Number 53 of 2001

REFERENDUM ACT, 2001

ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS

Number 53 of 2001

REFERENDUM ACT, 2001

AN ACT TO AMEND AND EXTEND THE REFERENDUM ACTS, 1992 TO 2001. [22nd December, 2001]

BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:

Amendment of Referendum Act, 1998.

1.—The Referendum Act, 1998 , is amended—

(a) by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (1) of section 3—

“(1) The Commission shall have, in addition to any functions conferred on it by any other provision of this Act, the following principal functions in relation to the referendum in respect of which it is established:

(a) to prepare one or more statements containing a general explanation of the subject matter of the proposal and of the text thereof in the relevant Bill and any other information relating to those matters that the Commission considers appropriate;

(b) to publish and distribute those statements in such manner and by such means including the use of television, radio and other electronic media as the Commission considers most likely to bring them to the attention of the electorate and to ensure as far as practicable that the means employed enable those with a sight or hearing disability to read or hear the statements concerned;

(c) to promote public awareness of the referendum and encourage the electorate to vote at the poll.”;

(b) by the repeal of section 6;

(c) in section 8 by—

(i) the deletion of paragraph (a), and

(ii) the deletion of “submissions and” in paragraphs (c) and (d).

Short title and collective citation.

2.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Referendum Act, 2001 .

(2) The collective citation “The Referendum Acts, 1992 to 2001” shall include this Act.