Citizen’s Assembly to submit recommendations for referendum reform
The Citizens’ Assembly will now submit recommendations to the Oireachtas on referendums after its meeting this weekend.
It backed proposals to improve voter turnout and to provide for a permanent Electoral Commission to oversee how the ballots are run.
It also suggested giving those living abroad for less than five years the right to vote.
Oliver Moran, Green Party Spokesperson on Political Reform, says the government needs to act on the recommendations.
"What I would like from Government is that when they get the report from the Citizen’s Assembly on this that they will state emphatically that yes, we are going to move on this, it’s been talked about enough."
Here's the speech. Well, well worth a listen. https://t.co/deugopKuQc
— Oliver Moran (@oliver_moran) January 14, 2018
The report also suggested ways to boost voter turnout - including lowering voting age to just 16.
UCC Law Lecturer, Conor O’ Mahony, thinks it might be a good idea.
"There’s no magic moment at which someone stops being a child and becomes an adult," said Mr O’Mahony.
"If we’re going to decide who can vote and who cannot vote based on how much information they have or how well informed they are, there are plenty of adults out there who make their decisions based on ill-informed views or lack of information and there is lots of evidence and referendum campaigns that support that as well."
