asked the Minister for Local Government if he will introduce legislation to amend the Electoral Acts to ensure that, where a returning officer uses a school for the purpose of taking the poll at any election, the school affected will not remain closed for more than three days.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Electoral Law Amendment.
35.
It is not proposed to amend the electoral law in this respect. It is essential that the returning officer should have sufficient power to conduct an election effectively under any circumstances likely to arise.
Some 8,000 to 10,000 children in the South County Dublin Constituency are out of school all this week and because of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception they will be out of school next Tuesday as well. It is ridiculous in an age when prefabricated polling booths can be erected that schools should be shut from Monday to Friday inclusive. Will the Minister make sufficient moneys available to returning officers so that schools would be shut from, say, 3 p.m. on Tuesday until 9 a.m. on Friday? It should be possible to put up the equipment and take it down in three days.
The Deputy is aware that the office of returning officer is a statutory one and it is not open to the Minister to direct him as to how he should perform his duties. I accept that it does appear to be a little extraordinary that schools should be shut for more than three days. I understand in relation to future elections that the returning officer will see if it is practicable to requisition schools in the area for a shorter period.
In order to improve the situation will the Minister say whether the Government are contemplating the holding of all elections on Sunday, so that the maximum number of people will be allowed to participate.
That is a separate question.
It is not. It is related to this question dealing with the closure of schools because schools are not open on Sunday.
The schools might be closed for a fortnight.