AG to provide legal advice over constituencies

The Attorney General is to provide the Government with legal advice in relation to constituency boundaries following the publication…

The Attorney General is to provide the Government with legal advice in relation to constituency boundaries following the publication of preliminary census figures today.

It has been claimed that a number of the State's 42 electoral constituencies are now either under-represented or over-represented by Dail deputies.

The number of TDs that should be elected is strictly laid down under article 16 (2) of the Constitution, which states there should be no more than one TD for every 20,000 people and no less than one for every 30,000.

Clearly, the boundaries of Dublin West need to be re-examined. This is the only constituency in Ireland which will is over-populated for the amount of electoral seats serving it
Fine Gael councillor Leo Varadkar

Today's figures reveal the population in the Dublin West constituency rose by 26.8 per cent since 2002 and now has 30,933 persons per TD, while Dublin North has 29,996 per Dail deputy.

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The Tanaiste Mary Harney said today that the Government had discussed the preliminary census figures this morning and that her colleague, Minister for the Environment Dick Roche, would be "dealing with" the issue later today.

"In the meantime, the Government have asked the Attorney General to provide legal advice in relation to the issue," she said.

Labour Party leader Pat Rabbitte said the figure breaches the specific constitutional requirement that a TD must represent not more than 30,000 people.

He said no politician liked boundary changes, but that this should not be decided by personal or party political interest.

"The basic constitutional requirement is this: the constituencies must be revised by reference to the population figures "as ascertained by the last preceding census."

"Our last census was three months ago, in April. Our population figures derive from that census. Yet the Central Statistics Office and Minister Roche insist today's figures are preliminary and not definitive. They must explain what they mean by that distinction," he said.

"The Government has already displayed a staggering inability to maintain a reliable electoral register; they indulged in a fanciful misadventure on electronic voting that was riddled with error; and now their complacent disregard for these population figures and their constitutional implications demonstrates an irresponsible and arrogant attitude towards the integrity of the electoral process."

Fine Gael's Dublin West election candidate Leo Varadkar called for the appointment of a boundary commission, which would determine where constituency boundaries should be set and the number of Dail seats that should be allocated to them.

"Today's report states that Blanchardstown-Blakestown in Dublin West is the fastest growing small area, up 7,901 to 32,305 in April of this year. Dublin West has grown by a massive 27 per cent

since the last census in 2002. Population of Cork North Central is 91,000 and they have four seats," he said.

"While no previous judicially sanctioned constituency reviews have permitted variations from the national average of more than 8 per cent, today's figures show a massive variation in the TD/population ratio - in Dublin West, the TD/population ratio is 30,993, which is +21 per cent of the average.

"Clearly, the boundaries of Dublin West need to be re-examined. This is the only constituency in Ireland which will is over-populated for the amount of electoral seats serving it. I am calling for immediate action from Minister Roche."

A spokesman for the Minister for the Environment said Mr Roche will consult with the Attorney General in relation to the matter.