Electoral (Amendment) Act, 1985

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Amendment of section 5 of Act of 1963.

2.—Section 5 of the Act of 1963 is hereby amended by the insertion after subsection (1) of the following subsections:

“(1A) (a) In addition to those entitled to be registered under subsection (1) of this section, a person shall be entitled to be registered as a Dáil elector in a constituency if he is a person who has reached the age of eighteen years and who on the qualifying date—

(i) complied with the requirement of subsection (1) (b) of this section, and

(ii) was either—

(I) a British citizen, or

(II) a national of a Member State to which this subsection applied on that date.

(b) This subsection applies to a Member State which is for the time being the subject of a declaration under subsection (1B) of this section.

(1B) Where the Minister is of opinion that—

(a) the law of a Member State relating to the election of members of, or deputies or other representatives in or to, the National Parliament of that Member State enables citizens of Ireland, by reason of their being such citizens and being resident in that Member State, to vote at such an election, and

(b) the provisions of that law enabling citizens of Ireland who are so resident so to vote are the same, or are substantially the same, as those enabling nationals of that Member State so to vote,

the Minister may by order declare that Member State to be a Member State to which subsection (1A) of this section applies.

(1C) The Minister may by order specify criteria or other matters to which regard shall be had in order to determine whether or not a person is for the purpose of this section a national of a Member State and such order may provide that the provisions of the order shall relate to all Member States or to such one or more Member States as are specified in the order.

(1D) Where—

(a) an order under subsection (1C) of this section is for the time being in force, and

(b) a Member State to which the order applies is for the time being a Member State to which subsection (1A) of this section applies,

clause (II) of subsection (1A) (a) (ii) of this section shall be construed and have effect subject to the provisions of the order.

(1E) (a) The Minister may revoke or amend an order under this section (including an order under this subsection).

(b) Where an order under this section (including an order under this subsection) is proposed to be made, a draft thereof shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas and the order shall not be made until a resolution approving of the draft has been passed by each such House.

(1F) (a) Subject to subsection (1D), in this section—

‘a British citizen’ means a person who under the Act of the British Parliament entitled the British Nationality Act 1981 is a British citizen;

‘the European Communities’ means the European Economic Community, the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Atomic Energy Community;

‘Member State’ means a Member State of the European Communities other than the State or the United Kingdom;

‘national of a Member State’ has the meaning assigned to it by the treaties save that it shall not be construed as referring to the United Kingdom or as including a British citizen;

‘the treaties’ means the treaties, convention and decision mentioned in section 1 (1) of the European Communities Act, 1972 , as supplemented or amended in the manner mentioned in that section.

(b) The reference in paragraph (a) of this subsection to the Act of the British Parliament mentioned in that paragraph is a reference to that Act as enacted by that Parliament on the 30th day of October, 1981.”.