World of Politics with Harry McGee

The 1937 Constitution is in many ways a fine document, but it is a creature of its time. There are loads of glaring anachronisms – not least Article 41.2.

That provides that the “State recognises that by her life within the home, woman gives to the State a support without which the common good cannot be achieved. The State shall, therefore, endeavour to ensure that mothers shall not be obliged by economic necessity to engage in labour to the neglect of their duties in the home.”

That has been the subject of a Citizen’s Referendum and will be put to a referendum within the next few years.

Another is Article 16, although not really controversial; that specifies there must be one TD for between 20,000 and 30,000 of the population.

It dates from a time when the population of the State was just less than three million, which meant a Dáil of between 100 and 150 seats.

For much of the first century of the State, the ratio stayed closer to the lower 20,000 mark. But as the population has risen dramatically this century the needle has pointed perilously close to the upper limit of one TD per 30,000 people.

The provisional data from Census 2022 show that the population of the State has crept over five million for the first time.

At 5,123,536 it is an increase of over 361,671 from 2016. What’s more all but one of the 39 constituencies have now broken the 30,000 upper population barrier.

In fact, if we had a Dáil now with one TD for every 20,000 people, the number of people in the Dáil would be 255. That would be unmanageable.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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