Key referendums may be held with presidential poll

TAOISEACH ENDA Kenny has indicated that a referendum on the abolition of the Seanad and on children’s rights may be held on the same day as the presidential election.

Mr Kenny said of the children’s referendum that “it should be possible to get agreement on a formula of words that could be put to the people on the same date as the presidential election”. He added that “the same could apply to the issue of the abolition of the Seanad”.

The Taoiseach said, however, that preparation of legislation to remove articles from the Constitution linked to the abolition of the Seanad was “not as simple as it sounds” but he had asked his department “to start work on this immediately and we will report progress”.

But Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin said “the only ones who made it sound simple were people in Fine Gael”.

Mr Kenny replied: “I am not watering it down. I just want to get the matter right.”

During Taoiseach’s questions Mr Kenny told Opposition leaders he had met all the children’s advocacy groups, who believed it should be possible to reach agreement on wording for a referendum “on the same date as the presidential election. While I cannot confirm this I am prepared to consider the matter”.

He said the Minister for Children would “ work intensively to find whether it would be possible”.

Mr Martin said that while the Government might have issues with the previous administration’s “final template, it is now decision time”. But he said the referendum should not be held on the same day as the presidential election.

“If the amendment to the Constitution is a substantive one, it merits treatment on its own. The election of a president is a very serious issues in its own right which merits treatment on its own and consideration by the electorate,” he said.

The Taoiseach said that whether the referendum would be on the same day as the election was “a matter to be considered”.

He did not have a “hard and fast view” on the issue but he accepted Mr Martin’s point “about the importance of both”.

The Fianna Fáil leader said there would be a “great danger the accusation could be made that the issues are being squeezed and without full articulation” if held on the same day.

Earlier Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams referred to the Taoiseach’s promise to establish a constitutional convention where “citizens and others will give their views on a range of issues”.

Mr Adams said it should be on an all-Ireland basis and that since a quarter of the island’s population lived in the North they should make up one-quarter of the representation.

“We cannot talk to others in the North or the Brits who are reticent about aspects of the Good Friday Agreement when we ourselves do not, either in vision or practice, have an all-island or all-Ireland approach,” Mr Adams said.

The Taoiseach said he did not have a fixed view on the convention’s membership and would give consideration to Mr Adams’s comments “although perhaps not in respect of the actual percentage”.