What are the timelines for electing a new ceann comhairle?
The 34th Dáil will convene on Wednesday, December 18th, with all newly-elected TDs taking their seats for the first time since the general election on November 29th. The first item of business to be discussed will be the appointment of the next ceann comhairle. Proceedings will open with Peter Finnegan, the clerk of the Dáil, reading out the names of all 174 TDs elected across the 43 constituencies.
Then business will move on to who becomes the next ceann comhairle. Nomination papers have been issued, with candidates needing seven signatures in order to go forward. The deadline for close of nominations is Tuesday, December 17th, the eve of the return of the Dáil. On the 18th, a secret ballot will take place to decide who will be the next ceann comhairle. When the votes are cast, the ballot boxes will be removed to the Seanad anteroom for counting.
Who is in the race to become the next ceann comhairle?
There are five candidates believed to be in the race at present. This includes Kildare South TD Sean Ó Fearghaíl who is running for a third term and then Fianna Fáil TDs John McGuinness, Michael Moynihan and Brendan Smith. It has also emerged that Labour’s Alan Kelly may be interested in the role, too.
Do any of these candidates have the support to win the secret ballot?
It is understood that Seán Ó Fearghaíl has the required seven signatures – but one source in Fianna Fáil said there is growing unrest over Mr Ó Fearghaíl’s decision to run for the third time. “The line being put out is that he is considering a third run for reasons of stability, and that he won’t stay for the full term. People are not too happy about this. The idea that it is stable to only remain in the job for a shorter time is bizarre,” the source said.
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Another source close to Mr Ó Fearghaíl said he had not intended initially to put himself forward, but he was approached to do so this week and has already accumulated the support of seven TDs. If a Fianna Fáil candidate is successful, the government parties will need one extra vote to reach a majority as the ceann comhairle generally does not cast a vote, so instead of having 86 usable votes between them, Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil in fact have 85. A majority in the new Dáil is 88. No Fine Gael candidates have yet put themselves forward.
What does a Ceann Comhairle do? What are the perks?
As well as being the speaker or chair of the Dáil, the ceann comhairle is also chair of the Dáil’s Committee on Procedures and Privileges and the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission, the body responsible for running Leinster House. The pay and conditions for the position are on a par with a Cabinet minister. The ceann comhairle is also automatically returned to the next Dáil.
What happens on December 18th once the ceann comhairle is elected?
The successful ceann comhairle will make some remarks after being elected, followed by the taoiseach and party leaders. After that, the Dáil will hear nominations for the position of taoiseach. Government formation negotiations are due to kick up a notch next week, with hopes that the shape of the new government can emerge before Christmas.
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