Cowen open to all-party committee on constituencies

TÁNAISTE BRIAN Cowen suggested an all-party committee to examine constituency boundary changes.

"Because it is so politically correct, we do not interfere but stand back," he said. "It could be open to people in this House to come up with solutions if they so wish."

Mr Cowen said that comments had been made by members on all sides of the House on the impact of the constituency revisions that had been published in the commission's report to the Minister for the Environment.

"This indicates that because of the huge shift in population and so on, there was a greater degree of change on this occasion than was the case in the past," he said.

"We are simply presented with a fait accompli and practitioners of politics like ourselves do not have an input into what is happening." Mr Cowen said that the Constituency Commission's independence was in no way being challenged or compromised.

However, there was some merit in an interim report being published that would invite comments from the House on the workability or the efficacy of some of the proposals.

These could be taken into account by the commission when it finalised the report and came forward with its final position.

"The position since 1977 has been that we have always taken the recommendations in blanket form and we have not considered them," said Mr Cowen.

"I am aware that since the publication of this report, deputies on all sides of the House have had serious reservations about provincial and county boundaries being breached."

Fergus O'Dowd (FG, Louth) said that all deputies had an opportunity, which some had exercised and others did not, to make a submission to the commission which was chaired by a High Court judge. "We should leave it to the commission to make the decision, whatever that decision may be," he added.

Mr O'Dowd said it was a matter that should be left out of the political domain.

Mr Cowen said that it was important to be accurate about the statutory provision. Submissions could be made to the commission, and it was open to the House to accept all, any or none of them.

Mr Cowen said it was time that the sovereign parliament took upon itself the responsibilities arising in that area.

"If we have a difficulty with the commission's recommendations, and can devise a consensus around modifications or changes, why should we not do so on behalf of the constituents who are declaring such dissatisfaction ?" he added.

Charlie Flanagan (FG, Laois-Offaly) advised the Tánaiste to exercise "great care, having regard to the seat from which he rises", in proposing the establishment of an all-party committee. Any such committee would undoubtedly include a majority of Government Ministers, he said.