EVERY vote received by Dail candidates may be worth £1 in the next general election, following the Supreme Court judgment in the McKenna case.
The Government had proposed, in the Electoral Bill, 1994, to reimburse only those TDs who were elected, and to make an annual allowance of £1 per vote to successful Dail parties and independents.
However, new changes to the Bill are expected to provide a once off payment for both winners and losers, while modifying the existing system of party leaders allowances. The overall annual cost would be in the region of £2 million.
As well as providing State funding for the political system, the Bill is designed to regulate the way money is raised from the private sector and spent by parties and politicians.
Donations in excess of £4,000 would have to be registered by political parties. TDs and senators would be required to disclose amounts of more than £500. And limits would be placed on what political parties and individuals could spend in elections.
A commitment to introduce the legislation has appeared in the last two programmes for government, and there is cross party support for most of its provisions.
However, the Minister for the Environment, Mr Howl in, is understood to have been unenthusiastic about the legislation last week, during consultation with Opposition parties, because of the negative attitude the electorate might take to State funding of parties.
Fine Gael and Democratic Left Ministers were particularly annoyed when it was suggested the legislation might not be proceeded with. It is now expected the reforms will be put in place as quickly as possible.
The Bill has been stalled at Committee Stage in the Dail because of the Supreme Court decision in favour of the Green Party MEP, Ms Patricia McKenna, concerning State funding of the divorce referendum campaign.