Seanad submission from DCU
22 September 2003

Eilis O'Brien, Director of Communications and Marketing and Dr. Gary Murphy from the School of Law and Government

To the Sub-Committee on Seanad Reform on the question of university representation.

Context
The sub-committee on Seanad reform has indicated its intention to examine the issue of 'University representation either in its current or in an amended form'. Dublin City University would like to take this opportunity to make a submission on this issue, which has been a source of concern and anger to our graduates for many years.

Implementing the amendment passed in 1979
As the committee is well aware, on 5 July 1979 the seventh amendment to the Constitution permitted the alteration of university representation in Seanad Éireann and provided for the election of members by 'universities and other institutions of higher education'. This was passed with a 'yes' vote of 92.4 per cent. Since that time no changes have been made to the electoral system for the Seanad. This has resulted in the situation where graduates of Dublin City University (and the University of Limerick) are discriminated against - being the only Irish university graduates denied a vote in this area.

Whatever recommendations the sub-committee ultimately makes, the discussion must start from the basis that the current system cannot continue. There can be no valid argument to retain a vote for the graduates of certain universities while denying it to others.

Maintaining University representation
There is a clear case to be made that the historical basis for university representation has passed and that in an egalitarian society graduates have no more claim to a Seanad vote than any other section of society. However, while this point of principle is widely accepted, the university electorate is now a large and growing proportion of society. In particular it is a large proportion of the younger age cohort - a clear target group for attempts to increase voting turnout generally. Furthermore, it has been widely accepted over many years that the 'university senators' have made a very positive contribution to Seanad Eireann in practice. In particular, they have been seen to make non-partisan, expert contributions to Seanad debates. The continuation of 'graduate seats', not withstanding the issue of equality of franchise, has had a beneficial impact on Irish public life.

The principle of equal suffrage in the University seats
Previous debates on the reform of the university seats have recommended either a set of regional constituencies or a mixed system with some colleges getting a constituency of their own and others being grouped into regional constituencies. Such systems, based on regional representation of specific constituencies, would almost inevitably recreate a system where some graduates' votes would carry more weight than others. For constituencies to Dail Eireann it is now accepted (and indeed required by a Supreme Court judgement) that as far as practical the ratio of tds to citizens must be the same in each constituency. This principle has been taken so seriously in recent years that parts of counties have been transferred" to near neighbours to maintain an equal ratio, despite this being unpopular locally. A set of university sub-constituencies based on regional groups or historical circumstances will be difficult to achieve without breaching the constitutional principle of equal suffrage.

Elitism - broadening out the base
DCU argues that retaining extending the university franchise to universities outside NUI and Trinity and to the institutes of technology will diminish the criticism that university seats are elitist. It is true that twenty years ago only 11% of adults held degrees but now three times that number have higher education qualifications and 48% of 25-34 year olds have some form of third level qualification.

The Minister for Education & Science has repeatedly expressed his desire to "level the playing pitch" for students from publicly funded schools to university education. DCU argues that since it was set up 23 years ago, it has been a major factor facilitating access to university for students from areas with little or no tradition in third level education.

DCU graduates in particular represent a far greater mix of social background than the other universities. Out of the top fifty schools sending students to DCU, only seven are fee paying. In addition, the geographic location of DCU on the north side of Dublin has resulted in more students from areas without a tradition of university education attending university. The main schools feeding in to DCU each year include Skerries Community School, Portmarnock Community School, Ard Scoil Ris, Castleknock Community School, Coolmine Community School, St Aidans, Maryfield and many more to the north and west of Dublin as well as a strong representation from counties Louth, Longford, Meath, Donegal, Monaghan and right across the midlands and border counties.

DCU pioneered the Access Programme, which encourages students who (because of social or economic circumstances) are unlikely to get university places through the CAO system. The programme includes working with selected schools, tutoring students at second level, reserving places for students outside the CAO system, providing privately funded grants and extra supports for the students throughout their university life. The success of the DCU initiative has resulted in an extension of the scheme to a number of other universities.

Participation - payback to the State
The State invests heavily in the education system to the extent that many students are subsidised for 17 years of education. It does so because it sees the value of an educated workforce in terms of economic development. DCU argues that from the State's point of view there is enormous value in having those in whom it has invested so heavily participate in the democratic process. And, from the graduate's point of view, a vote in the Seanad is a reasonable reward for their academic efforts.

In a survey of DCU graduates (and there are 20,000 of them), 97% of graduates believe they should have the vote. Extending the franchise to DCU (and UL and the ITs) would energise the university electorate and increase the participation of all graduates in the democratic process.

Single multi-seat constituency for all universities and institutes of technology
DCU is not looking for its own senators or even an increase in the number of university senators. Rather it is believes that the most equitable representation is a single 6-seater constituency using PRSTV. Not only would this give DCU graduates the same franchise as their peers in other universities but also it would eliminate the anomaly whereby graduates with a degree from NUI and a second qualification from Trinity receive two votes.

Dublin City University
June 2003