All past and present members of Seanad Éireann have been invited to a meeting in Leinster House at noon on Friday to discuss the future of the Upper House and a newly published consultation paper on the issue.
The invitation was issued jointly by Independent Senators Feargal Quinn and Katherine Zappone.
The consultation document, Open It, Don’t Close It, was launched yesterday by a group that includes serving and former senators.
The document argues that the Seanad is cost-effective, that it is essential for framing and vetting legislation and that its members should be chosen by the entire electorate instead of the present restricted arrangement.
Described as “a non-partisan initiative to stimulate debate”, the paper was prepared by Mr Quinn and Dr Zappone, former tánaiste Michael McDowell, former senator Joe O’Toole and Irish Times columnist Noel Whelan.
The full document is available at seanadreform/docs/seanad reform and the authors are inviting comment to info@seanadreform.com