6/10/2020 Sinnott -v- The Minister for The Environment [2017] IEHC 214 (30 March 2017) to the express wording of the subsection. Rather it gives effect to the subsection in a manner which honours the constitutional provisions in question.” Application of facts 63. I summarise the position by pointing to the twenty year old power given to the Minister to introduce regulations like the 2016 Regulations. The actual introduction of the 2016 Regulations underscores the acceptance that TVDs could have been made available for the multiple referenda held since October, 2009 (to enable the ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon) and certainly for the referendum to allow for same sex marriage law on 22nd May, 2015 by which stage the plaintiff had amended his Statement of Claim to incorporate references to referenda. 64. The Court empathises with the plaintiff when he complains about the lack of information emanating from the franchise section or any other part of the defendant Minister’s department relating to the actual steps taken or to be taken to emulate the TVD facilities available to VIPs in Northern Ireland and detailed by Mr. McGonagle of Pakflatt. I note in passing that there were exchanges between the franchise section and Pakflatt in November 2012 but they did not lead to any decision for the franchise section to plan research or tests. 65. The defendants’ reliance on the 2014 tests undertaken ad hoc to the NDA with some input from the franchise section and the other commitments from 2011 to 2015 of the franchise section do not assuage but rather accentuate the concerns of the plaintiff as shared by this Court that the defendant Minister did not afford sufficient or reasonable recognition of the duty imposed on him by the Oireachtas and the Constitution to assure a secret ballot as is reasonably practicable. This Court is as concerned as Kearns J. was in Doherty about the year old delay in moving a writ for a by-election. Submissions 66. Senior counsel for the plaintiff stressed inter alia that:(i) “Up to the very last gasp of the submissions” for the State on 8th February, 2017 it was maintained that the defendant Minister was not under any duty to accord the plaintiff with the arrangements even those introduced by the 2016 Regulations. (ii) Given that stance, the defendant Minister regarded his power under the 1996 Act as discretionary which meant that future Regulations could undermine the availability or use of TVDs in referenda. Senior counsel was careful to mention the power of either House of the Oireachtas to annul such Regulations within the prescribed 21 day period as particularly set out in s. 3(2) of the 1992 Act. However, it was submitted that that does not take away from the defendant Minister’s clear obligation to appreciate and act according to his duty. (iii) The making of the 2016 Regulations did not have the status of the statutory provision like s. 17(5) of the 1992 Act (introduced by s. 4 of the 1996 Act) which allows for a “special voters list” of those who can cast votes by post. (iv) Following the judgment in Draper the Oireachtas granted the wish of Ms. Draper who suffered from a chronic disability to have the facility of voting other than at a polling station. In effect, s. 15(d) of the 1992 Act (as inserted by the 1996 Act) is a recognition by the Oireachtas of a disabled person’s right to vote having regard to maintaining the integrity and secrecy of the ballot. This facility is not subject to the whim or discretion of the defendant Minister save insofar as the defendant Minister may make Regulations for the implementation of that statutory provision in favour of disabled voters. (v) The plaintiff does not want to foist his wish to vote independently and in secret on other VIPs who may continue to vote with a trusted friend or with the help of a polling clerk, provision for which exists already. The plaintiff merely asks that the defendant Minister when exercising his powers and his discretion should have regard to the underlying constitutional duty to afford the maximum degree of practical secrecy to a VIP when voting. www.bailii.org/ie/cases/IEHC/2017/H214.html 11/15