Greens bid to reform but not axe Seanad

THE Seanad is a “rotten borough” but should be reformed rather than abolished, Green leader John Gormley has said.

Launching the party’s manifesto yesterday, Mr Gormley said he was “not going to jump on any opportunistic bandwagons” and join in the calls for the upper house’s abolition.

Fine Gael and Labour have already said they would hold a referendum to abolish the Seanad if returned to power. Fianna Fáil has said it would support its abolition provided a wider range of political reforms proposed by the party were met.