School of Social Sciences and Philosophy Department of Political Science, JS (3rd year)

201213 Michael Gallagher

IRISH POLITICS (PO 3630)

Learning outcomes By the end of the course students will have an enhanced understanding of the Irish political and governmental processes and the academic research undertaken into these areas. They will also be aware of the background to and interpretations of Northern Ireland politics.
Approx number of lectures Approx time when lectures delivered (term / weeks)

1. Irish political culture and society 2. The Constitution: background and development 3. Irish electoral behaviour. Origins and development of the party system 4. The parties and the party system: comparative perspectives, explanations, organisation, prospects 5. The electoral system and its political consequences 6. Policy-making in Ireland: the role of the government, the civil service, interest groups 7. TDs and their constituency work 8. The Dil and the government 9. Power within government: position of the Taoiseach 10. Ireland and the European Union: policy-making within the EU, the impact on Ireland 11. Northern Ireland: historical background to problem 12. Northern Ireland: what is the heart of the problem? Religion, civil rights, colonialism, national identity 13. Loyalism: who are the Loyalists; how do they see the world? 14. Northern Ireland: is it a problem without a solution? The options considered

45 23 4 3 23 3 1 23 3 3 3 23 2 4

1 / 13 1 /34 1 / 56 1 / 89 1 / 910 1 / 1011 1 / 12 1/12 2/1 2 / 23 2 / 34 2 / 56 2 / 68 2/9 2 / 1011

Course structure
There will be two lectures a week (Thurs 5 and Fri 12), plus 9 classes for each student during the year, beginning in week 3 of term 1.

Office
My office is Room 5.06, 1 Foster Place.

Information
Clicking on the Irish Politics page currently at
http://www.tcd.ie/Political_Science/undergraduate/po3630.php

takes you to the course on-line noticeboard (olnb), where course information will be posted on a weekly basis (accessible from TCD computers only).

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Three essay topics will be set during the year and assignments must be submitted on two of these. The average mark from these two (or the best two if three are submitted) will count as 25 per cent of the overall mark for the course. The other 75 per cent will come from the May examination mark. Those students getting low overall marks on the course are brought down more often by simply not submitting two essays than by any other factor so do make sure that you submit two essays. TCD students going away on Socrates schemes in January 2013, along with visiting students who are in TCD for the first term only, are required to do the first assignment along with another piece of work (either the second assignment or one of the first five class discussion topics from p. 5); deadline Wed 16 January 2013. If youre in either of these categories, please make yourself known to the lecturer. Students here JanuaryMay (incoming visiting students, or TCD students away for the first term) are required to write two essays: one on the third essay topic, plus a second essay on one of the class discussion topics listed on p. 5. Deadline for the second essay: Monday 8 April 2013. This apart, incoming Socrates and other non-TCD students are required to fulfil the same course requirements, in terms of coursework and exams, as TCD students. Registering for the course implies acceptance of this. Reading: The textbook for the course, which is recommended for purchase, is John Coakley and Michael Gallagher (eds), Politics in the Republic of Ireland, 5th edition (Abingdon: Routledge and PSAI Press, 2010). Resist any temptation to buy a secondhand copy of an earlier edition those are history now. Chapter 1 of this book (PRI5) gives a concise historical background, if you need to refresh your memory or find out about it for the first time. Useful if you want more detail are:
Senia Paseta, Modern Ireland: a very short introduction (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003). Like it says, 200 years in 80 pages Eoin OMalley, Contemporary Ireland (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011) is a general and lively introduction to Ireland, including history and society as well as politics, designed particularly for visiting students Diarmaid Ferriter, The Transformation of Ireland 19002000 (London: Profile Books, 2004 hardback or 2005 paperback). 759 pages, and the shortness of chapter sections makes it hard to pick out specific bits to recommend Dermot Keogh, Twentieth-century Ireland: nation and state (Dublin: Gill and Macmillan, 1994). The most recent UCC history of Ireland Alvin Jackson, Ireland 17981998 (Oxford: Blackwell, 1999) chs 6 and 8.1 cover the south from 192298 J. J. Lee, Ireland 19121985: politics and society (Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1989). Long but highly readable. Includes NI, unlike Keogh Terence Brown, Ireland: a social and cultural history, revised edition (London: Harper Perennial, 2004)

On Northern Ireland:

Jonathan Tonge, The New Northern Irish Politics? (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2005) is a good starting point; more in later handout

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A number of journals contain articles and other material of relevance. Irish Political Studies is the most useful; it contains articles on Irish politics plus other useful features such as a data section (now published separately), which summarises the results of recent elections, opinion polls, book reviews etc. Theres quite a bit of information on the internet see list of useful Web addresses at the end of each chapter of PRI5. At http://www.tcd.ie/Political_Science/IOPA/index.php theres an opinion poll data archive going back several decades, and the Irish National Election Study data is online at http://www.tcd.ie/ines/ (click on On-line browser). Not least, keeping up to date with current affairs via the newspapers and broadcasting media is also strongly recommended. See also the Political Reform site maintained by the PSAI at politicalreform.ie, which contains commentary on current developments such as the constitutional convention and the childrens rights referendum. Exam The exam will take place in May 2013. It will consist of 11 questions, and you will have 3 hours to answer any 4 of these. The essay topics will not feature as exam questions. The lecture notes and the relevant chapter(s) from the textbook should be very useful in tackling the exam, but on their own these will not suffice for a good answer. They should be supplemented by additional reading suggested for each topic and, of course, by your own ideas and reflections. In the exam answers youre expected to show that youve read into the subject and have some familiarity with the academic literature. While it may be impossible for anyone to read all the items, you should aim to read some of them and its best done as the course proceeds rather than being postponed until April. Be aware that there are disagreements within the political science literature on many issues, and that you are expected to know about these. This is a 3rd year course, so youre expected to be able to show that you can deal with and evaluate, and not just passively assimilate, the material you encounter. Assessment and assignments Three essay topics will be set during the year, and assignments must be submitted on at least two of these. They should be submitted by 11.59 pm on or before the date specified. Essay 1 Tuesday 20 November, i.e. week 9 of term 1 (see page 4) Essay 2 Tuesday 22 January, i.e. week 2 of term 2 (see page 4) Essay 3 Monday 11 March, i.e. week 9 of term 2 (title arising out of Topics 1114) Assignments should be about 1,700 words in length. Writing essays tests your ability to identify the central issues of the topic and stick to them, among other things, so essays that go significantly above this limit will be marked down accordingly. Please leave a reasonable margin, indicate the source of material, including the page number(s)preferably by references embedded in the text, such as (Marsh and Cunningham 2011, p. 182)and append a list of works consulted. Be sure to number the pages of your essay. All coursework needs to be submitted via the plagiarism detector Turnitin; see www.turnitin.com. Class name is PO3630IrishPols, course ID number 5535739, class enrolment password is IrishPols (all of these are case-sensitive). To be sure that you are not inadvertently plagiarising, see the departments undergraduate handbook at: http://www.tcd.ie/Political_Science/undergraduate/handbook.php This also gives guidelines about how to write and plan an essay, what the markers are looking for, what qualities a good essay possesses, and what factors can result in low marks. The two assignments submitted (or the best two if three are submitted) will count as 25 per cent of the overall mark for the course; each assignment will carry equal weight. A mark of zero will be recorded for unsubmitted work. Any extension required for some unforeseen reason must be requested in advance. Consequently, late assignments will not be accepted unless backed up by a medical certificate.

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All late work, unless excused in advance by the course lecturer, or justified by medical certificate or tutors note, will be penalised at a rate of 5 marks per working day. Under no circumstances will work be accepted after the set work has been marked and handed back to other students, or after the end of the second lecture term. All items on Irish Politics reading lists should be available in the library. All articles in journals can be found on-line (the library has subscriptions to on-line versions of many journals), on photocopy reserve in the Berkeley in those rare cases where a journal isnt on-line, and/or on the on-line noticeboard. Thus it shouldnt be necessary for you to consult the original hard copy issue of the journal. All books mentioned as recommended reading for an essay will also be on reserve in the Berkeley library. Other items on reading lists for a lecture topic will be either on reserve or on the shelves (or out on loan). If you find any exceptions to this, please let me know. The essays will be returned at one of the discussion classes in the weeks following submission. You should be sure to collect your essay at the class as it may not be possible to collect it at other times. Your essay may have received a lower mark than you expected, and you should be able to learn from the comments on early essays how to do the later ones better. In some cases, the essay may even have received a mark of zero for some reason. In short, it is very much in your interests to attend the classes, collect your essay and learn from the feedback.

************************************************************* Assignment 1 (to be submitted by 11.59 pm Tuesday 20 November) Is there a need for fundamental reform of the constitution? What are the issues that the constitutional convention should prioritise, and why should it prioritise these? Should the constitution guarantee socio-economic rights? Would constitutional change really make much of a difference to the conduct of Irish politics?
Reading: From the readings for Topic 2.

************************************************************* Assignment 2 (to be submitted by 11.59 pm Tuesday 22 January) Do interest groups have too much power in the policy-making process in Ireland? Can anything be done to control or monitor their activities?
Reading: John Coakley and Michael Gallagher (eds), Politics in the Republic of Ireland, 5th ed (London: Routledge and PSAI Press, 2010), ch 11 (Murphy) is the starting point. Fuller reading list to follow

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Classes / tutorials See the departments Undergraduate Handbook at http://www.tcd.ie/Political_Science/undergraduate/handbook.php for explanation of the role that classes / tutorials play in courses within the Department of Political Science. There will be 9 classes for each student: 4 in the first term, and 5 in the second. Classes begin in week 3 of term 1 (week beginning 8 October). Teaching Assistant: Michael Courtney (courtnmj@tcd.ie).

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At classes, attendance is expected and is recorded. Non-attendance at classes may be reported to your College tutor as it often indicates that a student is having difficulties and is becoming disengaged from his or her studies.
The topics for discussion are as follows: 1 Just as Irish society has changed fundamentally since the early 1960s, so too has Irish political culture altered out of all recognition from the way it was fifty years ago. Is this true, or is Irish political culture characterised more by continuity than by change? (weeks 3 & 4 of term 1) 2 Why have so few women been prominent in Irish political life? Should gender quotas be introduced? Does it really matter that the political elite has been overwhelmingly male if so, why does it matter? See p. 14 below for reading. (weeks 5 & 6 of term 1) 3 Why has the left been so weak in Ireland? Is its future likely to be brighter than its past? (weeks 8 & 9 of term 1) 4 Irelands electoral system, PR-STV, has had significant negative effects on the Irish political process and should be replaced by something else as soon as possible. Discuss. (weeks 11 & 12 of term 1 essays on first assignment to be returned at this class) 5 How can we best account for the amount of constituency work undertaken by TDs? Do the negative consequences of this work outweigh the positive ones? (weeks 1 & 2 of term 2) 6 Despite the power accorded to the Taoiseach in the constitution, the records of successive Taoisigh suggest that most occupants of the office feel heavily constrained by its limitations. Discuss. (weeks 3 & 4 of term 2 essays on second assignment will be returned at this class) 7 Does membership of the EU create a serious problem of democratic accountability for Ireland? Is the extent of this problem likely to grow larger in the future, and how could it best be tackled? (weeks 5 & 6 of term 2) 8 Have southern attitudes towards the Northern Ireland problem changed significantly since the late 1960s? Is southern understanding of the problem now greater or less than it was 40 years ago? (weeks 8 & 9 of term 2) 9 Could either an independent Northern Ireland or repartition provide a solution to the Northern Ireland problem? (weeks 10 & 11 of term 2 essays on assignment 3 will be returned at this class) Reading: from the recommended reading for the appropriate lecture topics. Terms: first term from Mon 24 Sept 12 Fri 14 Dec 12 second term from Mon 14 Jan 13 Fri 5 Apr 13

Week 7 in each term, ie the week beginning 5 Nov and the week beginning 25 Feb, is a study week no lectures in this course.

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IRISH POLITICS Topic 1: Irish political culture and society

1. 2. 3. 4. The concept of political culture: a dependent or an independent variable? Influenced by various factors, but also an influence on political actors Social structural background: population and emigration; social cleavages in society (class, religion) Historical factors: the British connection; the position of the Roman Catholic church Some supposed features of Irish political culture: conservatism; aversion to ideology; personalism; individualism; deference to authority; nationalism. What is the evidence that these isms are present, and what are their political consequences? Summing up The impetus for change since 1960: political generation change; social structural change; impact of the EU; television; the troubles in NI; womens movement; change in RC church. Collective impact of changes.

5.

Reading: General analyses: John Coakley and Michael Gallagher (eds), Politics in the Republic of Ireland, 5th ed (Abingdon: Routledge and PSAI Press, 2010), ch 2 (Coakley) Brian Girvin, Irish political culture: between tradition and modernity, ch 8 in Roger Eatwell (ed.), European Political Culture. London: Routledge, 1997. Basil Chubb, The Government and Politics of Ireland, 3rd ed (London, 1992), chs. 1 (description) and 2 (on changes since 1960). Niamh Hardiman and Christopher Whelan, Changing values, ch 4 in William Crotty and David E Schmitt (eds), Ireland and the Politics of Change (London: Longman, 1998) John Garry, Niamh Hardiman and Diane Payne (eds), Irish Social and Political Attitudes (Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2006), esp ch 4 (attitudes to poverty and wealth), 5 (attitudes to political institutions) and 6 (social and political cleavages) Rona Fitzgerald and Brian Girvin, Political culture, growth and the conditions for success in the Irish economy, pp. 26885 in Brian Nolan et al, Bust to Boom? The Irish experience of growth and inequality (Dublin: IPA, 2000). Brian Girvin, Union to Union (Dublin: Gill and Macmillan, 2003), ch 1 on Why the Irish did not become British, and passim Bill Kissane, Explaining Irish Democracy (Dublin: UCD Press, 2002), esp ch 10. Argues that the establishment of a democratic regime is no mystery Tom Garvin, Theory, culture and Fianna Fil, pp. 17185 in M. Kelly, L. ODowd and J. Wickham (eds), Power, Conflict and Inequality (Dublin, 1982); on whether political culture should be thought of as a dependent or an independent variable

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On the adoption of British political institutions and practices: Brian Farrell, The parliamentary road to independence, ch 1 in Brian Farrell (ed.), The Creation of the Dil (Dublin: Blackwater, 1994) On the church, political culture and politics, a lot has been written, such as: Tom Garvin, Preventing the Future: why was Ireland so poor for so long? (Dublin: Gill and Macmillan, 2004). The role of the church in resisting the necessary expansion of the education system is a theme of the book; ch 6 is virtually an obituary for the Catholic church in Ireland Pat Lyons, Public Opinion, Politics and Society in Contemporary Ireland (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 2008), ch 5 on changing attitudes towards the liberal agenda Tony Fahey, Bernadette Hayes and Richard Sinnott, Conflict and Consensus: a study of values and attitudes in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland (Dublin: IPA, 2005), ch 3 on religion Tom Inglis, Individualisation and secularisation in Catholic Ireland, pp. 6782 in Sara OSullivan (ed.), Contemporary Ireland: a sociological map (Dublin: UCD Press, 2007). Louise Fuller, Irish Catholicism since the 1950s (Dublin: Gill and Macmillan, 2003); mainly a historical account of the period 1950s1970s; the Epilogue (23768) gives a brief account of the period up to 2002 Tom Inglis, Moral Monopoly: the rise and fall of the Catholic church in modern Irish society, 2nd ed (Dublin: UCD Press, 1998), chs 9 (decline of the church in recent years), 10 (overview) Garret FitzGerald, Reflections on the Irish State (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 2003), pp. 13452; on the churchs responsibility for its decline Bill Kissane, The illusion of state neutrality in a secularising Ireland, West European Politics 26:1 (2003), pp. 7394. Argues contrary to almost everyone elses views that the state is just as far from being religiously neutral as it ever was Patrick Clancy et al (eds), Irish Society: sociological perspectives (Dublin: IPA, 1995), ch 19 (Mire Nic Ghiolla Phdraig), on The power of the Catholic church in the Republic of Ireland Louise Fuller, Religion, politics and socio-cultural change in twentieth-century Ireland, European Legacy 10:1 (2005), pp. 4154. On-line noticeboard Other items of reading that are more specialised or rather outdated but still have something of interest: Mchel Mac Gril, Prejudice in Ireland Revisited (Maynooth, 1996), esp pp. 6372 (social distance), 388404 (conservatism & authoritarianism) J. H. Whyte, Church and State in Modern Ireland 192379 (Dublin: Gill and Macmillan, 1980), especially Intro, Conclusion and Epilogue John Whyte, Recent developments in church-state relations, Seirbhs Phoibl 6:3 (1985), pp. 410. Partial update of his book Michael Fogarty et al, Irish Values and Attitudes (Dublin: Dominican Publications, 1984), ch 2 (religion), ch 8 (conservatism) Michel Peillon, Contemporary Irish Society (Dublin, 1982), ch 10, pp. 1901 (religion) Brian Girvin, Church, state and the Irish constitution, Parliamentary Affairs 49:4 (1996), pp. 599615 Michael Holmes, Symbols of national identity and sport: the case of the Irish football team, Irish Political Studies 9, 1994, pp. 8198. On the impact of football on the trend towards greater pluralism

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Topic 2: Bunreacht na hireann (The Constitution of Ireland)

1 2 The purpose of constitutions: define and limit the power of govts. Tension between constitutionalism and democracy The background to Bunreacht na hireann: Constitution of Dil ireann 1919; Constitution of Irish Free State 1922 Bunreacht na hireann 1937: international status of state; institutions of govt, esp president; rights articles Amendment of the constitution Amendment by Oireachtas 1939 & 1941 (especially to 28.3.3). Amendment by the people through referendum increasingly common Judicial development of the constitution Positivist approach before 1960s Ryan vs AG 1963 and Art 40.3.1; the idea of unenumerated rights Advantages & disadvantages of power of judges Who are the judges; how are they appointed; what are their values? A need for further amendment? Major reviews in 1967 and 1996 Areas where changes have been suggested, such as gender-proofing, property, pluralism, rights, Irish language, institutions of government Narrowly constitutional areas: emergency (28.3.3), presidential referrals (34.3.3) A new constitution? NB the constitutional convention is scheduled to be in place while the course is proceeding

3 4

Reading: John Coakley and Michael Gallagher (eds), Politics in the Republic of Ireland, 5th ed (Abingdon: Routledge and PSAI Press, 2010), ch 3 (and pp. 198201 on the presidency) Bunreacht na hireann (Stationery Office, Dublin). Costs only c2.50, or free at http://www.constitution.ie/constitution-of-ireland/default.asp Constitution Review Group, Report (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1996). Comprehensive review and assessment of the constitution; has something to say on all the areas where amendments have been suggested. The 250 pages of Appendices are for some reason not included in the online version; theyre in the hard copy only General texts on BE, its features and constitutional development: Oran Doyle, Constitutional Law: Texts, Cases and Materials. Dublin: Clarus Press, 2008. Bill Kissane, New Beginnings: constitutionalism and democracy in modern Ireland (Dublin: UCD Press, 2011), chs 3, 4, 6 James Casey, Constitutional Law in Ireland, 3rd ed (Dublin: Round Hall Sweet and Maxwell, 2000), esp pp. 2128 (overview), 2940 (international status of state), 78100 (president), 18088 (Emergency articles), 37685 (criteria employed by courts in interpreting the constitution) Gerard Hogan and Gerry Whyte, J. M. Kelly: The Irish Constitution, 4th ed. Dublin: LexisNexis Butterworths, 2003. The longest book on the reading list; has discussion of the meaning of each Article, as interpreted by the courts. J. Anthony Foley and Stephen Lalor (eds), Gill and Macmillan Annotated Constitution of Ireland. Dublin: Gill and Macmillan, 1995.

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Francis X. Beytagh, Constitutionalism in Contemporary Ireland: an American Perspective. Dublin: Round Hall, Sweet and Maxwell, 1997. chs 2 (overview), 5 (assessment of CRG Report) Basil Chubb, The Politics of the Irish Constitution (Dublin, 1991), esp chs 6, 9 Alan J Ward, The Irish Constitutional Tradition: responsible government and modern Ireland, 17821992 (Blackrock: Irish Academic Press, 1994), chs 7 10 on the 1919 and 1922 constitutions, chs 11 and 12 on B na h On specific aspects: Oran Doyle and Eoin Carolan (eds), The Irish Constitution: Governance and Values. Dublin: Thomson Round Hall, 2008. Esp chapters by Ivana Bacik, Future directions for the constitution, pp. 13543; Rory OConnell, From equality before the law to the equal benefit of the law: social and economic rights in the Irish constitution, pp. 32746. Tim Murphy and Patrick Twomey (eds), Irelands Evolving Constitution, 1937 97: Collected Essays. Oxford: Hart, 1998. Chapters by David Gwynn Morgan, Judicial activismtoo much of a good thing, pp. 10719; Dolores Dooley, Gendered citizenship in the Irish constitution, pp. 12133; Tim Murphy, Economic inequality and the constitution, pp. 16381; Adrian Hunt, Evaluating constitutionsthe Irish constitution and the limits of constitutionalism, pp. 31734 argues that the CRG was too complacent about the constitution. David Gwynn Morgan, Government and the courts, ch 11 in Eoin OMalley and Muiris MacCarthaigh (eds), Governing Ireland (Dublin: IPA, 2012) David Gwynn Morgan, A Judgment too Far? Judicial activism and the constitution (Cork: Cork University Press, 2001), esp chs 1, 3, 4, 10 the whole booklet is only 100 pages long Alpha Connelly, Women and the constitution of Ireland, pp. 1837 in Yvonne Galligan, Eils Ward and Rick Wilford (eds), Contesting Politics: women in Ireland, north and south (Boulder, CO: Westview and PSAI Press, 1999). Robert Elgie (ed.), Semi-Presidentialism in Europe (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999), chapter on Ireland, pp. 10423; on the presidency. Kathleen Lynch and Alpha Connelly, 1996. Equality before the law, pp. 58691 in CRG Report, advocates provision of economic rights. Brian Farrell (ed), De Valeras Constitution and Ours (Dublin, 1988), esp chs 3 (drafting), 11 (development), 15 (assessment) Frank Litton (ed), The Constitution of Ireland 193787 (Dublin, 1988). Chapter by Gerard Hogan, pp. 17391, on Constitutional interpretation asks just how judges interpret the constitution Patrick Hanafin, Constituting Identity: political identity formation and the constitution in post-independence Ireland (Dartmouth: Ashgate, 2001). If you feel the need for a postmodern perspective on the constitution, this is it On referendums: Gretchen Macmillan, The referendum, the courts and representative democracy in Ireland, Political Studies 40:1 (1992), pp. 6778 Michael Gallagher, Ireland: the referendum as a conservative device?, pp. 86 105 in Michael Gallagher and Pier Vincenzo Uleri (eds), The Referendum Experience in Europe (Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1996). On the history of constitutional referendums up to 1995 Richard Sinnott, Funding for referendum campaigns: equal or equitable?, pp. 16077 in Tom Garvin, Maurice Manning and Richard Sinnott (eds), Dissecting Irish Politics: essays in honour of Brian Farrell (Dublin: UCD Press, 2004) John Baker and Richard Sinnott, Simulating multi-option referendums in Ireland: neutrality and abortion, Irish Political Studies 15 (2000), pp. 10525

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Constitutional referendums 19372012

Date 1. 7.37 17. 6.59 16.10.68 16.10.68 10. 5.72 7.12.72 7.12.72 5. 7.79 5. 7.79 7. 9.83 14. 6.84 26. 6.86 26. 5.87 18. 6.92 25.11.92 25.11.92 25.11.92 24.11.95 28.11.96 30.10.97 22. 5.98 22. 5.98 11. 6.99 7. 6.01 7. 6.01 7. 6.01 6. 3.02 19.10.02 11. 6.04 12. 6.08 2.10.09 27.10.11 27.10.11 31. 5.12 autumn 12 Proposal Approve Bunreacht na hireann Abolish STV electoral systemreplace by SMP Abolish STV electoral systemreplace by SMP Allow over-representation of rural voters Permit membership of EC Lower voting age from 21 to 18 Remove special position of RC church Legalise contested adoptions (technical change) Permit reorganisation of graduate repn in Seanad Insert pro-life (anti-abortion) amendment Allow votes for non-citizens Allow legalisation of divorce Ratify Single European Act Permit ratification of Maastricht Treaty Restrict availability of abortion Affirm freedom to travel (abortion-related) Affirm freedom of information ( ) Allow legalisation of divorce Greater judicial power to refuse bail Regulate confidentiality of cabinet discussions Permit ratification of Amsterdam Treaty Approve Northern Ireland Agreement Recognise existence of local govt Permit ratification of Nice Treaty (first time) Permit ratification of Internatln Criminal Court Delete references to death penalty Restrict availability of abortion Permit ratification of Nice Treaty (second time) Remove automatic right to Irish citizenship upon birth in Ireland Permit ratification of Lisbon Treaty (first time) Permit ratification of Lisbon Treaty (second time) Permit reduction in judges salaries Extend powers of Oireachtas committees Permit ratification of EU fiscal compact Add specific childrens rights Yes % 56.5 48.2 39.2 39.2 83.1 84.6 84.4 99.0 92.4 66.9 75.4 36.5 69.9 69.1 34.6 62.4 59.9 50.3 74.8 52.6 61.7 94.4 77.8 46.1 64.2 62.1 49.6 62.9 79.2 46.6 67.1 79.7 46.7 60.3 No % 43.5 51.8 60.8 60.8 16.9 15.4 15.6 1.0 7.6 33.1 24.6 63.5 30.1 30.9 65.4 37.6 40.1 49.7 25.2 47.4 38.3 5.6 22.2 53.9 35.8 37.9 50.4 37.1 20.8 53.4 32.9 20.3 53.3 39.7 Turnout 68.3 56.1 62.9 62.9 70.3 48.0 47.9 27.9 27.4 53.4 45.5 60.5 43.9 57.3 64.9 65.3 65.2 62.0 29.1 44.0 55.0 55.6 47.2 34.3 34.2 34.3 42.7 49.3 59.9 52.9 57.7 54.8 54.5 50.4

Note: Turnout is measured as valid votes as a percentage of electorate. For fuller details, see Appendix 2h in PRI5.

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DEPARTMENT OF POLITICS 201213

IRISH POLITICS Topic 3: Irish electoral behaviour Its often asserted that Irish voting behaviour, and the consequent party system, are unique, and that the main political parties are difficult to categorise in a comparative context. This topic and that on the party system consider the origins and development of the party system and speculate on its future. 1. The immediate origins of the party system 191623. The significance of the Treaty split. 2. The parties since 1922. Voting behaviour; has Irish politics been politics without social bases? From which social groups has each of the parties drawn most support? Do the parties have positive or negative images? 3. FF: 192240 the eastwest gradient; 194066 uniform support across the country; 1966 the eastwest gradient again. FG: 192233 Cumann na nGaedheal; 193348 the years of decline; 194877 a recovery; 1977 unprecedented growth followed by decline, then a leap in 2011 Labour: 192260 mainly rural support; 1960 joining the mainstream of European social democracy Other parties: agricultural, militant republicanism, left-wing, others 4. Determinants of voting behaviour: other socio-demographic variables besides class (age, urban / rural); issues (but how much impact do they have on vote?); candidate factors. 5. Voting at the 2011 election 6. Conclusion Useful general reading: John Coakley and Michael Gallagher (eds), Politics in the Republic of Ireland, 5th ed (Abingdon: Routledge and PSAI Press, 2010), chs 1 (Coakley), 5 (Weeks), 6 (Marsh) Michael Marsh, Richard Sinnott, John Garry and Fiachra Kennedy, The Irish Voter (Manchester UP, 2008); analysis of the first-ever survey data on an Irish election, that of 2002 Michael Gallagher and Michael Marsh (eds), How Ireland Voted 2011: the full story of Irelands earthquake election (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011) spells out how dramatically different the result of the 2011 election was from any of its predecessors Peter Mair and Michael Marsh, Political parties in electoral markets in postwar Ireland, pp. 23463 in Peter Mair, Wolfgang C. Mller and Fritz Plasser (eds), Political Parties and Electoral Change: party responses to electoral markets. London: Sage, 2004. John Coakley, The significance of names: the evolution of Irish party labels, tudes Irlandaises 5 (1980) pp. 17181. Explains what the parties names mean and how they came about. On-line noticeboard See also the Irish National Election Study site at www.tcd.ie/ines

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On voting behaviour: Michael Marsh and Kevin Cunningham, A positive choice, or anyone but FF?, ch 7 in Michael Gallagher and Michael Marsh (eds), How Ireland Voted 2011 (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011). Analyses the opinion poll evidence on voting behaviour at 2011 general election. Past versions of the How Ireland Voted series are also useful. Michael Marsh, None of that post-modern stuff around here: grassroots campaigning in the 2002 Irish general election, in British Elections and Parties Review 14 (2004), pp. 24567. Michael Marsh, Candidates or parties? Objects of electoral choice in Ireland, Party Politics 13:4 (2007), pp. 50027. Michael Marsh, Party identification in Ireland: an insecure anchor for a floating party system, Electoral Studies 25:3 (2006), pp. 489508. Richard Sinnott, Irish Voters Decide: voting behaviour in elections and referendums since 1918 (Manchester: Manchester UP, 1995), esp pp. 18198 on class and voting. Kenneth McKenzie, Irish voting patterns: dealignment or realignment?, pp. 180200 in Katy Hayward and Muiris MacCarthaigh (eds), Recycling the State: the politics of adaptation in Ireland (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 2007) Freda Donoghue and Paula Devine, Is there a gender gap in political attitudes in Ireland?, pp. 24068 in Yvonne Galligan, Eils Ward and Rick Wilford (eds), Contesting Politics: women in Ireland, north and south (Boulder, CO: Westview and PSAI Press, 1999). On particular parties: Noel Whelan, Fianna Fil: a biography of the party (Dublin: Gill and Macmillan, 2011) Richard Dunphy, The Making of Fianna Fil Power in Ireland 192348 (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1995), esp chs 1 and Conclusion Stephen Collins, The Power Game: Fianna Fil since Lemass (Dublin: OBrien Press, 2000). Straightforward historical account by political correspondent Michael Gallagher and Michael Marsh, Days of Blue Loyalty: the politics of membership of the Fine Gael party (Dublin: PSAI Press, 2002), chs 2 (history of FG), 8 (how members see their partys role in the Irish party system) Niamh Puirsil, The Irish Labour Party 192273. Dublin: UCD Press, 2007. Kieran Allen, Fianna Fil and Irish Labour: 1926 to the present (London: Pluto, 1997), intro and conclusion. Written from a SWP perspective in seeking to explain why FF is strong, addresses question of why the left is weak John Coakley, Minor parties in Irish political life, 19221989, Economic and Social Review 21:3 (1990), pp. 26997.

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IRISH POLITICS Governments in Ireland 19222012

Election Party(-ies) forming government 1922 1923 1927(J) 1927(S) 1932 1933 1937 1938 1943 1944 1948 Cumann na nGaedheal Cumann na nGaedheal Cumann na nGaedheal Cumann na nGaedheal Fianna Fil Fianna Fil Fianna Fil Fianna Fil Fianna Fil Fianna Fil Fine Gael, Labour, Clann na Poblachta, Clann na Talmhan, National Labour, Independents 1951 Fianna Fil 1954 Fine Gael, Labour, Clann na Talmhan 1957 Fianna Fil 1961 Fianna Fil 1965 Fianna Fil 1969 Fianna Fil 1973 Fine Gael, Labour 1977 Fianna Fil 1981 Fine Gael, Labour 1982(F) Fianna Fil 1982(N) Fine Gael, Labour 1987 Fianna Fil 1989 Fianna Fil, Progressive Democrats 1992 Fianna Fil, Labour 1994* Fine Gael, Labour, Democratic Left 1997 Fianna Fil, Progressive Democrats 2002 Fianna Fil, Progressive Democrats 2007 Fianna Fil, Green Party, Progressive Democrats 2011 Fine Gael, Labour Taoiseach (before 1937, President of the Executive Council) William T. Cosgrave William T. Cosgrave William T. Cosgrave William T. Cosgrave amon de Valera amon de Valera amon de Valera amon de Valera amon de Valera amon de Valera John A. Costello (FG) amon de Valera John A. Costello (FG) amon de Valera (Sen Lemass from 1959) Sen Lemass Sen Lemass (Jack Lynch from 1966) Jack Lynch Liam Cosgrave (FG) Jack Lynch (Charles Haughey from 1979) Garret FitzGerald (FG) Charles J. Haughey Garret FitzGerald (FG) Charles J. Haughey Charles J. Haughey (Albert Reynolds from 1992) both FF Albert Reynolds (FF) John Bruton (FG) Bertie Ahern (FF) Bertie Ahern (FF) Bertie Ahern (Brian Cowen from May 2008) both FF Enda Kenny (FG)

* The 1994 government is the only change of government ever to take place without an election. More details of governments, election results and party leaders can be found in the Appendices to Politics in the Republic of Ireland.

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Support for parties by class, 1997, 2002, 2007 and 2011 general elections All 1997 2002 2007 2011 Middle class 1997 2002 2007 2011 Working class 1997 2002 2007 2011 Farmers 1997 2002 2007 2011
1997: 2002: 2007: 2011:

FF 41 42 42 16 35 39 39 14 41 44 43 16 48 48 44 23

FG 26 21 26 36 28 21 26 38 21 19 22 30 39 37 44 53

Lab 11 12 10 21 12 14 12 23 14 12 9 22 4 4 5 5

Grn 3 5 5 2 5 7 7 3 4 3 3 2 0 2 0 7

SF PDs Oths 3 7 7 11 1 4 5 8 5 10 11 16 1 2 3 1 5 4 3 8 6 3 3 2 2 4 0 1 9 10 8 14 9 9 8 15 10 10 9 15 4 7 2 11

RTE / Lansdowne exit poll, from Appendix C in Marsh and Mitchell (eds), How Ireland Voted 1997 (Boulder CO: Westview and PSAI Press, 1999), p. 311. Garry et al, in How Ireland Voted 2002, p. 131 Marsh in How Ireland Voted 2007, Table 7.3, p. 115 Marsh and Cunningham in How Ireland Voted 2011, Table 8.4, p. 182

These sources contain further discussion of the relationship between class and voting. All figures are percentages. Thus, for example, the 35 under FF for middle class support in 1997 means that in the exit poll carried out on election day, 35% of middleclass respondents stated that they had voted for Fianna Fil. There are more details in Appendix 2i in PRI5. ____________

On the under-representation of women (class discussion topic 2, p. 5 above), see in particular:

John Coakley and Michael Gallagher (eds), Politics in the Republic of Ireland, 5th edition (Abingdon: Routledge and PSAI Press, 2010), ch 9 (Yvonne Galligan). Fiona Buckley and Claire McGing, Women and the election, pp. 22239 in Michael Gallagher and Michael Marsh (eds), How Ireland Voted 2011 (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011). Diarmaid Ferriter, Women and political change in Ireland since 1960, ire-Ireland 43:1 (2008), pp. 179204. Aili Mari Tripp and Alice Kang, The global impact of quotas: on the fast track to increased female legislative representation, Comparative Political Studies 41:3 (2008) 33861 Manon Tremblay, Democracy, representation, and women: a comparative analysis, Democratization 14:4 (2007) 53353 Drude Dahlerup, Electoral gender quotas: between equality of opportunity and equality of result, Representation 43:2 (2007), 7392.

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Topic 4: The parties and the party system

Having looked, in Topic 3 on electoral behaviour, at the development of the party system since independence and the patterns of voting behaviour, in this topic we ask in what ways the Irish party system is supposedly different, and look for explanations for the distinctive nature of the Irish party system. This topic also looks at party organisation and considers the future prospects for the Irish party system. 1. The Irish party system in comparative perspective. In what ways does the Irish party system differ from Western European party systems generally? 2. Explanations for the nature of the Irish party system. Carty: the elite created it from the top down. Garvin: its roots go back to 19C. Whyte: the LipsetRokkan framework helps but only by its non-applicability. Sinnott: the LipsetRokkan framework does apply and contains the key to the puzzle. Weakness of the left; why? Societal explanations (strength of agriculture, RC church, weak class divisions); political explanations (nationalism, Labour mistakes, Labour too centrist). Which of these is most convincing? Other factors: the autonomy of the political. Are Irish parties really different? 3. Party organisation. Power within the party: candidate selection, election of the leader; the role of the branch, constituency organisation, annual conference, national executive, head office, parliamentary party, party leader. 4. Future prospects of Irish party system. The absence of ideological debate; is the Irish electorate becoming more volatile; what chance of a new radical right party? Useful general reading: John Coakley and Michael Gallagher (eds), Politics in the Republic of Ireland, 5th ed (Abingdon: Routledge and PSAI Press, 2010), ch 5 (Weeks on party system development and on organisation) Ronan Murphy and David M. Farrell, Party politics in Ireland: regularising a volatile system, pp. 21747 in Paul Webb, David M. Farrell and Ian Holliday (eds), Political Parties in Advanced Industrial Democracies (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002) On explanations for the nature and evolution of the party system: Richard Sinnott, Interpretations of the Irish party system, European Journal of Political Research 12:3 (1984), 289307 (reviews other approaches). On-line noticeboard Peter Mair, Explaining the absence of class politics in Ireland, pp. 383410 in J. H. Goldthorpe and C. T. Whelan (eds), The Development of Industrial Society in Ireland (Oxford, 1992) on explanations for the weakness of the left Michael Laver, Are Irish parties peculiar?, pp. 35981 in J. H. Goldthorpe and C. T. Whelan (eds), The Development of Industrial Society in Ireland (Oxford, 1992) Eoin OMalley, Why is there no radical right party in Ireland?, West European Politics 31:5 (2008), pp. 96077. Duncan McDonnell, The Republic of Ireland: the dog that hasnt barked in the night?, pp. 198 216 in Daniele Albertazzi and Duncan McDonnell (eds), Twenty-first Century Populism: the spectre of western European democracy (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008) Bill Kissane, The Politics of the Irish Civil War (Oxford: Oxford UP, 2005), esp ch 9, on the impact of the 192123 period on the post-independence party system Theresa Reidy, Candidate selection, pp. 4767 in Michael Gallagher and Michael Marsh (eds), How Ireland Voted 2011 (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2011). Power within parties John Coakley, Religion, national identity and political change in modern Ireland, Irish Political Studies 17:1 (2002), 428. Takes a long-term view Tom Garvin, The Evolution of Irish Nationalist Politics (Dublin, 1981) pp. 16, chs. 10 and 12. On the continued ghostly existence of 19C parties R. Ken Carty, Party and Parish Pump (Waterloo, 1981), chs. 12, 45, pp. 1437. Peter Mair, The autonomy of the political, Comparative Politics 11:4 (1979) pp. 44565 Peter Mair, The freezing hypothesis: an evaluation, pp. 2744 in Lauri Karvonen and Stein Kuhnle (eds), Party Systems and Voter Alignments Revisited (London: Routledge, 2001). General but with many references to Irish experience

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DEPARTMENT OF POLITICS 201213

IRISH POLITICS

Topic 5: The electoral system

1. The single transferable vote (i) principles of STV and how it works (ii) origins of STV (iii) constitutional provisions (iv) referendums (v) some theoretical considerations: monotonicity 2. The political impact of the electoral system (i) accuracy of representation; the reasons why perfect proportionality is not attained, and why the large parties benefit: (a) the impact of small constituency size; (b) the impact of transfers on the votes:seats relationship; (ii) stability of governments; how accurate is the anti-PR argument? (iii) opportunities for participation by the electorate (iv) cohesion of parties, esp parliamentary parties (v) nature of TDs elected: the impact on political style; talent suppression. Is STV really the cause of brokerage? (vi) election of independent TDs 3. Is there a need for a new electoral system? What options are there? (i) desirable amendments to STV (ii) British SMP system (iii) Alternative vote (iv) List systems, open and closed (v) Mixed (two-tier) systems (vi) the options reviewedimpact on brokerage Reading: John Coakley and Michael Gallagher (eds), Politics in the Republic of Ireland, 5th ed (Abingdon: Routledge and PSAI Press, 2010), ch 4 by Richard Sinnott. Includes a blow-by-blow description of exactly how STV works, together with an assessment of its political impact. Worth reading before the lecture M. Gallagher, Ireland: the discreet charm of PR-STV, pp. 51132 in Michael Gallagher and Paul Mitchell (eds), The Politics of Electoral Systems, revised edition (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008), plus pp. 5936 of the book

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Assessments of its political impact: Constitution Review Group, Report (Dublin: Stationery Office, 1996), pp. 5164, 48391 (Laver), 4928 (Lynch), 499520 (Gallagher); the last three of these are available only in the hard copy version, not the online version Oireachtas Joint Committee on the Constitution, Fourth Report: Review of the Electoral System for the Election of Members to Dil ireann (Dublin, 2010). Look through pp. 33180 to see their thinking on the subject. Downloadable from http://www.oireachtas.ie/viewdoc.asp?fn=/documents/Committees30thDail/JConstitution/Report_2008/document1.htm R. Ken Carty, Party and Parish Pump, ch 6 (intra-party competition, talent suppression) Shaun Bowler and Bernard Grofman (eds), Elections in Australia, Ireland, and Malta under the Single Transferable Vote: reflections on an embedded institution (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2000). Chs 5, 6 and 7 examine various aspects of STV in Ireland Marc Coleman, The Best is Yet to Come (Dublin: Blackhall, 2007), pp. 1227 on why PR in general, and PR-STV in particular, is bad for Ireland Garret FitzGerald, Reflections on the Irish State (Dublin: Irish Academic Press, 2003), ch 6 on the negative effects he argues are brought about by intra-party electoral competition On alternative systems: Diarmaid Ferriter, What If? (Dublin: Gill and Macmillan, 2006), ch 16 on what if in the 1959 referendum the people had voted to replace PR-STV by the SMP system Michael Laver, A New Electoral System for Ireland? Dublin: Policy Institute, 1998. Assesses the likely impact of a German-type mixed electoral system in Ireland David M. Farrell, Electoral Systems: a comparative introduction, 2nd ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave, 2011. A short book giving straightforward accounts of all the main varieties of electoral system; ch 6 is on STV. Michael Gallagher, Does Ireland need a new electoral system?, Irish Political Studies 2 (1987), pp. 2748. Assesses the options. On-line noticeboard Michael Gallagher, Michael Laver and Peter Mair, Representative Government in Modern Europe, 5th ed (London, 2011), ch 11; gives an overview of the range of electoral systems on offer in western Europe Articles in Irish Times by Michael Laver, TDs have not thought out results of changing PR system, 2 July 1998; Noel Dempsey, System turns TDs into messenger boys, 26 July 1999; Garret FitzGerald, Why a reformed PR system deserves our vote, 16 February 2008. On-line noticeboard

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STV in operation:

Cork North-West constituency, February 1987 general election

Valid votes: Quota: 33,404 Seats: 3 33404 8,352 [because = 8,351, to which 1 is added]
(3 + 1)

Second stage: Third stage: Transfer of Transfer of First ORiordans Crowleys preferences votes surplus ______________________________________________________________ Creed, Donal (Fine Gael) Crowley, Frank (Fine Gael) Moynihan, Donal (Fianna Fil) ORiordan, Sen (PDs) Roche, Jack (Fianna Fil) Non-transferable 7,057 7,431 7,777 3,796 7,343 +1292 +1087 + 566 -3796 + 564 + 287 8,349 8,518 8,343 7,907 287 +130 8,479 -166 8,352 + 12 8,355 + 24 7,931 + 0 287

Total 33,404 33,404 33,404 ______________________________________________________________ Crowley, Creed and Moynihan are elected. *************************************************************
STV is criticised by social choice theorists because it does not absolutely rule out the possibility of non-monotonicity. Monotonicity is the property that extra support cannot possibly work to a candidates detriment, and hence its a very desirable property for an electoral system to possess. As a demonstration that non-monotonicity is possible under STV, consider two cases, each involving 17 voters and 1 seat, so the quota is 9. In case 1: 6 voters give their first preference to A, their second to B and their third to C. 6 voters give their first preference to B, their second to C and their third to A. 5 voters give their first preference to C, their second to A and their third to B. C is eliminated, and A is elected as he receives all 5 votes transferred from C. Case 2 is the same as case 1, except that two voters switch from B to A (so A has 8 first preferences and B has 4). Now B finishes bottom and is eliminated, and C will be elected as she receives all 4 votes transferred from B. As a result of As acquisition of extra support, he loses the election. Thus extra support has been damaging to candidate Ahe would have fared better without the extra 2 votes. This shows that STV does not guarantee that non-monotonicity cannot occurthough how often it does or is likely to occur in practice is another matter. One possible example occurred in Limerick East in the 1997 election see How Ireland Voted 1997, pp. 1456.