asked the Minister for Local Government and Public Health if he will state whether any general instructions have been given to the officials preparing the Voters' Lists, and if so, whether he will state the nature of such instructions; further, whether he will state, in particular, if instructions and, if so, what instructions have been issued with regard to the inclusion or the non-inclusion in the Voters' Lists of persons temporarily absent from the State at mid-November last.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Voters' Lists.
The usual instructional circular was issued to registration officers in November last in connection with the preparation of the Electors Lists for the 1943/44 Register drawing attention to the necessity for having full and exhaustive inquiries made so as to ensure a complete and accurate register of all persons entitled to be on the Register. In addition, instructions were conveyed to registration officers that Electors Lists would consist of three lists, namely, List A — the existing Register; List B — persons newly qualified; and List C — persons no longer qualified.
As perhaps the Deputy is aware, the type of the Register is kept standing. In previous years the election lists, which are published on the 29th January, were printed from the standing type of the Register, new names being inserted, and the names of persons no longer qualified being deleted from the standing type.
Because of the paper shortage, only a minimum supply of copies of the Register was ordered in June, 1942, and if any number of copies were required to be printed before June, 1943, when the new Register is published, a reprint of the old Register would be necessary. If the standing type were altered a reprint would not be possible except at a prohibitive cost.
The form of the Electors List was, therefore, altered from one long list to three lists, as I have stated.
Attention was also directed to the recent division of the several counties into electoral areas pursuant to the Local Government Act, 1941, and it was pointed out that the title page of the Electors Lists for a registration unit should show the appropriate electoral area in which such unit is situate. The Electoral Act sets out the qualification for the Dáil franchise and provides that a duly qualified person may be registered in the constituency in which he is ordinarily resident on the qualifying date, namely, 15th November, or in which he occupies business premises on that date. Any question arising as to the inclusion or exclusion of a particular person or class of persons must be decided by the registration officer on the facts.