Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001

Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001 Skip to content Disclaimer Feedback Helpdesk Gaeilge Léim go dtí an t-ábhar Séanadh Aiseolas Deasc chabhrach English Gaeilge English Produced by the Office of the Attorney General Táirgthe ag Oifig an Ard-Aighne Home Legislation Acts of the Oireachtas Statutory Instruments Pre-1922 Legislation Constitution External Resources Bills (Houses of the Oireachtas) Iris Oifigiúil / Official Gazette Revised Acts (LRC) Classified List of Legislation (LRC) Translations (acts.ie) Translations (Houses of the Oireachtas) Government Publications for Sale EU Law (EUR-Lex) FAQ Disclaimer Feedback Helpdesk Search Baile Reachtaíocht Achtanna an Oireachtais Ionstraimí Reachtúla Reachtaíocht Réamh-1922 Bunreacht Acmhainní Seachtracha Billí (Tithe an Oireachtais) Iris Oifigiúil Achtanna Athbhreithnithe (CAD) (An Coimisiún um Athchóiriú an Dlí) Liosta Rangaithe Reachtaíochta Aistriúcháin (achtanna.ie) Aistriúcháin (Tithe an Oireachtais) Foilseacháin Rialtais ar Díol Dlí AE (EUR-Lex) CCanna (Ceisteanna Coitianta) Séanadh Aiseolas Deasc chabhrach Cuardach TitleTeideal Year(s) or rangeBliain nó blianta nó raon TypeCineál All Legislation Acts Statutory Instruments Advanced SearchCuardach Casta HomeBaile ActsAchtanna 2001 Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001 Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001 Permanent Page URL View by SectionAmharc de réir Ailt View Full ActAmharc ar an Acht Iomlán Bill History Stair Bille Commencement, Amendments, SIs made under the Act Tosach Feidhme, Leasuithe, IRí arna ndéanamh faoin Acht Open PDFOscail PDF Print Full ActPriontáil an tAcht Iomlán Number 38 of 2001 ELECTORAL (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2001 ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS

PART 1

Preliminary and General Section

Section 1

Short title, collective citation, construction and commencement.

Section 2

Interpretation.

PART 2

Amendment of Principal Act.

Section 3

Amendment of section 6 of Principal Act.

Section 4

Amendment of section 13 of Principal Act.

Section 5

Amendment of section 14A of Principal Act.

Section 6

Amendment of section 15 of Principal Act.

Section 7

Amendment of section 15A of Principal Act.

Section 8

Amendment of section 15B of Principal Act.

Section 9

Sections 15A and 15B of Principal Act: supplemental provision.

Section 10

Amendment of section 16 of Principal Act.

Section 11

Amendment of section 25 of Principal Act.

Section 12

Amendment of section 28 of Principal Act.

Section 13

Amendment of section 29 of Principal Act.

Section 14

Amendment of section 32 of Principal Act.

Section 15

Amendment of section 41 of Principal Act.

Section 16

Amendment of section 46 of Principal Act.

Section 17

Amendment of section 48 of Principal Act.

Section 18

Amendment of section 49 of Principal Act.

Section 19

Amendment of section 62 of Principal Act.

Section 20

Amendment of section 63 of Principal Act.

Section 21

Amendment of section 88 of Principal Act.

Section 22

Amendment of section 92 of Principal Act.

Section 23

Amendment of section 96 of Principal Act.

Section 24

Amendment of section 98 of Principal Act.

Section 25

Amendment of section 99 of Principal Act.

Section 26

Amendment of section 103 of Principal Act.

Section 27

Amendment of section 111 of Principal Act.

Section 28

Amendment of section 114 of Principal Act.

Section 29

Amendment of section 121 of Principal Act.

Section 30

Amendment of section 122 of Principal Act.

Section 31

Amendment of section 124 of Principal Act.

Section 32

Amendment of section 133 of Principal Act.

Section 33

Amendment of section 147 of Principal Act.

Section 34

Amendment of Second Schedule to Principal Act.

PART 3

Direct Vote Recording and Electronic Vote Counting.

Section 35

Interpretation (Part 3).

Section 36

Direct vote recording and electronic vote counting.

Section 37

Expenses.

Section 38

Modification of certain provisions of Principal Act.

Section 39

Preparation of voting machines.

Section 40

Opening of the poll.

Section 41

Procedure for voting.

Section 42

Duties of presiding officer at close of poll.

Section 43

Counting of postal and special voter ballot papers under this Part.

Section 44

Preliminary proceedings and time for counting of votes.

Section 45

Application of Part XIX of Principal Act.

Section 46

Application of certain provisions of Principal Act.

Section 47

Election petitions.

Section 48

Adaptation or modification of Acts relating to other elections and referendums.

PART 4

Principal Amendments of Act of 1997 in relation to Political Donations

Section 49

Amendment of Act of 1997.

PART 5

Miscellaneous.

Section 50

Amendment of Act of 1997.

Section 51

Amendment of European Parliament Elections Act, 1997.

Section 52

Amendment of Presidential Elections Act, 1993.

Section 53

Amendment of Local Government Act, 1994.

Section 54

Amendment of Local Elections Regulations, 1995.

Section 55

Amendment of Referendum Act, 1994.

Section 56

Amendment of Seanad Electoral (University Members) Act, 1937.

Section 57

Amendment of Seanad Electoral (Panel Members) Act, 1947.

Section 58

Amendment of Local Elections (Disclosure of Donations and Expenditure) Act, 1999.

Acts Referred to Building Societies Act, 1989 1989, No. 17 Central Bank Act, 1971 1971, No. 24 Electoral Act, 1992 1992, No. 23 Electoral Act, 1997 1997, No. 25 Electoral Acts, 1992 to 1999 Electoral (Amendment) Act, 1996 1996, No. 43 Electoral (Amendment) Act, 1998 1998, No. 4 European Parliament Elections Act, 1997 1997, No. 2 European Parliament Elections Act, 1992 to 1999 Friendly Societies Acts, 1896 to 1977 Industrial and Provident Societies Acts, 1893 to 1978 Local Elections Acts, 1974 to 1999 Local Elections (Disclosure of Donations and Expenditure) Act, 1999 1999, No. 7 Local Government Act, 1994 1994, No. 8 Petty Sessions (Ireland) Act, 1851 14 & 15 Vict., c.93 Presidential Elections Act, 1993 1993, No. 28 Presidential Elections Acts, 1992 to 1997 Referendum Act, 1994 1994, No. 12 Referendum Act, 1998 1998, No. 1 Referendum Acts, 1992 to 1998 Seanad Electoral (Panel Members) Act, 1947 1947, No. 42 Seanad Electoral (Panel Members) Acts, 1947 to 1972 Seanad Electoral (University Members) Act, 1937 1937, No. 30 Seanad Electoral (University Members) Acts, 1937 to 1973 Trustee Savings Banks Act, 1989 1989, No. 21 Údarás na Gaeltachta Act, 1979 1979, No. 5 Údarás na Gaeltachta Acts, 1979 to 1999 Number 38 of 2001 ELECTORAL (AMENDMENT) ACT, 2001 AN ACT TO AMEND AND EXTEND THE ELECTORAL ACTS, 1992 TO 1999, THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ELECTIONS ACTS, 1992 TO 1999, THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS ACTS, 1992 TO 1997, THE LOCAL ELECTIONS ACTS, 1974 TO 1999, THE REFERENDUM ACTS, 1992 TO 1998, THE SEANAD ELECTORAL (UNIVERSITY MEMBERS) ACTS, 1937 TO 1973, THE SEANAD ELECTORAL (PANEL MEMBERS) ACTS, 1947 TO 1972, AND TO PROVIDE FOR RELATED MATTERS. [24th October, 2001] BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:

PART 1

Preliminary and General Short title, collective citation, construction and commencement.

1.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001.

Interpretation.

2.—(1) In this Act, except where the context otherwise requires— “Act of 1997” means the Electoral Act, 1997 ; “Principal Act” means the Electoral Act, 1992 .

PART 2

Amendment of Principal Act Amendment of section 6 of Principal Act.

3.—Section 6 of the Principal Act is amended— (a) by the insertion after the definition of “Dáil constituency” of the following definition: “‘edited register’ has the meaning assigned to it by section 13A;”, (b) by the insertion after the definition of “medical practitioner” of the following definitions: “‘national edited register’ has the meaning assigned to it by section 13B; ‘national register’ has the meaning assigned to it by section 13B;”, and (c) by the insertion in the definition of “the register” after “special voters list” of “and the supplements to the postal voters list and to the special voters list”.

Amendment of section 13 of Principal Act.

4.—Section 13 of the Principal Act is amended by the insertion of the following sections after section 13— “Edited register of electors.

13A.—(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of this Part and the Second Schedule, a registration authority shall prepare and publish a version of the register of electors which shall be known and is in this Act referred to as the ‘edited register’ in accordance with Part 1A of the Second Schedule.

National register of electors.

13B.—(1) The Minister may, by order, authorise, subject to the consent of the authority or body, a registration authority or other body established by or under an enactment to compile— (a) a register comprising the information contained in each of the register of electors prepared by the various registration authorities, including supplements to those registers prepared under section 15 (which shall be known and is in this Act referred to as the ‘national register of electors’); or (b) a register comprising such of the information contained in each of the said register of electors, including supplements to those registers as aforesaid, as is specified in the order (which shall be known and is in this Act referred to as the ‘national edited register of electors’).

Preparation and maintenance of register of electors.

13C.—(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of this Part, the Second Schedule, and Parts VII and VIII of the Electoral Act, 1997 , the Minister may, by order, authorise a body, other than a registration authority, to prepare and maintain any of the following: (i) a register of electors including the postal voter lists and special voter lists, a supplement to the register including supplements to the postal voter lists and special voter lists, an edited register and an edited supplement for one or more registration areas; (ii) a register of the kind referred to in subsection (1)(a) of section 13B and a register of the kind referred to in subsection (1)(b) of that section.

Amendment of section 14A of Principal Act.

5.—Section 14A of the Principal Act (inserted by the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 1996 ) is amended by the insertion of the following subsections after subsection (2)— “(3) Part III (other than Rule 19(c)) of the Second Schedule shall apply to an application for entry in the postal voters list pursuant to section 14(a) as if— (a) references in that Part to ‘special voters list’ were references to ‘postal voters list’, (b) references to ‘section 17’ and ‘section 17(2)’ were references to ‘section 14(a)’, (c) in Rule 19(d), ‘and, where appropriate, the certificate referred to in paragraph (c)’ were deleted, and (d) in Rule 23, paragraphs (1)(c) and (2)(c) were deleted.

Amendment of section 15 of Principal Act.

6.—Section 15 of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the insertion in subsection (1) after “publish.” of “The registration authority is also empowered to prepare and publish a version of the supplement, which shall be known and is in this Act referred to as an ‘edited supplement’, by omitting from the supplement the names and addresses of registered electors or electors on whose behalf requests have been made that their details not be used for a purpose other than an electoral or other statutory purpose. Such a supplement shall be deemed to form part of the edited register prepared and published under section 13A.”; (b) in subsection (1A)(a) (inserted by section 76 of the Act of 1997)— (i) the insertion of “or” after “electors,” in subparagraph (ii); (ii) the insertion of the following subparagraph after subparagraph (ii): “(iii) is registered as an elector in a constituency or in a local electoral area and takes up ordinary residence in another constituency or in another local electoral area on a date following the coming into force of the register of electors then in force provided the person authorises in writing, in a form directed by the Minister, the registration authority in whose register of electors he is registered as an elector to delete his name from that register of electors. The authorisation shall include such information as is necessary to enable the authority for the area of original registration to identify the relevant entry in that register,”; (iii) the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (c) of subsection (1A) (inserted by section 76 of the Act of 1997): “(c) A person referred to in paragraph (a)(ii) shall be eligible for entry in the supplement to the register on or after the day on which that person reaches eighteen years of age, including such a day that falls within the period beginning on the last day on which applications for entry in the supplement can be received and ending on polling day in the case of a Dáil, Presidential, European, local or Údarás na Gaeltachta election, or a referendum.”; (iv) the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (c): “(d) The registration authority on receipt of an authorisation referred to in subparagraph (iii) of paragraph (a) and being satisfied that the person is no longer ordinarily resident in respect of the address for which he is registered as an elector shall— (i) in the case the new address is in another registration area, delete his name from the register of electors for the authority's registration area and forward forthwith the relevant form to the registration authority for the address indicated on the form at which he is ordinarily resident,

(ii) in the case the new address is in another local electoral area within the registration area of the registration authority, delete the elector's name from the register of electors and enter his details in the supplement of the register prepared under this section.”; (c) the insertion in subsection (2)(a) of “or (1A)” after “subsection (1)”; and (d) the insertion in subsection (5) of “(including an election to Údarás na Gaeltachta)” after “election” where that word secondly occurs.

Amendment of section 15A of Principal Act.

7.—Section 15A of the Principal Act (inserted by section 76 of the Act of 1997) is amended by— (a) in subsection (1), the substitution of “any of paragraphs (a) to (d)” for “paragraph (a) or (d)”; (b) the insertion of the following paragraphs after paragraph (b) of subsection (2): “(c) The provisions of section 12 shall apply to an application for entry in the supplement to the postal voters list under this section from an elector referred to in section 14(c) as if the reference in section 12 to qualifying date were a reference to the latest date for receipt of an application under subsection (4) and as if in subsection (3) of that section ‘, not later than the date specified for that purpose in the Second Schedule,’ were deleted. (d) The provisions of Part III (other than Rules 19(c), 21 and 23 (3)) of the Second Schedule shall apply to an application for entry in the supplement to the postal voters list under this section from an elector referred to in section 14(a) or 14(b) as if— (i) references in that Part to ‘special voters list’ were references to ‘supplement to the postal voters list’; (ii) the reference in that Part to ‘section 17’ were a reference to this section and references in that Part to ‘section 17(2)’ were references to ‘section 14(a) or 14(b)’; (iii) in Rule 19(d), ‘and, where appropriate, the certificate referred to in paragraph (c)’ were deleted and ‘to the registration authority’ were substituted for ‘so as to be received by the registration authority not later than the date specified in Rule 1’; (iv) in Rule 22, ‘at such times and places as are specified in a notice published pursuant to Rule 21,’ were deleted; (v) in Rule 23, subparagraph (c) of paragraphs (1) and (2) were deleted.”; (c) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (4): “(4) An application by an elector to have his name entered in the supplement to the postal voters list received by the registration authority on or after the third day after the dissolution of the Dáil at a general election or on or after the third day after the date of the making of the order appointing polling day at a Dáil bye-election, or a Presidential, European or local election, or an election to Údarás na Gaeltachta or a referendum shall not have effect in relation to that election or referendum.”; and (d) in subsection (5), the insertion of “or an election to Údarás na Gaeltachta” after “local election”.

Amendment of section 15B of Principal Act.

8.—Section 15B of the Principal Act (inserted by section 76 of the Act of 1997) is amended by— (a) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (4): “(4) An application by an elector to have his name entered in the supplement to the special voters list received by the registration authority on or after the third day after the date of the dissolution of the Dáil at a general election or on or after the third day after the date of the order appointing polling day at a Dáil bye-election or a Presidential, European or local election or an election to Údarás na Gaeltachta or a referendum shall not have effect in relation to that election or referendum.”; and (b) in subsection (5), the insertion of “or an election to Údarás na Gaeltachta” after “local election”.

Sections 15A and 15B of Principal Act: supplemental provision.

9.—The Principal Act is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 15B (inserted by section 76 of the Act of 1997): “Supplements to the postal and special voters lists where more than one poll is held on same day.

15C.—Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (4) of section 15A or subsection (4) of section 15B, where an application by an elector to have his name entered in the supplement to the postal voters list or the supplement to the special voters list is received after the relevant date referred to in subsection (4) of section 15A or subsection (4) of section 15B in relation to an election or a referendum but before the relevant date referred to in either of the said subsections in relation to another election or referendum, the poll at which is to be held on the same day, the relevant date for the second or subsequent election or referendum shall apply to an application received under subsection (4) of section 15A or subsection (4) of section 15B in connection with the elections or referendums.”.

Amendment of section 16 of Principal Act.

10.—The Principal Act is amended by the substitution of the following section for section 16: “Electors lists to replace draft register, register and supplement in the case of specified registration authorities.

16.—(1) The Minister may, by direction, specify a registration authority or registration authorities which shall publish electors lists in place of the draft register referred to in Rule 5(6) of Part 1, the register of electors referred to in Rule 13 of Part I and the supplement referred to in Rule 15 of Part II of the Second Schedule. In addition to the foregoing, the direction may specify that versions— (a) of such lists that are of a like kind to the edited register, and (b) of such lists that are of a like kind to the edited supplement, (which lists shall be known and are in this Act referred to as ‘edited electors lists’) shall be published in place of such an edited register and edited supplement by the registration authority concerned.

Amendment of section 25 of Principal Act.

11.—Section 25 of the Principal Act is amended by the substitution of the following sections for section 25: “25.—(1) (a) There shall be an office the holder of which shall be known as the ‘Registrar of Political Parties’ and is in this Act referred to as the ‘Registrar’. The Registrar shall, subject to the provisions of this Part, prepare and maintain a Register of Political Parties (in this Part referred to as ‘the Register’). (b) The person who for the time being holds the office of Clerk of the Dáil shall be the Registrar. If and so long as the office of Clerk of the Dáil is vacant or the holder of that office is unable through illness, absence or other cause to fulfil-the duties of the office, the Clerk-Assistant of the Dáil shall act as the Registrar for the purposes of this Part and references in this Part to the Registrar shall be construed accordingly. (c) If and so long as the office of Clerk of the Dáil and the office of Clerk-Assistant of the Dáil are vacant or the holders of those offices are unable through illness, absence or other cause to fulfil their duties, the Chairman of the Dáil may appoint a member of the Joint Staff of the Houses of the Oireachtas to act as the Registrar for the purposes of this Part and references in this Part to the Registrar shall be construed accordingly.

Amendments to Register.

25A.—(1) If there is any change in the particulars entered in the Register with respect to the name or names of the officer or officers of a political party referred to in paragraph (d) of section 25(7) or in the address of the party's headquarters, the party shall, as soon as may be after the change occurs, inform the Registrar of the change and, where appropriate, the Registrar shall amend the particulars entered in the Register in relation to the party accordingly.

Appeal against decision of Registrar.

25B.—(1) A decision by the Registrar in relation to— (a) an application for registration under subsection (2) or (3) of section 25, or (b) an application under subsection (2) of section 25A for amendment of the particulars entered in relation to a party in the Register, or (c) the cancellation of the registration of a party under subsection (5) of section 25A, may be questioned by an appeal to the appeal board under this section and, pending the determination by the appeal board of such an appeal, the decision of the Registrar shall not have effect.

(iii) publish a notice in Iris Oifigiúil that an appeal has been lodged; and (iv) make the documentation in relation to the appeal available for inspection at all convenient times. (g) Any services, including the services of staff, that may reasonably be required by the appeal board for the purposes of its functions under this section shall be made available to it by the Chairman of the Dáil from the Joint Staff of the Houses of the Oireachtas.

General provisions relating to Registration.

25C.—(1) A decision by the Registrar on an application for registration, including the registration of an emblem, or for amendment of the particulars entered in the Register in respect of a party or in relation to the cancellation of the registration of a party under section 25A(5) or a decision by the appeal board on an appeal under section 25B shall not have effect in relation to the relevant election where the decision of the Registrar or the board is made or the period for making an appeal under section 25B(3) against the decision of the Registrar expires— (a) in the case of a Dáil election relative to a party registered or seeking registration (including registration of a political party emblem) as a party organised to contest a Dáil election, after the date of the issue of the writ or writs, (b) in the case of a European election relative to a party registered or seeking registration (including registration of a political party emblem) as a party organised to contest a European election, after the date of the making of the order of the Minister under section 10 of the European Parliament Elections Act, 1997 , (c) in the case of a local election relative to a party registered or seeking registration (including registration of a political party emblem) as a party organised to contest a local election, after the date of the making of the order of the Minister under section 21 of the Local Government Act, 1994 , (d) in the case of an election to Údarás na Gaeltachta relative to a party registered or seeking registration (including registration of a political party emblem) as a party organised to contest an election to Údarás na Gaeltachta, after the date of the making of the order of the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands under article 6 of the Údarás na Gaeltachta Elections Regulations, 1979 ( S.I. No. 355 of 1979 ).

Amendment of section 28 of Principal Act.

12.—Section 28 of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (2): “(2) (a) A scheme under this section made by the local authority shall come into operation on the day specified in the scheme. (b) A copy of a scheme made pursuant to this section shall, as soon as may be after it is made, be furnished to the Minister by the local authority.”, and (b) the deletion of subsection (3).

Amendment of section 29 of Principal Act.

13.—Section 29 of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the deletion in subsection (2) of “be subject to confirmation by the Minister (who may confirm the arrangement with or without modification) and shall”, and (b) the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (2): “(2A) An arrangement made pursuant to subsection (1) shall be notified to the Minister by the appropriate officer.”.

Amendment of section 32 of Principal Act.

14.—Section 32 of the Principal Act is amended by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (4): “(4) On the request of a returning officer for an advance on account of his charges the Minister for Finance may, after consultation with the Minister (irrespective of whether the scale of charges referred to in subsection (1) has been prepared or not), if he thinks fit and on such terms as he thinks fit, make such an advance.”.

Amendment of section 41 of Principal Act.

15.—Section 41 of the Principal Act is amended by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (b): “(b) will not reach the age of 21 years on polling day or, if there is no polling day in relation to the constituency concerned by reason of the operation of section 58(b), the day which is polling day generally throughout the State in relation to the election concerned, or”.

Amendment of section 46 of Principal Act.

16.—Section 46 of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) in subsection (4)— (i) the substitution of “section 25(7)(d)” for “section 25(4)(c)”, (ii) the substitution of the following sentence for the second sentence in that subsection: “Where such a certificate is produced, the returning officer, provided he is satisfied that it is appropriate to do so in relation to the candidate, shall cause— (a) a statement of the name of the relevant political party and a copy of the political party's emblem as registered in the Register of Political Parties to be specified in relation to the candidates on all the ballot papers, and (b) a statement of the name of the relevant political party to be specified in relation to the candidate on notices.”, and (b) in subsection (7), the substitution of “section 25C(7)” for “section 25(14)”.

Amendment of section 48 of Principal Act.

17.—Section 48 of the Principal Act is amended by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (e) of subsection (1): “(e) is not elected but the greatest number of votes credited to him at any stage of the counting of votes at the election exceeds, in the case of a general election, one quarter of the quota, or, in the case of a bye-election, one quarter of what would have been the quota in that constituency were the full number of members of the Dáil for the existing constituency to be elected.”.

Amendment of section 49 of Principal Act.

18.—Section 49 of the Principal Act is amended by the substitution of “seventh” for “ninth”.

Amendment of section 62 of Principal Act.

19.—Section 62 of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the substitution of “seventh” for “ninth” in subsection (2)(d), and (b) the substitution of “subsection (7) of section 25C” for “subsection (14) of section 25” in subsection (2)(g).

Amendment of section 63 of Principal Act.

20.—Section 63 of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the substitution of “seven” for “nine” in subsection (1)(b)(v)(I), and (b) the substitution of “subsection (7) of section 25C” for “subsection (14) of section 25” in subsection (1)(b)(vi).

Amendment of section 88 of Principal Act.

21.—Section 88 of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the insertion of “subject to any modifications which may be provided for in regulations under paragraph (cc) of subsection (2)” after “Fourth Schedule” in subsection (1), (b) the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (c) of subsection (2): “(cc) a ballot paper may include a photograph of each candidate and the emblem of the candidate's political party registered in the Register of Political Parties in accordance with the requirements prescribed in regulations which may be made by the Minister (and such regulations may provide for the modification of the form of the ballot paper for that purpose),”, (c) the insertion of “and the modifications which may be provided for in regulations under paragraph (cc)” after “Fourth Schedule” in paragraph (f) of subsection (2), and (d) the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (2): “(3) A notice containing a copy of the ballot paper in large print shall be displayed by the presiding officer in the polling station.”.

Amendment of section 92 of Principal Act.

22.—Section 92 of the Principal Act is amended by the insertion of “and, where appropriate, other information concerning the poll, including the address of the polling station” after “section 111” in subsection (1).

Amendment of section 96 of Principal Act.

23.—Section 96(1) of the Principal Act is amended by the substitution of— (a) “eighteenth” for “seventeenth” in paragraph (a), and (b) “7 a.m.” for “8 a.m.” in paragraph (b).

Amendment of section 98 of Principal Act.

24.—Section 98 of the Principal Act is amended by the insertion in paragraph (f) of “or who are unable to read or write to such an extent” after “physically incapacitated”.

Amendment of section 99 of Principal Act.

25.—Section 99 of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the insertion of “(1)” before “Where”, and (b) the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (1): “(2) (a) Where a Dáil elector is employed by a returning officer for any purpose in connection with a Dáil election and is registered to vote in a constituency, other than one in which the employment occurs, the elector shall, on application being made by him in that behalf, be entitled to have his name entered in a supplement to the postal voters list which the registration authority is empowered to prepare and publish in accordance with section 15A. An application under this section shall be made on a form directed by the Minister, and the returning officer who is employing the person shall certify on the form that the person will be employed by him on polling day in connection with the election and will be unable to vote in person in the constituency at the polling station at which the Dáil elector would otherwise be entitled to vote. (b) Where an application under paragraph (a) is granted, the registration authority shall note the register of electors by placing a mark on the register against the number and name of the elector to denote that the elector's name is on the postal voters list. (c) Section 15A(2)(d) shall apply to an application for entry in a supplement to the postal voters list under paragraph (a) as if reference in that provision to paragraph (a) or (b) of section 14 were references to subsection (2). (d) Subsection (4) of section 15A shall not apply to an application under this subsection.”.

Amendment of section 103 of Principal Act.

26.—Section 103 of the Principal Act is amended by the insertion in subsection (3) of “or that he is unable to read or write to such an extent” after “physically incapacitated”.

Amendment of section 111 of Principal Act.

27.—Section 111(2) of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the substitution of the following subparagraph for subparagraph (iii) (including the words in brackets) of paragraph (c): “(iii) Have you reached the age of eighteen years?”, and (b) the substitution of “have reached the age of eighteen years” for “had attained the age of eighteen years on ...... (date of coming into force of the register)” in paragraph (d).

Amendment of section 114 of Principal Act.

28.—Section 114 of the Principal Act is amended by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (1): “(1A) For the purposes of subsection (1), the manner in which a ballot box, being a box containing not more than 50 ballot papers, shall be opened shall be such that, although the box is opened in the presence of the agents of the candidates, the preferences on the individual ballot papers cannot be read by those agents or other persons present at the count.”.

Amendment of section 121 of Principal Act.

29.—Section 121 of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (8): “(8) The returning officer shall not transfer the surplus of a candidate deemed to be elected whenever that surplus, together with any other surplus not transferred, is less than both the difference between the quota and the number of votes credited to the highest continuing candidate and the difference between the numbers of the votes credited to the two lowest continuing candidates and either— (a) the number of votes credited to the lowest candidate is greater than one quarter of the quota or, in the case of a bye-election where there is more than one vacancy to be filled in a constituency, one quarter of what would have been the quota were the full number of members of the Dáil for the existing constituency to be elected, or (b) the sum of the number of votes credited to the lowest candidate together with that surplus and any other surplus not transferred is not greater than one quarter of the quota or, in the case of a bye-election where there is more than one vacancy to be filled in a constituency, one quarter of what would have been the quota were the full number of members of the Dáil for the existing constituency to be elected.”, and (b) the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (11): “(11) Subject to subsections (8) and (9), where two or more candidates have each an equal surplus arising from different counts, a surplus which arises at the end of any count shall be transferred before a surplus which arises at a subsequent count.”.

Amendment of section 122 of Principal Act.

30.—Section 122(2) of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the insertion after “one quarter of the quota” in paragraph (a) of “or, in the case of a bye-election, one quarter of what would have been the quota in that constituency were the full number of members of the Dáil for the existing constituency to be elected”, and (b) the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (b): “(b) where the number of votes credited to any one of such two or more lowest candidates does not exceed one quarter of the quota, or, in the case of a bye-election, one quarter of what would have been the quota in that constituency were the full number of members of the Dáil for the existing constituency to be elected, it is clear that the exclusion of the candidates separately in accordance with subsection (1) and the transfer of any untransferred surplus could not result in a number of votes exceeding one quarter of the quota, or, in the case of a bye-election, one quarter of what would have been the quota in that constituency were the full number of members of the Dáil for the existing constituency to be elected, being credited to any such candidate.”.

Amendment of section 124 of Principal Act.

31.—Section 124 of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the insertion after subsection (1) of the following subsection: “(1A) When the number of continuing candidates exceeds by one the number of vacancies remaining unfilled and the total of the votes credited to the lowest continuing candidate together with the surplus or surpluses not transferred is less than the number of votes credited to the next highest continuing candidate, the continuing candidates, with the exception of the lowest such candidate, shall thereupon be deemed to be elected.”, and (b) the insertion in subsection (3) of “or in the case of a bye-election where there is more than one vacancy to be filled in a constituency, one quarter of what would have been the quota were the full number of members of the Dáil for the existing constituency to be elected” after “quota”.

Amendment of section 133 of Principal Act.

32.—Section 133(2) of the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the insertion of “or” in paragraph (c) after “special voters list,”, (b) the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (c): “(d) uses or causes to be used information in a copy of the register of electors, including a supplement to the register, or a copy of the draft register or electors lists for reasons other than electoral or other statutory purposes where an elector has indicated that he does not wish the information to be so used,”, and (c) the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (2): “(2A) Where an offence under subsection (2)(d) is committed by a body corporate and is proved to have been so committed with the consent, connivance or approval of or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of a person being a director, manager, secretary or other officer of the body corporate, or any other person who was acting or purporting to act in any such capacity, that person as well as the body corporate shall be guilty of an offence and be liable to be proceeded against and punished as if he were guilty of the first-mentioned offence.”.

Amendment of section 147 of Principal Act.

33.—Section 147 of the Principal Act is amended by the substitution of “50 metres” for “100 metres” in subsection (2).

Amendment of Second Schedule to Principal Act.

34.—The Second Schedule to the Principal Act is amended by— (a) the substitution of “section 14” for “section 14(d)” in paragraphs 2 and 4 of the Table to paragraph (4) of Rule 1, (b) the insertion in Rule 5 after paragraph (2) of the following paragraph: “(2A) The registration authority or local authority referred to in paragraph (2) shall include in any registration form delivered to each house or building for the purposes of this Rule, or in their other enquiries, a question which will enable an elector who completes the form on his own behalf or on behalf of other electors resident in the house or building or responds to the question by a representative of the registration or other authority to state that the elector or other person included on the form to whom the enquiry relates does not wish his name and address to be used for a purpose other than an electoral or other statutory purpose.”, (c) the substitution in Rule 6(1)(a) of “to the Minister, if requested, and to” for “to the Minister,”, (d) the substitution in Rule 13(4)(a) of “to the Minister, if requested, and to” for “to the Minister,”, (e) in Rule 14— (i) the substitution of the following paragraphs for paragraphs (2) and (3): “(2) The fee for a copy of the register, edited register or draft register or any part thereof shall be fifty pence plus the sum of ten pence for each one hundred by which the number of persons in the register, edited register or draft register or part thereof exceeds one hundred.

14B. The registration authority may supply on request to any person a copy of the edited register or edited supplement or of an edited electors list or part of such a register or list in printed form or in electronic format on payment of a fee which fee shall be calculated in accordance with paragraph (2) of Rule 14.”, and (g) the deletion in Rule 18(1) of “on or” after “were received”.

PART 3

Direct Vote Recording and Electronic Vote Counting Interpretation (Part 3).

35.—In this Part— “cartridge or disc” means a device that is used in a voting machine to record each vote; “electronic” includes electrical, digital, magnetic, optical, electro-magnetic, biometric, photonic and any other form of related technology; “electronic voting system” means a voting system in which the votes are automatically counted and the results automatically tabulated by use of electronically operated apparatus; “voting machine” means an apparatus on which voters cast their votes, that records each vote, and that furnishes a total of the number of votes cast on the machine at a poll at the election or, as the case may be, cast at a referendum; “voting system” means a method of casting and counting votes that is designed to function wholly or partly by use of mechanical, electro-mechanical or electronic apparatus and includes the procedures for casting and counting votes and the programmes, operating manuals, printouts and other software necessary for the system's operation; “voting system equipment” means any kind of mechanical, electro-mechanical or electronic apparatus for use in a voting system.

Direct vote recording and electronic vote counting.

36.—(1) Notwithstanding the provisions contained in Parts XVII, XVIII and XIX of the Principal Act, voting and vote counting at a Dáil election may be undertaken on voting system equipment approved for such purposes by the Minister.

Expenses.

37.—(1) The expenses incurred by returning officers in acquiring voting systems for the purposes of this Part shall be paid by the Minister for Finance out of the Central Fund or the growing produce thereof.

Modification of certain provisions of Principal Act.

38.—For the purpose of the application by virtue of this Act to voting and the counting of votes under this Part of certain provisions of the Principal Act, the said provisions as so applied shall have effect as if— (a) a reference in any such provision to a ballot paper or ballot papers, other than in the case of postal voting and voting by special voters, were a reference, where appropriate, to a ballot paper displayed on a voting machine; (b) a reference in any such provision to mark or marking in relation to a ballot paper, other than in the case of postal voting and voting by special voters, were a reference to pressing the designated space adjacent to a candidate's details on a ballot paper displayed on a voting machine; (c) a reference in any such provision to a ballot box or ballot boxes, other than in the case of postal voting and voting by special voters, were a reference to a voting machine or voting machines; (d) in section 30(3) of that Act, for “open the ballot boxes and count the votes”, in each place where those words occur, there were substituted “open the postal voter ballot boxes and count the votes in accordance with Part 3 of the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001,”; (e) in section 31 of that Act, there were inserted “and the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001” after “with this Act”; (f) in section 37(1) of that Act, there were inserted “and the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001” after “this Act”; (g) in section 40 of that Act, there were inserted “or any votes cast on ballot papers on voting machines” after “any ballot papers used”; (h) in section 58(a) of that Act, there were inserted “and the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001” after “Act”; (i) in section 60 of that Act— (i) there were inserted “and at the entry of votes on postal voters ballot papers on a voting machine” after “boxes” in paragraph (c) of subsection (1); (ii) for “ballot boxes have been sealed by the presiding officer pursuant to section 110(2)” in subsection (6), there were substituted “voting machines are closed down by the presiding officer pursuant to section 42 of the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001”; (iii) there were inserted “and the entry of votes on postal voters ballot papers on a voting machine” after “postal ballot boxes” where those words first occur in subsection (7) and there were inserted “and the votes on the postal voters ballot papers are entered on a voting machine” after “to be opened” in that subsection; and (iv) there were inserted “or the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001,” after “this Act” in subsection (11);

(j) in section 62(3) of that Act, there were inserted “and any votes cast on ballot papers on voting machines” after “ballot papers” in paragraph (a); (k) in section 63(1) of that Act, there were inserted “and any votes cast on ballot papers on voting machines” after “ballot papers” in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (c); (l) in section 64 of that Act for “ballot paper placed in a ballot box” there were substituted “vote cast on a ballot paper on a voting machine”; (m) in section 66(1) of that Act there were deleted “, and indistinguishable from,” and for “delivered to” there were substituted “installed on a voting machine used by”; (n) in section 67 of that Act, there were inserted “and the counting of postal voters and special voters votes in accordance with section 43 of the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001” after “therein”; (o) in section 72 of that Act, the substitution of “After the final delivery of post to the returning officer on polling day but before” for “At the hour fixed for”; (p) in section 73 of that Act— (i) there were deleted “time fixed for the” in subsection (1); (ii) there were inserted “and enter the votes on the ballot papers in the postal voters ballot box on a voting machine” after “therein” in subsection (2); and (iii) there were inserted in subsection (4) after “section 75.” “He shall count and note the number of ballot papers not contained in ballot paper envelopes placed in the ballot box.”; (q) in section 75 of that Act for “as a ballot box for the purposes of section 114” there were substituted “in accordance with section 43 of the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001. The returning officer shall count and note the number of ballot papers placed in the ballot box and include such details and the details referred to in section 73(4) in the statement referred to in section 76(5)”; (r) in section 76 of that Act, there were inserted “, the unused ballot papers” after “postal voters list”, where these words first occur in subsection (1); (s) in section 85 of that Act— (i) for “ballot boxes”, in such places where those words occur in subsections (1)(b) and (2)(c), there were substituted “cartridges or discs from voting machines”; (ii) for “at or before the hour of 9 a.m. on the day next after polling day” in subsection (1)(b) there were substituted “forthwith”; and (iii) for “reach the place for the counting of the votes at or before the hour of 9 a.m. on the day next after the polling day appointed by the Minister” in subsection (2)(c) there were substituted “be sent to the place for the counting of the votes forthwith”;

(t) in section 86 of that Act, for paragraph (b) there were substituted: “(b) where, after the poll has continued for not less than four hours, the presiding officer is of opinion that if the poll were further continued the cartridges or discs from voting machines could not be sent to the place for the counting of the votes forthwith, he may then close the poll.”; (u) in section 88 of that Act— (i) there were inserted “for postal and special voters” after “ballot papers” in each place where those words occur in paragraph (d) of subsection (2); and (ii) there were inserted “, if any,” after “counterfoil” in that paragraph (d); (v) in section 89(1) of that Act, there were inserted “for a postal or special voter” after “ballot paper”; (w) in section 91 of that Act, there were inserted “voting machines,” after “ballot boxes,” in each place where those words occur; (x) in section 94 of that Act— (i) in subsection (5)— (I) for “compartments” in paragraph (a) there were substituted “voting machines”; (II) there were deleted paragraphs (c), (d) and (e); and (III) in paragraph (i) (inserted by the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 1996 ) there were deleted “and placing in the ballot box”; and (ii) in subsection (6), for “numbers on the ballot papers” there were substituted “serial numbers of the voting machines”; (y) in section 103 of that Act— (i) in subsection (1), for “for a ballot paper” there were substituted “to vote”; (ii) in subsection (2), for “delivery of the ballot paper” there were substituted “permitting the elector to vote”; (iii) in subsection (3), for “into one of the compartments in the polling station and there shall mark the ballot paper for the elector and shall fold it and show the back of the folded paper to the presiding officer so as to disclose the official mark and forthwith place the paper in the ballot box” there were substituted “to a voting machine in the polling station and then vote on the ballot paper displayed on the voting machine for the elector”; (iv) in subsection (4), for “delivery of the ballot paper” there were substituted “permitting that person to vote for the elector”; and (v) in subsection (5), for “fold it and place it in the ballot box” there were substituted “vote on the voting machine”; (z) in section 104 of that Act— (i) in subsection (1)— (I) for “a ballot paper”, where those words first occur, there were substituted “a permission to vote”; (II) for “for a ballot paper” there were substituted “to vote”; and (III) for “to receive a ballot paper and mark and place it in the ballot box” there were substituted “to vote”;

and (ii) in subsection (2)— (I) for “ballot papers issued pursuant to this section” there were substituted “cases arising under subsection (1)”; and (II) for “such papers” there were substituted “such permissions” referred to in that subsection; (aa) in section 105 of that Act— (i) in subsection (1), for “for or has applied for a ballot paper” there were substituted “to vote or has voted”; and (ii) in subsection (2), for “for a ballot paper”, in each place where those words occur, there were substituted “to vote”; (bb) in section 107(3) of that Act, for “open any of the ballot boxes” there were substituted “open the postal voters ballot box or cause to be read any votes on a cartridge or disc from any voting machine”; (cc) in section 108 of that Act— (i) there were inserted “and the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001,” after “this Act” in paragraph (c); and (ii) for “open any of the ballot boxes” in paragraph (d) there were substituted “open the postal voters ballot box or cause to be read any votes on a cartridge or disc from any voting machine”; (dd) in section 109 of that Act— (i) there were inserted “or voting machines” after “ballot boxes or ballot papers” where those words first occur; (ii) there were inserted “postal or special voter” after “(in the case of”; (iii) for “ballot boxes or ballot papers” in paragraph (a) there were substituted “voting machines”; (iv) in paragraph (e) there were inserted “and the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001,” after “this Act”; and (v) in paragraph (f) for “open any of the ballot boxes” there were substituted “open the postal voters ballot box or cause to be read any votes on a cartridge or disc from any voting machine”; (ee) in section 111 of that Act, for “for a ballot paper” in paragraphs (b), (c) and (d) of subsection (2) there were substituted “to vote”; (ff) in section 112 of that Act, there were inserted “and cartridges or discs from voting machines” after “ballot papers”; (gg) in section 113(3) of that Act, for “the ballot papers have been correctly sorted” there were substituted “all the cartridges or discs from voting machines have been correctly accounted for”; (hh) in section 117 of that Act, for “ballot papers” there were substituted “cartridges or discs from voting machines”; (ii) in section 129 of that Act— (i) in subsection (1) there were deleted all the words from “sealed packets” down to and including “polling stations,” and there were substituted “sealed packets the cartridges or discs from voting machines and the statements referred to in sections 40(1), 42(2) and 43(5) and (6) of the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001,”; and

(ii) for “section 114” in paragraph (b) of subsection (2) there were substituted “ section 44 of the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001”; (jj) in section 130 of that Act— (i) the substitution for paragraph (d) of subsection (2) of the following: “(d) the cartridge or discs referred to in subsection (1) of section 129 (as that subsection applies by virtue of Part 3 of the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001) and the documents referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b) of section 43

(iii) paragraph (e) were deleted.

Preparation of voting machine.

39.—(1) The returning officer shall, after the content of a ballot paper is finalised, arrange to have— (a) the ballot paper prepared for use on voting machines and installed on the voting machines for his or her constituency; and (b) the details of the ballot paper referred to in paragraph (a) inserted in the relevant cartridge or disc for recording votes to be cast on each such voting machine and such cartridge or disc installed in such voting machine.

Opening of the poll.

40.—(1) Immediately before the commencement of the poll the presiding officer at each polling station, after ensuring that the lock on the machine referred to in section 39 has not been interfered with, shall operate the voting machine in his or her charge to demonstrate to such persons as are present in the polling station that no votes are cast or recorded on the machine. The presiding officer shall cause a printed statement to be produced by the machine showing the names of candidates on the ballot paper and that no votes are cast or recorded on the machine. The statement shall be signed by the presiding officer and witnessed by an agent or other person in the polling station. The presiding officer shall then place the voting machine in his or her view during the poll.

Procedure for voting.

41.—(1) Subject to the provisions of sections 38 and 79 of the Principal Act and sections 64, 99, 100, 103, 104, 105 and 111 of the Principal Act, as applied to this Part by sections 36, 38 and 46, the presiding officer shall permit a Dáil elector, who applies to vote and declares his name and address, to vote on a voting machine.

Duties of presiding officer at close of poll.

42.—(1) At the time fixed for the close of the poll the presiding officer shall take steps to ensure that no further Dáil electors are admitted to the polling station, but any elector on the premises at that time shall, subject to the provisions of the Principal Act and this Act, be entitled to vote.

Counting of postal and special voter ballot papers under this Part.

43.—(1) The sealed ballot box containing postal and special voters ballot papers shall be opened, in the presence of agents of the candidates and not less than 2 members of the returning officer's staff, before the conclusion of voting on polling day.

Preliminary proceedings and time for counting of votes.

44.—(1) Following the closing of the poll, the returning officer, at the place appointed under section 112 of the Principal Act, shall, unless circumstances arise that render it impracticable at that time to do so, proceed with the counting of the votes, in the presence of agents of the candidates, as the cartridges or discs referred to in sections 42(3) and 43(8) are received at the count centre. If circumstances as aforesaid arise, the returning officer shall, upon those circumstances ceasing to exist, proceed with the counting of the votes in the manner aforesaid.

Application of Part XIX of Principal Act.

45.—(1) Part XIX of the Principal Act, other than section 125, and subsections (2), (3) and (4) of section 118 shall apply to the counting of votes under this Part. Any reference in that Part XIX to a ballot paper or paper shall be construed as a reference to a vote cast on a voting machine or, in the case of a reference to postal or special voters ballot papers, a vote entered in a voting machine.

Application of certain provisions of Principal Act.

46.—The provisions of sections 30, 31, 37, 40, 58, 60, 62 to 64, 66, 67, 72, 73, 75, 76, 85, 86, 88, 89, 91, 94, 103 to 105, 107 to 109, 111 to 113, 117, 129 to 131, 134, 137, 138, 150, 153, 161, 163 and 165 of the Principal Act shall, subject to the modifications specified in section 38, apply and have effect in relation to voting and vote counting under this Part.

Election petitions.

47.—Part XXI of, and the Third Schedule to, the Principal Act shall apply to voting and vote counting under this Part as if— (a) in section 132(8) there were inserted “and the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001,” after “this Act”; (b) in Rule 4(3) of the said Schedule there were inserted “or the Electoral (Amendment) Act, 2001,” after “this Act”, in each place where those words occur; and (c) for Rule 7 of the said Schedule, there were substituted the following Rule: “Counting of votes afresh.

Adaptation or modification of Acts relating to other elections and referendums.

48.—(1) Subject to subsection (3), the Minister may by order make such adaptations of, or modifications to, the Presidential Elections Act, 1993 , the European Parliament Elections Act, 1997 , the Local Elections Regulations, 1995, the Referendum Act, 1994 , the Seanad Electoral (University Members) Act, 1937 , and the Seanad Electoral (Panel Members) Acts, 1947 to 1972, as will enable voting and counting of votes at the relevant election or referendum under the said enactment or enactments to take place using equipment approved for use under this Part.

PART 4

Principal Amendments of Act of 1997 in relation to Political Donations Amendment of Act of 1997.

49.—The Act of 1997 is amended— (a) in section 3 by the substitution in subsection (1) for all the words from “section 21” down to and including “51 or 52” of “section 21, 22, 23, 23A, 23B, 24(1A), 24(4), 26(1), 30, 31, 32, 46, 47, 48(1), 48A, 48B, 51 or 52”, (b) in section 22 by— (i) the insertion of “or a third party” after “European Parliament” in each place where those words occur in paragraph (a) of subsection (2); (ii) the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (a) of subsection (2)— “(aa) ‘account’ means an account in an institution in the State for the purpose of crediting and debiting money received in respect of donations; ‘accounting unit’, in relation to a political party, means a branch, including the headquarters of a political party if it is a separate accounting unit or other subsidiary organisation of the party, which in any particular year, receives a donation the value of which exceeds £100; ‘candidate’ means a person who on or before the date of movement of a writ in relation to a Dáil general election or bye-election or the date of the making of the order appointing polling day in relation to a Seanad election or an election to the European Parliament is declared by himself or herself or by others to be a candidate at the election concerned; ‘institution’ means— (a) the holder of a licence under section 9 of the Central Bank Act, 1971 , (b) a building society incorporated or deemed to be incorporated under the Building Societies Act, 1989 , or a body incorporated in a corresponding manner under the law of any other Member State of the European Communities, (c) a trustee savings bank within the meaning of the Trustees Savings Banks Act, 1989, (d) ACC Bank plc, (e) An Post, or (f) a person authorised in accordance with the European Communities (Licensing and Supervision of Credit Institutions) Regulations, 1992 ( S.I. No. 395 of 1992 ), to carry on business in the State; ‘political group’ means a group formed in accordance with the rules of procedure of the European Parliament; ‘political purposes’ means any of the following purposes, namely— (i) (I) to promote or oppose directly or indirectly, the interests of a political party, a political group, a member of either House of the Oireachtas or a representative in the European Parliament, or (II) to present, directly or indirectly, the policies or a particular policy of a political party, a political group, a member of either House of the Oireachtas, a representative in the European Parliament or a third party, or

(III) to present, directly or indirectly, the comments of a political party, a political group, a member of either House of the Oireachtas, a representative in the European Parliament or a third party with regard to the policy or policies of another political party, political group, a member of either House of the Oireachtas, representative in the European Parliament, third party or candidate at an election or referendum or otherwise, or (IV) to promote or oppose, directly or indirectly, the interests of a third party in connection with the conduct or management of any campaign conducted with a view to promoting or procuring a particular outcome in relation to a policy or policies or functions of the Government or any public authority; (ii) to promote or oppose, directly or indirectly, the election of a candidate at a Dáil, Seanad or European election or to solicit votes for or against a candidate or to present the policies or a particular policy of a candidate or the views of a candidate on any matter connected with the election or the comments of a candidate with regard to the policy or policies of a political party or a political group or of another candidate at the election or otherwise; (iii) otherwise to influence the outcome of the election or a referendum or campaign referred to in paragraph (i)(IV) of this definition; ‘responsible person’, in relation to an accounting unit, means the treasurer or any other person responsible for dealing with donations to the unit, or, in relation to a third party, the person or persons responsible for the organisation, management or financial affairs of the third party; ‘third party’ means any person, other than a political party registered in the Register of Political Parties under Part III of the Electoral Act, 1992 , or a candidate at an election, who accepts, in a particular year, a donation the value of which exceeds £100.”, (c) in section 23— (i) in subsection (1), by the insertion of “or third party” after “European election” and the insertion of “third party” after “party, member, representative”, and (ii) in subsection (2) by the insertion of “or third party” after “European election” and the insertion of “third party” after “party, member, representative”, (d) the insertion of the following sections after section 23: “Limits on donation amounts.

23A.—(1) Without prejudice to subsection (2), none of the following persons, namely— (a) a member of either House of the Oireachtas, (b) a representative in the European Parliament, (c) a candidate at a Dáil, Seanad or European Election, (d) a political party, (e) a third party, or (f) an accounting unit, shall, directly or through any intermediary, accept from a particular person in a particular year a donation the value of which exceeds— (i) in case the first-mentioned person falls within paragraph (a), (b), or (c), £2,000, and (ii) in case the first-mentioned person falls within paragraph (d), (e), or (f), £5,000.

Political donations accounts.

23B.—(1) A member of either House of the Oireachtas, a representative in the European Parliament, a candidate at a Dáil, Seanad or European election, a political party, a third party or an accounting unit who or which receives, in any particular year, a monetary donation the value of which exceeds £100 shall open and maintain an account in an institution in the State and shall lodge that donation and any further monetary donations received by him or her or it to that account.

Registration of third parties.

23C.—As soon as may be after the receipt by it of a donation the value of which exceeds £100 and before incurring any expenses for political purposes or, as the case may be, incurring, subsequent to that receipt, any further such expenses, a third party shall furnish to the Public Offices Commission in writing— (a) the name and address of the third party and the name and address of the responsible person or each responsible person in relation to the third party, (b) a statement of the nature, purpose and estimated amount of the donations to, and proposed expenses of, the third party in any year, and (c) an indication of the third party's connection, if any, with any political party or candidate at a Dáil, Seanad or European election or referendum or otherwise.”, (e) in section 25 by— (i) the insertion in subsection (1) of “or the responsible person of a third party or of an accounting unit” after “at the election”; (ii) the insertion in subsections (1)(a) and (1)(b) of “or 23A” after “section 23”; (iii) the insertion in subsection (1)(b) after “thereof” of “or fails to return the donation or part of the donation exceeding the limit to the donor under section 23A”; (iv) the insertion in subsection (1)(c) of “furnish the statement of an institution, certificate or statutory declaration required under section 23B or” after “fails to”; (v) the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (d) of subsection (1): “(d) knowingly— (i) furnishes a donation statement under this Part or makes a statutory declaration referred to in section 24, or (ii) furnishes a statement of an institution or a certificate or makes a statutory declaration referred to in section 23B, which is false or misleading in any material respect, or”; (vi) the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (d) of subsection (1)— “(e) fails to comply with section 23C.”; (vii) the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (c) of subsection (2)— “(c) where the conviction relates to— (i) a failure to furnish a statement of an institution or certificate or make a statutory declaration referred to in section 23B, or (ii) a failure to furnish a donation statement under section 24, the person shall be guilty of a further offence on every day on which the failure continues after such conviction and for each such offence the person shall be liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £100.”, (f) in section 46 by— (i) the deletion in paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of all the words from “‘donation’” down to and including “namely—” and substituting “‘donation’ means any contribution given by any person to a candidate at a presidential election for the purpose of promoting the election of the candidate at that election or otherwise affecting the outcome of that election or to a third party for the purpose of promoting the election of a candidate at the presidential election or otherwise affecting the outcome of that election, and includes all or any of the following, namely—”;

(ii) the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (a) of subsection (2)—