The Government will have to reschedule its electronic voting plans in the Nice referendum if a legal challenge demanding proper bilingual facilities succeeds in the High Court.
Mr Ciarán Ó Feinneadha, whose first language is Irish, has been granted leave by the High Court to challenge the Government's plans for electronic voting in the Dublin West constituency.
Mr Justice O'Neill allowed him to seek declarations that citizens may vote in either English or Irish and that the State should facilitate this with instructions in both languages.
Mr Seamus Ó Tuathail SC, for Mr Ó Feinneadha, said that he would be seeking an order for the provision of such facilities and, in the event of the State failing to reprogramme computers, to offer his client the right to vote under the old bilingual pen-and-paper voting system.
Mr Ó Feinneadha, a tax consultant, of Palmerstown Drive, Palmerstown, in the Dublin West constituency, told the court that Irish was his first language and that of his household.
It was also his language of choice when conducting official business in the State.
He said that he had exercised his franchise in State elections and referendums since he was 18, and the ballot paper and accompanying instructions displayed at his polling station, Palmerstown national school, had been in both Irish and English.
Mr Ó Feinneadha said that Dublin West had been designated for electronic voting in the last general election, and when he had contacted the Department of the Environment to ascertain whether he could continue voting in Irish, he had been assured that he could and that he would be facilitated.
When he had gone to the polling station, leaflets in English were being handed out and he had been told that none were available in Irish.
He said that the voting computer had some Irish on it, but not all information in English was accompanied by an Irish version. The interactive screen was in English only.
He said that, through his solicitor, he had written two letters to the Minister, asking for an undertaking that all written and interactive material on how to vote electronically would be available in Irish for the Nice referendum.
He had received no reply save an acknowledgement that his first letter had been received, and he had since heard on Raidió na Life that the interactive screen would not be bilingual for the Nice referendum.