THE Oireachtas Committee on Finance and General Affairs heard a strong plea yesterday that photographs of candidates should appear on the ballot paper in elections as an aid to voters with literacy problems.
Mr Ernie Sweeney, from Castlebar, Co Mayo, said that 400,000 people in the State had literacy difficulties. He was asking the politicians to identify themselves with a photograph. He pointed out that voters could be asked to produce identification at the polling booth.
He argued that the expense would be minimal in comparison with the cost of electing three emigrants' representatives to Seanad Eireann, as proposed. He told the committee that he himself had been illiterate until the age of 27.
Mr Michael Ring (Fine Gael) expressed strong support for Mr Sweeney's proposal. Civil servants should not be allowed to block it. "Let's have the photos on the ballot paper for the next election," he said.
Mr Tommy Broughan (Labour) said that candidates should not be allowed to use their "confirmation photographs". He wondered if older candidates would suffer discrimination on grounds of age; in the US presidential election campaign some members of the Democratic Party were using the slogan "Dole is 96".
Although Mr Ring wanted the committee to adopt the proposal right away, the chairman, Mr Jim Mitchell (Fine Gael), ruled that a draft report should be prepared on the matter.
"I don't like what's going on. It's going to be shoved under the carpet," Mr Ring said. Mr Mitchell replied: "I don't think you'll allow that to happen."