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THE CHILDREN’S REFERENDUM has passed, and the result has been overwhelmingly welcomed by politicians and groups.
With a low turnout of 30 per cent, provisional results show that the Yes vote was 58 per cent while the No vote was 42 per cent.
So what happens next?
When Fine Gael’s Director of Elections for the Children’s Referendum, Minister Leo Varadkar TD, welcomed the Yes vote, he noted that a number of other things should follow on from this.
He explained:
It is incumbent now on us as a Government to follow through on this historic decision by giving practical effect to the children’s amendment. This will include passing legislation to bring about equality in adoption law, enhancing child protection laws, the closure of St Patrick’s Institution, and the reform our family courts, among other measures.
The Houses of the Oireachtas has proposed to amend the Constitution 30 times prior to today, with the first amendment taking place in 1939 and providing for a state of emergency to secure public safety and the preservation of the State in time of war or armed rebellion.
Other referendums that passed covered issues such as the European Economic Community (1972), adoption (1979), the Maastricht Treaty (1992), the death penalty (2011), and the Nice Treaty (2002).
Challenge
No campaigner John Waters said earlier today that there could be a challenge to the vote, if the referendum was passed. Though no announcement has been made yet, this is still a possibility.
Last week saw a Supreme Court ruling which upheld the Mark McCrystal challenge to the Government’s website and booklet on the referendum as being “not fair, equal or impartial”. This could continue to be an ongoing concern to those in power – and those who opposed the passing of the referendum.
Also earlier today, Dearbhail McDonald, the Irish Independent’s Legal Editor, predicted “huge sighs (of) relief” in the Government if the poll is passed, considering their “blunder”. It remains to be seen if those sighs are replaced with sharp intakes of breath should the referendum result be challenged.
Turnout
The very low turnout of 30 per cent is sure to be a concern for the Government going forward. Children’s Minister Frances Fitzgerald described it as a “democratic issue” and said that turnout is a big issue.
The low turnout could be blamed on a combination of a number of factors:
Referendums traditionally have a lower turnout than elections, so this would partly explain the turnout. But the issue was further complicated by the fact that the referendum itself had overwhelming support from the government. This lack of conflict within the government was one of the reasons Children’s Minister Frances Fitzgerald said there was a low voter turnout.
In late October, an Oireachtas Committee even had to call off plans for a formal Yes campaign event after fears that it could breach the McKenna Case Supreme Court ruling, which found that it was unconstitutional for the government to use public funds to campaign for a particular vote in a referendum, as this was “an interference with the democratic process and the constitutional process”.
Finance Minister Michael Noonan took the step of asking RTÉ to reconsider its usual protocol of ensuring equal prominence and airtime to both sides of the debate, but we showed how both sides would get 50/50 coverage.
Still, there were complaints from the editor of Alive magazine that campaigners on the No side did not get a fair hearing on various media, with some broadcasters allegedly choosing to use some campaigners more than others.
Saturday voting
Will future referendums be held on Saturdays? One person who wants them to be is Fine Gael TD for Dublin North Alan Farrell, who feels weekend voting is so important that he has introduced a Bill to the Dáil to legislate for it.
He said this is on the basis that it will have less impact on public services and schools, and that it allows the opportunity for students and people working away from home to engage in the democratic process.
Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore said today on RTÉ Radio that the government was “conscious that [Saturday voting] was something that was relatively new”, and that the government may have to look at it again.
He added:
It may well be that people’s voting pattern works better with their working pattern than it does with the routine families have on a Saturday.
Earlier this month, the Tánaiste said that the future of voting on a Saturday would hinge “to a great extent” on yesterday’s turnout.
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Why is it on us? We can’t control the amount of packaging these days. Guess who can? Oh yeah!-the conpanies who package their goods. Deal with them.
@a: Totally agree that we should hold these companies accountable. I’ve even written to some companies in relation to this.
However, we can also have a huge impact by not buying products with wasteful packaging. If we don’t buy the products, they won’t keeping making them.
We should also buy more local and second hand products. Charity shops are great for Christmas shopping.
@a: Exactly, you will see ‘My M&S’ ‘My this’ & ‘My That’ but when it comes down to it you will also see ‘YOUR WASTE’ – yourwaste.ie
They don’t want the waste yet they allow it to be produced.
@a: I wrote to my local TD (a green party TD) and never received any response but this was the gist of it. More expensive everyday items you buy in the likes of Dunnes generally (but not always) comes in packaging that is recyclable- stuff such as apples etc. But your same lower priced items in Lidl/Aldi etc do not and it’s this that is making a difference. There is also confusion amongst many between the difference of ‘made from recycled material’ and ‘recyclable material’ it confuses most and the packaging can be difficult to discern based on that. The onus should be on suppliers/packaging companiez/sellers and government to make it impossible to sell in non recyclable material.
No convenient recycling facilities available for polystyrene so this still goes into the general waste. Only lip service from companies to reduce reuse recycle but the consuner gets the blame
@Dangling Damo: Even though most of the bin collectors don’t allow it they will actually separate it in the recycling center. It’s purely a cost thing so it’s not a heinous crime like including wet waste or something which can mean an entire trucks worth of recycling is ruined.
I try to avoid such packaging when I can but I don’t feel one bit bad about sending it off in the bin when I do happen to need to get rid of some and I don’t have enough other stuff to justify a run to a bring site.
Limit your contacts,
Limit your travel ,
Limit your waste ,
Sure why don’t I limit oxygen aswell while I’m at it this Christmas
@JillyBean: You could
Selection boxes drive me mad. Complete waste of cardboard and plastic.
@Caroline Otoole: Absolutely right. Yet people still buy them and blame the companies who make them for the waste.
Kids don’t care about the box. Just buy a few chocolate bars instead.
@Caroline Otoole: Not just that they are packaged using cardboard and plastic, they make the packaging oversized to make it appear you are getting more than you actually are, an even bigger waste.
I am less concerned about the cardboard, but the plastic needs to be removed.
If the Govt implemented a returns process for that kind of plastic (like 10c per pack) going back to the point of purchase, those shops would then put pressure on suppliers to produce without the plastic.
Got a package from Amazon this week that would usually be wrapped in a box or plastic bag, but this came in a paper bag. It can be done.
@Conrad Shields: actually saw a post on twitter during the week about this. It was a photo of the packaging alongside the bit of chocolate thats in one. It was quite jarring.
@Caroline Otoole: totally agree! Over sized packaging!! I don’t buy selection boxes for this reason
I am calling on all journal readers to boycott these polls until a serious controversial topic is put up for discussion. The odd seasonal topic is OK, but not a relentless diet of them.
I made a perfectly valid point and was censored by the moderator.
@SteveBuzzard: I believe the moderator is fond of a box of After Eights. Do you see where I am going with this? :-)
Celebrating with my parents this year, thankfully, and they live in a zero waste household so I have no choice.
Make up gift sets and perfume packaging are the worst offenders next to children’s toys. I’m trying as best I can to avoid buying them. It’s not easy though.
@Teresa O’Donnell-Joyce: Keep it up. All we can do is our best. We just need to be conscious consumers.
Consider making your own gift sets with individually selected products instead of prepackaged sets. It’s a much more thoughtful gift. It’s not easy and takes extra time of course. I understand that sometimes it’s just not an option.
Good luck with the Christmas shopping.
@Jim Smith: My family will be given home baking gifts. Shame about my dodgy baking skills. It’ll be fun.
Yes I won’t be buying as much food this year like tins of sweets crisps biscuits etc. Wasted do much ladt year
Will buy some nice crackers cheese and maybe some nice meats to go with.
Stove ,free heat ,end of story.
I’m bought three rolls of wrapping paper last year, and I am still using it. But then again, the gifts weren’t huge to wrap.
@Lisa Saputo: gift bags are handy as you can reuse them next year once you don’t write on the tag
Moderator doesn’t like musical notes either. We’ll it’s their loss. It was a a wonderful comment;-)
and if people cannot limit their waste by eating and drinking moderately, they can recycle personal waste by using a compost lavatory.
No
I can’t be ars@d to wrap gifts, so this poll is perfect for me. I just used gift bags, that my Mammy saves and reuses the next Christmas!! We have been doing are bit for ages and didn’t even know it. Lol
I can’t be ars@d to wrap gifts, so this poll is perfect for me. I just used gift bags, that my Mammy saves and reuses the next Christmas!! Lol
have your say