Senator calls for gender quota to be imposed on Dáil

A GENDER quota should be imposed to ensure half of TDs returned to the Dáil are women, according to Independent Senator Fiona O’Malley.

She told the Oireachtas committee on the Constitution that one man and one woman should be elected from every constituency.

Outlining her proposal, which she described as “radical”, Ms O’Malley said a first-past-the-post voting system should be introduced along with a redrawing of constituencies that would see the number of TDs reduced to 120.

“So to elect 120 TDs we have 60 two-seat constituencies. Each constituency has a male panel and a female panel. The highest candidates in each of the panels will be elected to represent the constituency,” Ms O’Malley said.

“The voter gets two ballot papers and casts one vote in each panel. Naturally, people are free to vote for whomsoever they wish but a male and a female member will be returned from each constituency.”

Ms O’Malley said her proposal would also minimise clientelism and make membership of political parties more fluid.

“All parties would be out to head-hunt the best women and the best man to stand for them in the panels. The competition would be in the quality of the candidates rather than the party affiliation.”

She said the Seanad should have 30 members. Ms O’Malley stressed she was “not wholly comfortable with the notion that one gets elected on the basis of gender alone”. She said the measures she was proposing did not have to be permanent and could be tried for the next two general elections.

Responding to the proposal, committee members deputy Brendan Howlin of Labour and Senator Dan Boyle of the Greens expressed concerns about proportionality, with Fianna Fáil TD Michael Woods saying there were “potential dangers” in the plan.

Fine Gael TD Bernard Durkan said he disagreed with his party’s plans to abolish the Seanad and reduce the number of TDs by 20.

“Any attempt to reduce or abolish the institutions of democratically elected by the people of their own volition is an attempt to subvert democracy and a very dangerous thing to do.”

Fianna Fáil TD Rory O’Hanlon said he was concerned that rural areas, particularly in the west, would become under-represented in the Dáil because of the loss of seats in constituencies when boundaries were redrawn.