PART II

Constituency Commission

5. —(1) Upon the publication by the Central Statistics Office, following a Census of publication, of the Census Report setting out the population of the State classified by area there shall be established by the Minister, by order, a commission (in this Act referred to as “a Constituency Commission”) to perform the function assigned to it by this Part.

(2) A Constituency Commission and its members shall be independent in the performance of their functions under this Act.

(3) Every order made under subsection (1) shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made.

6. —(1) It shall be the function of a Constituency Commission to make a report in relation to the constituencies for—

(a) the election of members to the Dáil, and

(b) the election of representatives to the European Parliament.

(2) In preparing a report under subsection (1) (a) a Constituency Commission shall, in observing the relevant provisions of the Constitution in relation to Dáil constituencies, have regard to the following:

(a) the total number of members of the Dáil, subject to Article 16.2.2° of the Constitution, shall be not less than 164 and not more than 168;

(b) each constituency shall return three, four or five members;

(c) the breaching of county boundaries shall be avoided as far as practicable;

(d) each constituency shall be composed of contiguous areas;

(e) there shall be regard to geographic considerations including significant physical features and the extent of and the density of population in each constituency; and

(f) subject to the provisions of this section, the Commission shall endeavour to maintain continuity in relation to the arrangement of constituencies.

(3) In preparing a report under subsection (1) (b) a Commission shall have regard to the following:

(a) the total number of representatives to be elected in the State to the European Parliament shall be 15 or such other number as may be specified for the time being pursuant to the treaties governing the European Communities;

(b) there shall be reasonable equality of representation as between constituencies; and

(c) the matters specified in paragraphs (b) to (f) of subsection (2).

(4) The reference in subsection (2) (c) to county boundaries shall be deemed not to include a reference to the boundary of a county borough or any boundary between any two of the administrative counties standing established by virtue of Part II of the Local Government (Dublin) Act, 1993.

7. —A Constituency Commission shall consist of the following members:

(a) (i) a judge of the Supreme Court, or

(ii) following consultation with the President of the High Court, a judge of the High Court,

nominated by the Chief Justice, who shall be the chairperson of the Commission,

(b) the Ombudsman,

(c) the Secretary of the Department of the Environment,

(d) the Clerk of the Dáil, and

(e) the Clerk of the Seanad.

8. —(1) Where, before the reports of a Constituency Commission have been presented to the Chairman of the Dáil under section 9 , the person appointed to be chairperson of the Commission—

(a) through ill-health or other reasonable cause becomes unable to act as such chairperson, the Chief Justice shall assign another judge of the Supreme Court or, following consultation with the President of the High Court, another judge of the High Court to be a member and the chairperson of the Commission;

(b) ceases to hold office as a judge of the Supreme Court or of the High Court, the person shall continue as such chairperson until the reports of the Commission have been presented unless the Chief Justice assigns another judge of either court to be a member and the chairperson of the Commission.

(2) Where the holder of an office referred to in paragraphs (b) to (e) of section 7 , through ill-health or other reasonable cause, is unable to act as a member of a Constituency Commission or any such office is vacant, the Minister may appoint, in the case of—

(a) the Ombudsman, the Director of the Office of the Ombudsman,

(b) the Secretary of the Department of the Environment, another officer of the Minister, who is an established civil servant for the purposes of the Civil Service Regulation Act, 1956,

(c) the Clerk of the Dáil, the Clerk Assistant of the Dáil, and

(d) the Clerk of the Seanad, the Clerk Assistant of the Seanad,

to be a member of the Commission and the person so appointed shall remain a member of the Commission until the reports of the Commission are presented to the Chairman of the Dáil under section 9 .

(3) Where, before the reports of a Constituency Commission have been presented to the Chairman of the Dáil under section 9 , a person who is a member of the Commission ceases to hold an office referred to in paragraphs (b) to (e) of section 7 , the person shall continue as a member of the Commission until the reports of the Commission have been presented unless the Minister by order directs that the person's successor in office or the appropriate person referred to in subsection (2) shall be a member of the Commission.

(4) Subject to subsections (1), (2) and (3), a Constituency Commission may act notwithstanding vacancies in its membership.

9. —(1) As soon as may be after the establishment of a Constituency Commission, and, in any event, not later than six months after such establishment, the Commission shall present to the Chairman of the Dáil—

(a) a report containing the recommendations of the Commission in relation to the constituencies for the election of members to the Dáil and any alteration of those constituencies which the Commission considers appropriate, and

(b) a report containing the recommendations of the Commission in relation to the constituencies for the election of representatives to the European Parliament and any alteration of those constituencies which the Commission considers appropriate.

(2) A report of a Constituency Commission under this section may indicate that, in the opinion of the Commission having regard to subsection (2) or (3) of section 6 , no alteration is required to be made in the constituencies to which the report relates.

(3) Upon the presentation by a Constituency Commission of the reports to be presented under this section, the Commission shall stand dissolved.

(4) As soon as may be after the receipt of a report of a Constituency Commission, the Chairman of the Dáil shall cause such report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

10. —(1) A Constituency Commission shall, as soon as may be after its establishment, give public notice of its intention to make a report relating to—

(a) the constituencies for the election of members to the Dáil, and

(b) the constituencies for the election of representatives to the European Parliament.

(2) (a) As soon as may be after its establishment, a Commission shall prepare—

(i) a statement setting out the relevant provisions of the Constitution in relation to Dáil constituencies to which the Commission is required to have regard in preparing a report under section 6 (1) (a), and

(ii) statements based on the population as ascertained by the Census of Population last taken before the establishment of the Commission showing, for the constituencies for the time being in force for Dáil and European elections, in relation to each constituency—

(I) the number of members or representatives, as the case may be;

(II) the population of the constituency;

(III) the population per member or representative, as the case may be, of the constituency; and

(IV) the percentage variation of population per member or representative, as the case may be, of the constituency from the national average population per member or representative.

(b) The Commission shall furnish, on request, to any person a copy of the statements referred to in paragraph (a).

(3) The public notice referred to in subsection (1) shall indicate that—

(a) the statements prepared by the Commission under subsection (2) may be obtained on request from the Commission,

(b) any person may make a submission to the Commission in such manner and within such period as shall be specified in the notice, and

(c) submissions received by the Commission within the period specified in the notice referred to in paragraph (b) may be inspected at such place and during such period as shall be specified in the notice and that a copy thereof or of extracts therefrom may be taken on payment of a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of copying.

(4) The Commission shall consider every submission made to it in accordance with such notice.

(5) The submissions received by the Commission under this section shall be open to public inspection at such time and place and under such conditions as may be specified by the Commission and the Commission shall permit a copy thereof or of extracts therefrom to be taken on payment of a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of copying.

(6) The Commission shall dispose of all money received by it in respect of fees under subsection (5) in such manner as may be directed by the Minister for Finance.

11. —(1) The Minister shall make available to a Constituency Commission such services, including the services of staff, as may reasonably be required by the Commission.

(2) The Director General of the Central Statistics Office and the Director of Ordnance Survey shall, on a request being made in that behalf, provide free of charge to a Constituency Commission such assistance as the Commission may reasonably require for the purpose of the performance of its function.

12. —The reasonable expenses of a Constituency Commission, including the travelling and other expenses of the members of the Commission shall, subject to such conditions as the Minister with the consent of the Minister for Finance may determine be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

13. —Subject to the provisions of this Act, a Constituency Commission shall regulate its own procedure.

14. —(1) No person shall, without the consent of a Constituency Commission, disclose to any person any information obtained while serving as (or during service as) a member of the Commission or as a person whose services are made available to the Commission under section 11 relative to the business of the Commission or the performance of the function of the Commission.

(2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000.

15. —(1) Subject to the provisions of section 10 , it shall not be lawful for any person to communicate with the members of or staff whose services are made available to a Constituency Commission under section 11 for the purposes of influencing the Commission in carrying out its functions.

(2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £1,000.