merrion street

The Government is carefully studying today's Supreme Court Judgment which clarifies how the Government can make information available to the electorate during a referendum.

The judgment in McKenna stated that the Government has a duty to give information to the electorate as well as to clarify issues which may arise in the course of the campaign, and must do so without advocating a particular position. The Government welcomes the fact that Supreme Court has, for the first time since the judgment in 1995, provided some guidelines on the application of this important principle.

The Court unanimously acknowledged that the principle enunciated in the McKenna judgment stands as firm as ever, but the modes through which information is conveyed are very different to those which were operating in 1995. The Court has found that the Government, in attempting to fulfil this duty to inform the people, strayed beyond the boundary of the provision of information to the electorate.

The Court found that the Government at all times acted in a bona fide manner, and all the publications were issued with a view to informing the electorate about the referendum.

The Government is committed to working within the parameters of the judgment delivered today in the conduct of future referendums, and will carefully study the conclusions of the Court.

The High Court is presently hearing a petition under the provisions of the Referendum Act 1994. The petition stands adjourned until January 2013. It would be inappropriate to make any further comment at this stage.