Sir, - Your readers may like to know that in the forthcoming session of the British parliament Mr Tony Blair's government intends introducing a "Political Parties, Elections and Referendum Bill". This would apply to future British referendums the same principle of equality in public funding and the use of public resources as the Irish Supreme Court laid down for constitutional referendums here in its 1995 McKenna judgement.
Both the Supreme Court and myself personally have been criticised from many quarters for the supposed exoticism of this judgement and its alleged unfairness to the Government and political parties in referendums. It is therefore worth noting that the government of our neighbouring jurisdiction accepts that the principle of a level playing field between Yes and No sides should, in so far as practicable, be applied in referendums, particularly where the use of public resources are concerned. This is despite the fact that Mr Blair's government is committed to holding a referendum in the UK and when it decides to join the euro. If it does take that decision, it will certainly be very anxious to win such a referendum.
That has not led the British government, however, to adopt the kind of unfair methods used by successive Irish governments in the referendums held here between 1987 and 1995, until the Supreme Court stopped them as a result of the case I took.
The British government proposes that in future British referendums there should be equality of public funding between both sides, with a maximum sum of £600,000 provided to umbrella groups on each side by an electoral commission analogous to our own Referendum Commission. It proposes that, on these occasions, equal time be given to each side in radio and TV broadcasts given free of charge. Furthermore, meeting-rooms in schools and public buildings should be equally available, free, to each side, and there should be free mailing to voters of a message from each side on the referendum proposition.
Moreover, it proposes a ban on foreign funding in referendums - something that in my opinion is desirable in Ireland also - and a cap on private funding by individual political parties and non-party organisations on either side.
The British government's proposals and the draft Bill embodying them which will shortly be introduced in the House of Commons, are set out in a White Paper issued by the Home Secretary, Jack Straw, during the summer. They are based on the unanimous recommendations of the Committee on Standards in Public Life, chaired by Lord Neill of Bladen QC, which surveyed electoral and referendum practice around the world, as well as in this country, before coming to its conclusions. These conclusions have been adopted by the British government virtually unchanged. May I suggest that these British proposals are a triumphant vindication of the wisdom and sense of democracy and fair play exemplified by our own Supreme Court in its judgement on the case that I put before it in 1995, and the relevance of the principles laid down in that judgement to referendum procedures in progressive modern democracies everywhere. - Yours, etc.,
Patricia McKenna MEP, Molesworth Street, Dublin 2.