Constitution of Ireland


The Constitution of Ireland is the fundamental law of Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution falls broadly within the tradition of liberal democracy, being based on a system of representative democracy. It guarantees certain fundamental rights, along with a popularly elected non-executive president, a bicameral parliament based on the Westminster system, a separation of powers and judicial review.
It is the second constitution of the Irish state since independence, replacing the 1922 Constitution of the Irish Free State. It came into force on 29 December 1937 following a statewide plebiscite held on 1 July 1937. The Constitution may be amended solely by a national referendum. It is the republican constitution which is the longest continuously in operation within the European Union.

Background

The Constitution of Ireland replaced the Constitution of the Irish Free State which had been in effect since the independence, as a dominion, of the Irish state from the United Kingdom on 6 December 1922. There were two main motivations for replacing the constitution in 1937. Firstly, the Statute of Westminster 1931 granted parliamentary autonomy to the six British Dominions within a British Commonwealth of Nations. This had the effect of making the dominions sovereign nations in their own right. The Irish Free State constitution of 1922 was, in the eyes of many, associated with the controversial Anglo-Irish Treaty. The anti-treaty faction, who opposed the treaty initially by force of arms, was so opposed to the institutions of the new Irish Free State that it initially took an abstentionist line toward them, boycotting them altogether. However, the largest element of this faction became convinced that abstentionism could not be maintained forever. This element, led by Éamon de Valera, formed the Fianna Fáil party in 1926, which entered into government following the 1932 general election.
After 1932, under the provisions of the Statute of Westminster, some of the articles of the original Constitution which were required by the Anglo-Irish Treaty were dismantled by acts of the Oireachtas of the Irish Free State. Such amendments removed references to the Oath of Allegiance, appeals to the United Kingdom's Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, the British Crown and the Governor-General. The sudden abdication of Edward VIII in December 1936 was quickly used to redefine the Royal connection. Nevertheless, the Fianna Fáil government still desired to replace the constitutional document they saw as having been imposed by the British government in 1922.
The second motive for replacing the original constitution was primarily symbolic. De Valera wanted to put an Irish stamp on the institutions of government, and chose to do this in particular through the use of Irish language nomenclature.

Drafting process

De Valera personally supervised the writing of the Constitution. It was drafted initially by John Hearne, legal adviser to the Department of External Affairs. It was translated into Irish over a number of drafts by a group headed by Micheál Ó Gríobhtha, who worked in the Irish Department of Education. De Valera served as his own External Affairs Minister, hence the use of the Department's Legal Advisor, with whom he had previously worked closely, as opposed to the Attorney General or someone from the Department of the President of the Executive Council. He also received significant input from The Rt Rev. John Charles Monsignor McQuaid, the then President of Blackrock College, on religious, educational, family and social welfare issues. Monsignor McQuaid later became, in 1940, the Catholic Archbishop of Dublin. Other religious leaders who were consulted were: Archbishop Edward Byrne, Archbishop John Gregg, Rev. William Massey and Dr James Irwin.
There are a number of instances where the texts in English and Irish clash, a potential dilemma which the Constitution resolves by favouring the Irish text even though English is more commonly used in the official sphere.
A draft of the constitution was presented personally to the Vatican for review and comment on two occasions by the Department Head at External Relations, Joseph P. Walsh. Prior to its tabling in Dáil Éireann and presentation to the Irish electorate in a plebiscite, Vatican Secretary of State Eugenio Cardinal Pacelli, the future Pope Pius XII, said of the final amended draft: "We do not approve, neither do we disapprove; We shall maintain silence." The quid pro quo for this indulgence of the Catholic Church's interests in Ireland was the degree of respectability which it conferred on De Valera's formerly denounced republican faction and its reputation as the 'semi-constitutional' political wing of the 'irregular' anti-treaty forces.

Adoption

The text of the draft constitution, with minor amendments, was approved on 14 June by Dáil Éireann.
The draft constitution was then put to a plebiscite on 1 July 1937, when it was passed by a plurality. 56% of voters were in favour, comprising 38.6% of the whole electorate. The constitution formally came into force on 29 December 1937.
Among the groups who opposed the constitution were supporters of Fine Gael and the Labour Party, Unionists, and some independents and feminists. The question put to voters was simply "Do you approve of the Draft Constitution which is the subject of this plebiscite?".

Response

When the draft new constitution was published, the Irish Independent described it as one of Mr. de Valera's "finest tributes to his predecessors". The Irish Times criticised the constitution's assertion of a territorial claim on Northern Ireland, and the absence in its text of any reference to the British Commonwealth. The London-based Daily Telegraph included in its criticism the special position assigned to the Church of Rome under the new constitution. The Sunday Times concluded it would only help to "perpetuate division" between Dublin and Belfast. The Irish Catholic concluded it was a "noble document in harmony with papal teachings".
When the new constitution was enacted, the British government, according to The New York Times, "contented itself with a legalistic protest". Its protest took the form of a communiqué on 30 December 1937, in which the British stated:
The other governments of the British Commonwealth countries chose to continue to regard Ireland as a member of the British Commonwealth. A proposal by the Northern Ireland government that Northern Ireland be renamed "Ulster" in response to the new Irish constitution was aborted after it was determined that this would require Westminster legislation.
The Irish government received a message of goodwill from 268 United States congressmen including eight senators. The signatories expressed "their ardent congratulations on the birth of the State of Ireland and the consequent coming into effect of the new constitution", adding that "We regard the adoption of the new constitution and the emergence of the State of Ireland as events of the utmost importance."

Main provisions

The official text of the Constitution consists of a Preamble and fifty Articles arranged under sixteen headings. Its overall length is approximately 16,000 words. The headings are:
  1. The Nation
  2. The State
  3. The President
  4. The National Parliament
  5. The Government
  6. Local Government
  7. International Relations
  8. The Attorney General
  9. The Council of State
  10. The Comptroller and Auditor General
  11. The Courts
  12. Trial of Offences
  13. Fundamental Rights
  14. Directive Principles of Social Policy
  15. Amendment of the Constitution
  16. The Referendum
  17. Repeal of Constitution of Saorstát Éireann and Continuance of Laws
  18. Establishment of Court of Appeal: Transitional Provisions
The Constitution also includes a number of "Transitory Provisions" which have, in accordance with their terms, been omitted from all official texts since 1941. These provisions are still in force but are now mostly spent.

Preamble (full text)

Characteristics of the nation and state

Article 8 of the Constitution states:
Interpretation of these provisions has been contentious. The Constitution itself is enrolled in both languages, and in case of conflict the Irish language version takes precedence, even though in practice the Irish text is a translation of the English rather than vice versa. The 1937 Constitution introduced some Irish-language terms into English, such as Taoiseach and Tánaiste, while others, such as Oireachtas, had been used in the Free State Constitution. The use in English of Éire, the Irish-language name of the state, is deprecated.

Organs of government

The Constitution establishes a government under a parliamentary system. It provides for a directly elected, largely ceremonial President of Ireland, a head of government called the Taoiseach, and a national parliament called the Oireachtas. The Oireachtas has a dominant directly elected lower house known as Dáil Éireann and an upper house Seanad Éireann, which is partly appointed, partly indirectly elected and partly elected by a limited electorate. There is also an independent judiciary headed by the Supreme Court.

National emergency

Under Article 28.3.3° the Constitution grants the state sweeping powers "in time of war or armed rebellion", which may include an armed conflict in which the state is not a direct participant. During a national emergency the Oireachtas may pass laws that would otherwise be unconstitutional, and the actions of the executive cannot be found to be ultra vires or unconstitutional provided they at least "purport" to be in pursuance of such a law. However, the constitutional prohibition on the death penalty, introduced by an amendment made in 2001, is an absolute exception to these powers.
There have been two national emergencies since 1937: an emergency declared in 1939 to cover the threat to national security posed as a consequence of World War II, and an emergency declared in 1976 to deal with the threat to the security of the state posed by the Provisional IRA.

International relations

As enumerated under the heading "Fundamental Rights"

Article 45 outlines a number of broad principles of social and economic policy. Its provisions are, however, intended solely "for the general guidance of the Oireachtas", and "shall not be cognisable by any Court under any of the provisions of this Constitution".
The "Directive Principles of Social Policy" feature little in contemporary parliamentary debates. However, no proposals have yet been made for their repeal or amendment.
The principles require, in summary, that:
The "Directive Principles" have influenced other constitutions. Notably, the famous "Indian Directive Principles of State Policy" contained in the Constitution of India are influenced by the Constitution of Ireland. Moreover, the previous Constitution of Nepal adopted in 1962 and in force for 28 years and commonly called Panchayat Constitution contained a verbatim translation of the "Directive Principles" of the Irish constitution.

Transitory provisions

The transitory provisions of the constitution consist of thirteen articles that provide for a smooth transition from the state's pre-existing institutions to the newly established state. Article 51 provides for the transitional amendment of the constitution by ordinary legislation. The remaining twelve deal with such matters as the transition and reconstitution of the executive and legislature, the continuance of the civil service, the entry into office of the first president, the temporary continuance of the courts, and with the continuance of the attorney general, the comptroller and auditor general, the Defence Forces and the police.
Under their own terms the transitory provisions are today omitted from all official texts of the constitution. The provisions required that Article 51 be omitted from 1941 onwards and the remainder from 1938. However, paradoxically, under their own provisions Articles 52 to 63 continue to have the full force of law and so may be considered to remain an integral part of the constitution, even though invisible. This created the anomalous situation that, in 1941, it was deemed necessary, by means of the Second Amendment, to make changes to Article 56 despite the fact that it was no longer a part of the official text.
The precise requirements of the transitory provisions were that Articles 52 to 63 would be omitted from all texts published after the day on which the first president assumed office and that Article 51 would be omitted from the third anniversary of this inauguration. Unlike the other articles, Article 51 expressly provides that it would cease to have legal effect once it was removed from the document.

Amendments

Any part of the Constitution may be amended, but only by referendum.
The procedure for amendment of the Constitution is set out in Article 46. An amendment must first be passed by both Houses of the Oireachtas, then be submitted to a referendum, and then finally must be signed into law by the President.
Amendments are sometimes proposed to address a new social problem or phenomenon not considered at the time of the Constitution being drafted, to address outmoded provisions in the Constitution, or to attempt to reverse or alter an interpretation of the court through a corrective referendum. Usually referendums are only proposed when there is wide political support for the proposed change.

Enrollment of the Constitution

Article 25.5 provides that from time to time, the Taoiseach may cause an up to date text of the Constitution to be prepared in Irish and in English, embodying all of the amendments made so far. Once this new text has been signed by the Taoiseach, the Chief Justice and the President, it is enrolled on vellum and deposited with the office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court. Once enrolled, the new text becomes conclusive evidence of the Constitution, and supersedes earlier enrolled copies. The Constitution has been enrolled six times: in 1938, 1942, 1980, 1990, 1999, and 2019.

Judicial review of laws

The Constitution states that it is the highest law of the land and grants the Supreme Court of Ireland authority to interpret its provisions, and to strike down the laws of the Oireachtas and activities of the Government it finds to be unconstitutional. Under judicial review the quite broad meaning of certain articles has come to be explored and expanded upon since 1937.
The Supreme Court ruled that Articles 2 and 3, before their alteration in 1999, did not impose a positive obligation upon the state that could be enforced in a court of law. The reference in Article 41 to the family's "imprescriptible rights, antecedent and superior to all positive law" has been interpreted by the Supreme Court as conferring upon spouses a broad right to privacy in marital affairs. In McGee v. The Attorney General the court invoked this right to strike down laws banning the sale of contraceptives. The court also issued a controversial interpretation of Article 40.3.3°, which before its replacement in 2018 prohibited abortion. In Attorney General v. X, commonly known as the "X case", the Supreme Court ruled that the state must permit an abortion where there is a danger to her life, including a risk of suicide.

Issues of controversy

The "national territory"

As originally enacted in 1937, Article 2 asserted that "the whole island of Ireland, its islands and the territorial seas" formed a single "national territory", while Article 3 asserted that the Oireachtas had a right "to exercise jurisdiction over the whole of that territory". These articles offended Unionists in Northern Ireland, who considered them tantamount to an illegal extraterritorial claim.
Under the terms of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, Articles 2 and 3 were amended to remove any reference to a "national territory", and to state that a united Ireland should only come about with the consent of majorities in both the jurisdictions on the island of Ireland. The amended Articles also guarantee the people of Northern Ireland the right to be a "part of the Irish Nation", and to Irish citizenship.

Religion

The Constitution guarantees freedom of worship, and forbids the state from creating an established church.
Article 44.1 as originally enacted explicitly "recognised" a number of Christian denominations, such as the Anglican Church of Ireland, the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, as well as "the Jewish Congregations". It also recognised the "special position" of the Roman Catholic Church. These provisions were removed by the Fifth Amendment in 1973. Nevertheless, the constitution still contains a number of explicit religious references, such as in the preamble, the declaration made by the President, and the remaining text of Article 44.1, which reads:
The Constitution had, from 1983 to 2018, contained a prohibition of abortion. From 1992 the constitution did not prohibit the distribution of information about abortion services in other countries or the right of freedom of travel to procure an abortion. In theory, the prohibition of abortion did not apply in cases where there was a threat to the life of the mother, though the 2012 death of Savita Halappanavar suggested that the practical position was a total prohibition.
A number of ideas still found in the Constitution reflect the Catholic social teachings when the original text was drafted. Such teachings informed the provisions of the Directive Principles of Social Policy, as well as the system of vocational panels used to elect the Senate. The Constitution also grants very broadly worded rights to the institution of the family.
As originally enacted, the Constitution also included a prohibition on divorce. The ban on divorce was not removed until 1996.
Few contemporary commentators argue that the original text of the Constitution would be fully appropriate today.
The remaining religious provisions of the Constitution, including the wording of the Preamble, remain controversial and widely debated.

Status of women

The Constitution guarantees women the right to vote and to nationality and citizenship on an equal basis with men. It also contains a provision, Article 41.2, which states:

Head of state

In 1949 the Irish state abandoned its few remaining constitutional ties with the British monarchy, and it was declared by an Act of the Oireachtas that the term "Republic of Ireland" could be used as a "description" for the Irish state. However, there is debate as to whether or not the state was a republic in the period 1937–1949; between these dates the state was not described in any law as a republic. The current text of the Constitution does not mention the word "republic", but does for example assert that all power is derived, "under God, from the people".
Debate largely focuses on the question of whether, before 1949, the head of state was the President of Ireland or King George VI. The Constitution did not directly refer to the King, but also did not state that the President was head of state. The President exercised most of the usual internal functions of a head of state, such as formally appointing the Government, and promulgating laws.
In 1936, before the enactment of the existing Constitution, George VI had been declared "By the Grace of God, of Great Britain, Ireland and the British Dominions beyond the Seas King, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of India" and, under the External Relations Act of the same year, it was this King who formally represented the state in its foreign affairs. Treaties, for example, were signed in the name of the King, who also accredited ambassadors and received the letters of credence of foreign diplomats. Representing a state abroad is seen by many scholars as the key characteristic of a head of state. This role meant, in any case, that George VI was the Head of State in the eyes of foreign nations.
Section 3 of the Act stipulated that:
However, the removal of the King's constitutional position within Ireland was brought about in 1948 not by any change to the Constitution but by ordinary law. Since the Irish state was unambiguously a republic after 1949 and the same Constitution was in force prior to that time, some have argued that the Irish state was in reality a republic from the Constitution's enactment in 1937.

Name of the state

The constitution begins with words "We, the people of Éire". It then declares, in Article 4, that the name of the state is "Éire, or, in the English language, Ireland". The text of the draft constitution as originally introduced into the Dáil had simply stated that the state was to be called Éire, and that term was used throughout the text of the draft constitution. However, the English text of the draft constitution was amended during the parliamentary debates to replace "Éire" with "Ireland". The name of the state was the subject of a long dispute between the British and Irish governments, which has since been resolved.

Non-traditional family units

Article 41.1.1° of the Constitution "recognises the Family as the natural primary and fundamental unit group of Society, and as a moral institution possessing inalienable and imprescriptible rights, antecedent and superior to all positive law", and guarantees its protection by the state. As of 29 August 2015, Article 41.4 states "Marriage may be contracted in accordance with law by two persons without distinction as to their sex", thereby allowing both opposite and same-sex partners to marry. However, these rights and protections are not extended to every family unit, such as single parents or unmarried opposite-sex or same-sex co-habiters.
The institution of marriage enjoys a privileged position in the Constitution. A family exclusively based on marriage is envisaged: Article 41.3.1° states that "he State pledges itself to guard with special care the institution of Marriage, on which the Family is founded". The effect is that non-marital unit members are not entitled to any of the encompassed protections, including those under the realms of tax, inheritance, and social welfare, granted by Article 41. For example, in State v. An Bord Uchtála IR 567, where an unmarried father, who had become estranged from the mother of his child some months after living and caring for the same child together, was prevented from invoking the provisions of Article 41 to halt the mother's wishes of putting the child up for adoption. The then Mr. Justice Walsh of the Supreme Court stated that "the family referred to in the family which is founded on the institution of marriage".

The Eighth Amendment

Article 40.3.3° was inserted into the Constitution in 1983 by the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland. The Eighth Amendment recognised "the unborn" as having a right to life equal to that of "the mother". Accordingly, abortions could only be legally conducted in Ireland as part of a medical intervention performed to save the life of the pregnant woman, including a pregnant woman at risk of suicide. On 25 May 2018, a referendum was held asking whether the Eighth Amendment should be repealed. A majority voted to repeal, and the Eighth Amendment was subsequently repealed on 18 September 2018 via the passage of the Thirty-sixth Amendment.

Discrepancies between the Irish and English texts

A number of discrepancies have been identified between the Irish language and English language texts of the Constitution. According to Article 25.5.4° the Irish text prevails in such cases.
Perhaps the most significant discrepancy between the two texts of the Constitution is to be found in the subsection stipulating the minimum age for a candidate to be eligible for election as President. According to the English text, an eligible candidate "has reached his thirty-fifth year of age", whereas the Irish text has this as "ag a bhfuil cúig bliana tríochad slán".
A person's first year begins when he or she is born and ends the day before his or her first birthday. A first birthday is the beginning of his second year. Accordingly, the thirty-fifth year of age is reached on a person's thirty-fourth birthday. In contrast a person has completed their first year on their first birthday and their thirty-fifth year on their thirty-fifth birthday. This can be contrasted with Article 16.1.2˚ regarding the entitlement to vote for Dáil Éireann which states this as those "who have reached the age of eighteen years".

Constitutional reviews

The Constitution has been subjected to a series of formal reviews.
;1966: The then Taoiseach, Seán Lemass, encouraged the establishment of an informal Oireachtas committee, which undertook a general review of the Constitution and issued a report in 1967.
;1968: A draft report was produced by a legal committee, chaired by the Attorney General Colm Condon. No final report was published.
;1972: The Inter-Party Committee on the Implications of Irish Unity addressed constitutional issues in relation to Northern Ireland. Its work was continued by the 1973 All-Party Oireachtas Committee on Irish Relations and later by the 1982 Constitution Review Body, a group of legal experts under the chairmanship of the Attorney General. Neither of the 1972 groups published a report.
;1983–1984: The New Ireland Forum was established in 1983, and its report in 1984 covered some constitutional issues.
;1988: The Progressive Democrats published a review entitled Constitution for a New Republic.
;1994–1997: In October 1994, the government established a Forum for Peace and Reconciliation, which considered some constitutional issues relating to Northern Ireland. The Forum suspended its work in February 1996 but met once more in December 1997.
; 1995–1996: The Constitution Review Group was an expert group established by the government in 1995, and chaired by Dr T.K. Whitaker. Its 700-page report, published in July 1996, was described as "the most thorough analysis of the Constitution from the legal, political science, administrative, social and economic perspectives ever made".
;1996–2007: The All-Party Oireachtas Committee on the Constitution was set up in 1996, running in three stages until it completed its work in 2007.
;2012–2014: A Constitutional Convention composed both of citizen members and elected representatives examined a number of specific measures and proposed their amendment

All-Party Oireachtas Committee

The All-Party Oireachtas Committee on the Constitution was established in 1996.

First committee

The First All-Party Committee, chaired by Fine Gael TD Jim O'Keeffe, published two progress reports in 1997:
The Second All-Party Oireachtas Committee on the Constitution was chaired by Fianna Fáil TD Brian Lenihan. It published five progress reports:
The second committee also published two commissioned works:
The Third All-Party Oireachtas Committee on the Constitution was chaired by Fianna Fáil TD Denis O'Donovan. It described its task as being to "complete the programme of constitutional amendments begun by the earlier committees, aimed at renewing the Constitution in all its parts, for implementation over a number of years". It described the job as "unprecedented", noting that "no other state with the referendum as its sole mechanism for constitutional change has set itself so ambitious an objective".
The committee divided its work into considering three types of amendment:
The Third All-Party Committee published three reports: