A cabinet minister says he hopes a referendum on abortion can take place on the same day as extending voting rights to emigrants.
Simon Coveney says heÂ’d like to see both issues on the same ballot paper, some time next year.
Irish emigrants have expressed their frustration at the slow pace of extending voting rights.
Juliette Gash reports;
Discussion on extending voting rights in presidential elections to emigrants #GlobalIrish @TodayFMNews pic.twitter.com/VyrkdSzrlE
— Juliette Gash (@JulietteGash) May 5, 2017
Barry Johnson, who spoke to our reporter at the Global Irish Civic Forum says;
The Taoiseach’s pledge to hold a referendum on overseas voting in the presidential election is a pretty thin gruel for those of us who’ve trekked from around the world to be in Dublin to demonstrate how much we continue to care about the politics of our home nation.
The Government could extend voting rights to citizens living abroad tomorrow if it wanted. Instead it’s doing what it always does, publishing papers and dangling a referendum.
At the moment, all around us in the countries we now call home, momentous decisions are being made by citizens casting their ballots. The Irish abroad have to sit tight and hope that maybe, in 2025, they might be allowed to cast a vote for the president if they’re lucky.
