This referendum may have been much tighter than the referendum on Judges pay, which was held on the same day, but after much controversy, the decision to amend the Irish Constitution to allow full inquiries to be held by both houses of parliament jointly (the houses of the Oireachtas), was turned down by the Irish people. 53.34% voted against it, and this will probably mean more wasteful tribunals for the country, but it also means that less power will be passed over to the already too-powerful Irish political set.

Background: The controversial John Carthy killing, back in April 2000, by the Emergency Response Unit (ERU) of An Garda Síochána (the Irish police force) initiated a Tribunal that was chaired by Justice Robert Barr, at a cost of €18 million. This was seen by politicians and the public as a waste of money, but a full inquiry by members within the two houses of parliament, which was thought to be a much cheaper option for taxpayers, and possibly a more speedy option for the family of Carthy, was deemed un-constitutional. The Irish Supreme Court deemed that the Oireachtas has no power to conduct an inquiry which could lead "to adverse findings of fact and conclusions (including a finding of unlawful killing) as to the personal culpability of an individual [who was] not a member of the Oireachtas". The failures of the Barr Tribunal, and the generally negative public opinion of Tribunals in Ireland had helped to gather public and political support for this Oireachtas Inquiries amendment to the Irish Constitution. Up until days before the referendum took place it was looking like the public would pass it, but a campaign by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL), and an open letter from eight former Attorney Generals killed off public support for it. The ICCL said that this amendment would pave the way for 'Kangaroo Courts', whilst the Attorney Generals had this to say... "The proposal in relation to Oireachtas enquiries seriously weakens the rights of individual citizens, firstly to protect their good names, and secondly to have disputes between themselves and the Oireachtas concerning their constitutional rights (especially their rights to fair procedures) decided by an independent judiciary".

Result Summary:
Electorate: 3,191,157
Total Poll: 1,785,208
Percentage Poll: 55.94%
Invalid Papers: 45,025
Valid Poll: 1,740,183
Votes in favour: 812,008 (46.66%)
Votes against: 928,175 (53.34%)
[data from referendum.ie]
[view full constituency results]