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THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION missed an opportunity to deliver a more imaginative response to the problem of widespread ignorance of politics in Europe.
As I have said before, while 70% of laws originate in the EU, 90% of the drama comes from the Dáil. Voters know their TDs well and feel close to them. Some argue that our deputies are too close to voters and that TDs have insufficient regard for what should be national strategic priorities.
Having only three sprawling Euro constituencies erects barriers; barriers that could easily be addressed by having four constituencies, as was the case up to 2014. The proposal from the Electoral Commission was to add an extra seat to Midlands North-West, transferring Laois and Offaly into the new 5-seater. This was the easiest thing to do but, not by a long way, the best thing to do.
It makes no sense politically, economically or geographically.
First, the political problem. While Irish people are extremely well-disposed to membership of the EU, there is a yawning gap in knowledge or connection with their European Parliament representatives. It doesn’t help that we do our work in Brussels and Strasbourg.
2024 is the biggest election year in history, with more than 4 billion citizens heading to the polls globally. This is both a huge opportunity and a huge risk for key public policy issues, especially our climate efforts.
The European Parliament 2024 elections could spell trouble for progressive politics. The same is true of elections in the US and elsewhere.
Coupled with high abstention rates, there is now a real risk of the European Green Deal unravelling and years of effort to decarbonise our economies being undone.
Secondly, geography students will be scratching their heads to find that County Louth is still in Midlands North-West, given that the wee county markets itself as part of Ireland’s Ancient East.
Similarly, the inhabitants of Valentia Island will be surprised to know that they are sharing a constituency with the citizens of Bray while Celbridge is in the same constituency as Achill. For MEPs, it is impossible to keep in touch with constituents in this scenario.
Thirdly, and most significantly from a Dublin point of view, the constituency layout makes no attempt to contribute to economic coherence or balanced regional development. Setting sporting rivalries to one side for a moment, Dublin and surrounding counties (Meath, Wicklow, Kildare and Louth) are now experiencing many of the same issues, be that transport, policing, housing or otherwise. If a five-seater is justified anywhere, it would be this area or at least some part of it.
EU funding for transport, energy and housing projects is directed not at counties (of which there are four in Dublin alone) but at regions. The Constituencies Commission clearly exercised a very limited imaginative capacity in this regard.
Ireland does not compete well at the EU level for this type of grant funding. Neither do we perform well at anticipating the possible regional implications of new EU laws. What will the new law on fuel for Heavy Vehicles mean for companies operating in the Greater Dublin area? What will be the implications for the capital city and its surroundings on new economic governance proposals, particularly as regards state aid?
Constituencies that align with issues would be more impactful. MEPs with clear regional mandates are good for democracy.
As it stands, MEPs are more adrift from their constituents than ever. Coverage of events in the European Parliament is abysmal. RTE’s European Parliament Report goes out at ungodly hours, and I wonder if even the MEPs watch it. This is no reflection on the journalists who put the programme together but on the editorial decision on scheduling.
As a candidate in 2019, I was struck by the shrinking space for electioneering – limitations on postering (tidy towns), on canvassing (no supermarkets), on delivery of leaflets (no junk mail). There are also companies that deny employees the right to canvass or even run for election, considering it incompatible with the strategy of the business.
Foreign interference in our democratic processes is well documented. By contrast, the announcement of the Electoral Commission was an own goal.
Barry Andrews is MEP for Dublin.
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This work is co-funded by Journal Media and a grant programme from the European Parliament. Any opinions or conclusions expressed in this work are the author’s own. The European Parliament has no involvement in nor responsibility for the editorial content published by the project. For more information, see here.
Hé says some people argue our politicians are too close to voters. Others argue that they are too close to revolving doors and stuffed envelopes.
There is an information disconnect between the EU parliament and the Irish electorate.
We vote for MEPs, they disappear to Brussels, we hear from them occasionally but the nitty gritty of the decision making process is rather opaque, quite often leaving us bewildered at the outcome, creating suspicion about the process.
e.g.
Luke Ming Flanagan’s video a while ago where he as an elected MEP was prohibited from accessing the legislative draft of the proposed TTIP trade agreement with a view to enlightening the Irish pubic.
Why are you and your compatriots in Europe standing idly by on Palestine Barry
@Peter Murray: the brainwashing works a treat on the sheep
A totally irrelevant comment from a totally irrelevant politician.
Another waste of space writing rubbish
@Jim Slip: Your self awareness is refreshing on this site.
@Kilkenny Proud: Hug?
@Jim Slip: Did you waste your time reading it? Or are you just another ullagoning bore?
@Louis Jacob: no point, anyone with an ounce of cop on knows it’s a load of rubbish
@Jim Slip: Tubridys 1st cousin ! Another Nepo kid
Barry has had some train ride.
I see Mairead is getting off the train after a 20 year journey.
@Jp Cleary: she’s not
The Journal should do a piece on why they have closed all the comments, and open the comments on them.
What do any of these MEP’s have to achieve other than making speeches that will be forgotten within a day or two….a bit like the UN talking shop…. and keep collecting the big cheques.
“…geography students will be scratching their heads to find that County Louth is still in Midlands North-West, given that the wee county markets itself as part of Ireland’s Ancient East.” That’s a made up discrepancy that most people understand well. One is for tourism marketing. The other is political.
Like Sean Kelly has never seen his office in Clonmel. MEP,s rent offices in towns but they are never open.
@John Conforms: He should stick with the bike.
@Gavan Hogan: you have the wrong Sean Kelly
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Why have this disclaimer?
I think we can all agree that no institution can be perfect.
i think we can all agree that we expect our elected representatives to identify problems and work towards solutions.
I have yet to hear anything from the usual suspects in FFG that is in any way critical of the EU.
So we can safely say that these MEPs are not up to the job of making the EU better for us.
Isn’t electing MEPs a bit of a joke really. — see what we have ,— Daly, Wallace , Ming , Andrews and a few Auld Codgers from FG and SF . All just collecting huge pay packets and talking a little bit of Bulls……..t from time to time .
Why do people bother to vote in this sharade???.
Barry, accept your days are numbered. You were rejected by the electorate, ran and hid from GOAL an NGO for you know what. Now as an MEP your not performing and running scarred your losing your seat, hence all these appearances and articles!
Each country in the EU should be given the same number of MEPs . As of is we have 13 out of 705 . That is no good for our country and a bit of a rope to nowhere . Proportional representation does not work . It is not our fault our country is small .
We pay more for everything than other EU countries .
13 MEPs is a waste . That is why we are told what to do by the other 692
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