Green Party plans elected senators

Senators would be elected by a nationwide poll under Green Party plans for political reform.

The party said abolishing the upper house, as proposed by Fine Gael and Labour and supported by Fianna Fáil, would not make politics work better.

Under the Green proposals, corporate donations would be banned and the number of TDs would be slashed to 120 with changes to the way they are elected.

Leader John Gormley said the Greens were the only party to propose a comprehensive political reform package across all levels of government.

“It is only through this approach that we will get the reform necessary to fix our political system, and move away from the culture of cronyism that has bedevilled our society and was a fundamental ingredient in the economic crisis that developed,” Mr Gormley said.

Under its reforms the Greens said TDs should be cut from 166 to 120, with half from single-seat constituencies and the remaining 60 elected from a list system.

The number of senators would also be reduced from 60 to 50.

The party pledged to draw-up a new constitution through a Citizens Assembly, while directly-elected regional authorities would also be established.

Ciaran Cuffe, Dun Laoghaire TD, said other parties have failed to get to the root of the problem at the heart of politics, claiming reducing the number of TDs without changing how they are elected was a meaningless gesture.

“Their proposals and that of the other parties amount to nothing more than a cosmetic makeover rather than the fundamental surgery required to fix our political system,” Mr Cuffe said.

Mr Gormley said Fine Gael and Labour have shown an unwillingness to change the voting system or reform local government.

“Without addressing these issues, their proposals amount to an insider’s charter to maintain power for vested interests and elites,” he said.

“They will merely replace Fianna Fáil cronyism with Labour cronyism and Fine Gael cronyism.”