Vol. 443 No. 5
34 Proinsias De Rossa asked the asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs, in view of the Government's stated concern regarding the proposed boundary changes for the Westminster constituencies in Northern Ireland, if he will urge the British Government to adopt the multi-seat constituency/single transferable vote system for all elections in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
The Government has emphasised to the British Government the importance of ensuring broad proportionality in the political representation of the two communities in Northern Ireland and the need to avoid any inbuilt tendency to the contrary in any final proposals for boundary changes to the Westminster constituencies which will be laid before Parliament.
The Government is of the view that all electoral arrangements in Northern Ireland must take full account of the particular political circumstances which obtain there. They would wish this view to guide any consideration of a possible alteration in the present practice regarding Westminster elections, which would of course be a matter for the British Government in the first instance.
