Constituencies and boundary commission

[THR]

The Irish electoral system works in a way that the country is divided into 42 constituencies each returning 3-5 TD`s. The main constituency division runs along the county-lines but some counties are too thinly populated to form a constituency on their own and some of the counties have such a high population, most notably Dublin, that it has been divided into more than one constituency.

Do you have a similar boundary-commission as the one in the UK, which at every ten years`intervals inspects the population-changes of each constituency and wherever necessary, redraws the constituency-boundaries to better correspond to the existing situation in terms of population?

I remember having read somewhere about the formation of the Irish constituencies that as there is the even number of four and the odd numbers of three and five, wherever the government is in a narrow lead, the boundaries of that constituency are drawn so that it returns three or five TD`s when as wherever the government is narrowly trailing the boundaries are drawn so that four representatives are elected. However, I doubt that story even myself and even if it were true some time in the past I`m sure such gerrymandering doesn`t happen today.

[kerrynorth]

The Irish electoral system works in a way that the country is divided into 42 constituencies each returning 3-5 TD`s. The main constituency division runs along the county-lines but some counties are too thinly populated to form a constituency on their own and some of the counties have such a high population, most notably Dublin, that it has been divided into more than one constituency.

Do you have a similar boundary-commission as the one in the UK, which at every ten years`intervals inspects the population-changes of each constituency and wherever necessary, redraws the constituency-boundaries to better correspond to the existing situation in terms of population?

I remember having read somewhere about the formation of the Irish constituencies that as there is the even number of four and the odd numbers of three and five, wherever the government is in a narrow lead, the boundaries of that constituency are drawn so that it returns three or five TD`s when as wherever the government is narrowly trailing the boundaries are drawn so that four representatives are elected. However, I doubt that story even myself and even if it were true some time in the past I`m sure such gerrymandering doesn`t happen today.

There are currently 43 constituencies of 3-5 TD's. Constituencies and constituency revisions are set down in the Constitution. A Constituency revision takes place after each census (normally 5 years). Since 1977 our constitency revision is undertaken by a boundary commission comprising at present of a High Court Judge, the Clerk of the Dail (civil servant) and the Ombudsman. Constituencies up to 1977 were changed by the incumbent Government sometimes to their benefit. Although, as with the case of 1977 it spectaculary backfired on the outgoing government.

We invented the term gerrymandering (well Derry actually)!

[rockofcashel]

The Irish electoral system works in a way that the country is divided into 42 constituencies each returning 3-5 TD`s. The main constituency division runs along the county-lines but some counties are too thinly populated to form a constituency on their own and some of the counties have such a high population, most notably Dublin, that it has been divided into more than one constituency.

Do you have a similar boundary-commission as the one in the UK, which at every ten years`intervals inspects the population-changes of each constituency and wherever necessary, redraws the constituency-boundaries to better correspond to the existing situation in terms of population?

I remember having read somewhere about the formation of the Irish constituencies that as there is the even number of four and the odd numbers of three and five, wherever the government is in a narrow lead, the boundaries of that constituency are drawn so that it returns three or five TD`s when as wherever the government is narrowly trailing the boundaries are drawn so that four representatives are elected. However, I doubt that story even myself and even if it were true some time in the past I`m sure such gerrymandering doesn`t happen today.

There are currently 43 constituencies of 3-5 TD's. Constituencies and constituency revisions are set down in the Constitution. A Constituency revision takes place after each census (normally 5 years). Since 1977 our constitency revision is undertaken by a boundary commission comprising at present of a High Court Judge, the Clerk of the Dail (civil servant) and the Ombudsman. Constituencies up to 1977 were changed by the incumbent Government sometimes to their benefit. Although, as with the case of 1977 it spectaculary backfired on the outgoing government.

We invented the term gerrymandering (well Derry actually)!

Just on a point of order.. we didn't invent the term

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerrymander

Can someone explain however, how and when local authority revisions are made ?

[jdwex]

Just on a point of order.. we didn't invent the term

<pedant>point of information, surely ;p <pedant>

[michael1965]

The Irish electoral system works in a way that the country is divided into 42 constituencies each returning 3-5 TD`s. The main constituency division runs along the county-lines but some counties are too thinly populated to form a constituency on their own and some of the counties have such a high population, most notably Dublin, that it has been divided into more than one constituency.

Do you have a similar boundary-commission as the one in the UK, which at every ten years`intervals inspects the population-changes of each constituency and wherever necessary, redraws the constituency-boundaries to better correspond to the existing situation in terms of population?

I have heard that the boundary revisions in the UK are way behind the times. In particular, there is a heavy bias in favour of Labour caused by the drift of population out of city centres. This has resulted in over representation of city centre constituencies. I wonder is it because the UK parliament is not constrained by a written constitution, they can afford to take a much more relaxed view about these matters, when it suits them :wink:

Here it's quite different. The limits on constituency size are written in the constitution, and there is even a question hanging over the general election next year, where one or two constituencies have breached the limits by only a small amount.

I remember having read somewhere about the formation of the Irish constituencies that as there is the even number of four and the odd numbers of three and five, wherever the government is in a narrow lead, the boundaries of that constituency are drawn so that it returns three or five TD`s when as wherever the government is narrowly trailing the boundaries are drawn so that four representatives are elected. However, I doubt that story even myself and even if it were true some time in the past I`m sure such gerrymandering doesn`t happen today.

I've never heard that story.

[KeithM]

We invented the term gerrymandering (well Derry actually)!

Oh dear two mistakes for the price of one. Not only did "we" not invent the Gerrymander, but the most clear example of its impact on this island was not in (London)Derry but across the border in Donegal, where the Protestant population were denied "their" TD by the carve up of the constituency several decades ago.

[ireland2004]

We invented the term gerrymandering (well Derry actually)!

Oh dear two mistakes for the price of one. Not only did "we" not invent the Gerrymander, but the most clear example of its impact on this island was not in (London)Derry but across the border in Donegal, where the Protestant population were denied "their" TD by the carve up of the constituency several decades ago.

Actually, on the subject of making mistakes, the most clear example of its impact on this island is the creation of the six counties, itself a gerrymandered statelet.

[KeithM]

We invented the term gerrymandering (well Derry actually)!

Oh dear two mistakes for the price of one. Not only did "we" not invent the Gerrymander, but the most clear example of its impact on this island was not in (London)Derry but across the border in Donegal, where the Protestant population were denied "their" TD by the carve up of the constituency several decades ago.

Actually, on the subject of making mistakes, the most clear example of its impact on this island is the creation of the six counties, itself a gerrymandered statelet.

Ireland only existed as a single political entity under British law. 9Even in Brian Boru's time, there was no single Irish state), and what the British created, they had the right to dismantle.

The idea that an island should somehow be united when its people clearly aren't has ended in non stop trouble in Cyprus and even today Sri Lanka seems to be about to formalise the partition which has existed for decades.

[ireland2004]

We invented the term gerrymandering (well Derry actually)!

Oh dear two mistakes for the price of one. Not only did "we" not invent the Gerrymander, but the most clear example of its impact on this island was not in (London)Derry but across the border in Donegal, where the Protestant population were denied "their" TD by the carve up of the constituency several decades ago.

Actually, on the subject of making mistakes, the most clear example of its impact on this island is the creation of the six counties, itself a gerrymandered statelet.

Ireland only existed as a single political entity under British law. 9Even in Brian Boru's time, there was no single Irish state), and what the British created, they had the right to dismantle.

The idea that an island should somehow be united when its people clearly aren't has ended in non stop trouble in Cyprus and even today Sri Lanka seems to be about to formalise the partition which has existed for decades.

What's your point?

Mine is, that in 1920 the majority of people in Ireland were in favour of an Independent and United country and it didn't happen so a statelet was gerrymandered in order to ensure a Unionist majority.

[KeithM]

We invented the term gerrymandering (well Derry actually)!

Oh dear two mistakes for the price of one. Not only did "we" not invent the Gerrymander, but the most clear example of its impact on this island was not in (London)Derry but across the border in Donegal, where the Protestant population were denied "their" TD by the carve up of the constituency several decades ago.

Actually, on the subject of making mistakes, the most clear example of its impact on this island is the creation of the six counties, itself a gerrymandered statelet.

Ireland only existed as a single political entity under British law. 9Even in Brian Boru's time, there was no single Irish state), and what the British created, they had the right to dismantle.

The idea that an island should somehow be united when its people clearly aren't has ended in non stop trouble in Cyprus and even today Sri Lanka seems to be about to formalise the partition which has existed for decades.

What's your point?

Mine is, that in 1920 the majority of people in Ireland were in favour of an Independent and United country and it didn't happen so a statelet was gerrymandered in order to ensure a Unionist majority.

Well then your point is wrong. Firstly the people of Ireland never voted for an independent and united Ireland. What they did vote for was the Treaty and the Belfast Agreement both of which had partition as a cornerstone.

What I'm saying is that creating a singular state out of a people who cannot happily co-exist is not viable in the long term. Both Cyprus and Sri Lanka has proven it. The numbers killed in those places give an indication of the bloodbath that would have happened had the people of Ulster been forced out of the UK.