed legislation to expand the electorate to more graduates of other higher education institutions - welcomed Friday’s Supreme Court decision. In a concurring judgment, Mr Justice Hogan said that the constitutional provision, in its proper contextual construction, imposed a constitutional obligation to revise and extend the university Seanad franchise within a reasonable time since the passing of the Seventh Amendment to the Constitution Act in 1979. The suspension should be until July 31st, and the court will hear further submissions before then on whether it should be further extended, he said. This was because the court’s declaration was “wholly prospective” in effect and should be suspended to allow the Oireachtas the opportunity to now legislate in compliance with its constitutional duty, Mr Justice Murray said. The court’s decision does not have an immediate effect. ![]() Mr Justice Murray found the relevant sections of Seanad Electoral (University Members) Act, 1937, limiting the franchise to NUI and TCD, were invalid because the constitutional provision required the reconfiguration of the electorate in one or other of these ways. This was relevant in the event of the dissolution of either NUI or TCD, he said. It would be open to legislators to vest the franchise in NUI or one or more other institutions or in TCD or one or more institutions. ![]()
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