S.I. No. 205/1979 - Referenda (Special Difficulty) Order, 1979.

S.I. No. 205 of 1979.

REFERENDA (SPECIAL DIFFICULTY) ORDER, 1979.

WHEREAS it appears to him that, by reason of the suspension of normal postal services, there is a special difficulty in relation to the holding of the referenda on the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution (Adoption) Bill, 1978, and the Seventh Amendment of the Constitution (Election of Members of Seanad Éireann by Institutions of Higher Education) Bill, 1979, the Minister for the Environment, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by section 92 of the Electoral Act, 1963 (No. 19 of 1963), hereby orders as follows:

1. This Order may be cited as the Referenda (Special Difficulty) Order, 1979.

2. In this Order—

"referendum returning officer" means the person appointed by the Minister for the Environment under section 6 of the Referendum Act, 1942, to be the referendum returning officer at the referenda on the proposals for the amendment of the Constitution in the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution (Adoption) Bill, 1978, and the Seventh Amendment of the Constitution (Election of Members of Seanad Éireann by Institutions of Higher Education) Bill, 1979:

"local returning officer" has the same meaning as in the Referendum Acts, 1942 to 1979;

"postal voter" means a person entitled to vote by post at a referendum;

"the Referenda" means the referenda to be held on the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution (Adoption) Bill, 1978, and the Seventh Amendment of the Constitution (Election of Members of Seanad Éireann by Institutions of Higher Education) Bill, 1979.

3. The provisions of the Referendum Acts, 1942 to 1979, and of the Regulations made under those Acts as respects giving public notice of the taking of a referendum and postal voting and polling cards are hereby adapted in relation to the Referenda as is set out in article 4 of this Order.

4. (1) The referendum returning officer may, in addition to such steps as may be taken by local returning officers for the purpose of complying with their obligations under rule 3 of the First Schedule to the Referendum Act, 1942, as amended by section 71 of the Electoral Act, 1963 , give such public notice of the taking of a referendum as he considers appropriate.

(2) The ballot papers and the forms of receipt to be sent to postal voters shall be sent to them by post or in such other manner as the local returning officer considers appropriate.

(3) A postal voter may deliver or send his ballot paper by post or in any other manner to the local returning officer and a postal ballot paper which is received by the local returning officer before the close of the poll shall not be rejected solely on the grounds that it was not sent to the local returning officer by post.

(4) The local returning officer shall send to each postal voter an instruction that the ballot paper may be returned to him by post or in any other manner.

(5) The local returning officer, instead of sending a polling card to each elector, may take such steps as he considers appropriate for the purpose of informing electors of the polling day and of the place at which each elector will be entitled to vote.

(6) The referendum returning officer may take appropriate steps for the purpose of informing electors of the proposals contained in the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution (Adoption) Bill, 1978, and the Seventh Amendment of the Constitution (Election of Members of Seanad Éireann by Institutions of Higher Education) Bill, 1979, and, in particular, and without prejudice to the generality of this sub-article, he may cause to be published in such manner as he thinks fit the statement set out in the Appendix to section 1 of the Referendum (Amendment) Act, 1979 , (No. 10 of 1979).

(7) The Referenda shall not be invalidated by reason of any failure to comply with the requirements of paragraphs (2) or (3) of rule 3, or of rule 4, of the First Schedule to the Referendum Act, 1942.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for the Environment this 15th day of June, 1979.

SYLVESTER BARRETT

Minister for the Environment,

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

This Order makes provision in respect of certain difficulties which have arisen, by reason of the suspension of normal postal services, in relation to the holding of the Referenda on the Sixth Amendment of the Constitution (Adoption) Bill, 1978, and the Seventh Amendment of the Constitution (Election of Members of Seanad Éireann by Institutions of Higher Education) Bill, 1979.