Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 2 November 2021
346. Deputy Sorca Clarke asked the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage if his Department plans to extend the online voter registration on voter.ie beyond Dublin; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52174/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Programme for Government - Our Shared Future commits to the delivery of an ambitious programme of electoral reform, including the modernisation of the electoral registration process. These reforms will be underpinned by the Electoral Reform Bill, which is currently being drafted.
The modernisation includes the introduction of continuous or rolling registration; the simplification of forms and processes; the use of PPSNs in the registration process; as well as the gradual roll-out of an online option for registration. Together, these reforms will simplify and streamline the process of registration, making it easier for people to register to vote and update their details and for local authorities to maintain and update their registers.
Voter.ie is an initiative of the Dublin local authorities. It is an on-line platform, which offers online registration via MyGovID as well as a shared database within which each local authority continues to manage its register. On foot of a technical evaluation of the platform and its suitability for national roll-out, my Department established a governance structure drawn from central and local government to consider to consider the further development of Voter.ie in this regard. This work is ongoing.
