The 19th Amendment to the Constitution Bill to be voted on next Friday is unconstitutional because the procedure for amending Articles 2 and 3 does not conform with Article 46 of the Constitution. Mr Riordan claims, and says he is supported by a Referendum Commission document, that the Articles will ultimately be amended by a Government declaration and this is contrary to Article 46.
The Government, in agreeing to the provisions in the Belfast Agreement related to the release of prisoners, including prisoners convicted of capital offences, acted in excess of its powers because the Irish Constitution provides that the right of pardon and the right to commute sentences is vested in the President.
The proposed new Article 3 is inconsistent with the State's right to exercise extra-territorial jurisdiction.