Extending the Seanad franchise to all third-level graduates will cost at least an extra €4 million to run each

election to the Upper House, the Cabinet has been told.

Currently 151,000 people are entitled to vote on the Trinity College and National University of Ireland panels, but this could be increased to 800,000 when all third-level institutions are included.

The Bill extending the university franchise to the graduates of all third-level institutions includes the Institutes of Technology.

Under the terms of the Bill, the two existing three-seat university constituencies will go. Instead one six-seat constituency will be established and all third-level graduates will be entitled to vote. It was due to be discussed at Cabinet yesterday but was deferred. However, Ministers were circulated with a memo on the Bill, which is being prepared by Minister for the Environment Phil Hogan.

Ballot papers
The memo says the cost of running the two university panels for the last Seanad elections in 2011 was €2.63 million, with a "significant portion of these costs arising from the issuing of ballot papers by post".

It adds that the cost of extending the franchise is €150,000 for every 25,000 additional graduate voters.“If the newly configured constituency had an electorate of 800,000 voters the costs arising would be some €6.5 million.”

The memo says the costs do not include the “significant” work in establishing a new electoral register “or to check and validate applications to the register”.

The Government believes the third-level institutions should still be involved in registering voters, but this could lead to increased financial pressure, the memo adds.