The Supreme Court has reserved judgment on an appeal by the State against a High Court decision which appears to have extended the right to vote in all elections to prisoners who are citizens of the State.
In the High Court last June, Mr Justice Quirke ruled that convicted arsonist Stiofain Breathnach, also known as Stephen "Rossi" Walsh, had a right to vote. He held the failure of the State to provide a means whereby Breathnach could vote breached the constitutional guarantee of equality before the law.