Ireland, Republic of

I

Transport

Ireland has 1,954 km (1,214 mi) of railway track, all operated by Iarnród Éireann (Irish Railways), an autonomous operating company of Córas Iompair Éireann, the Irish Transport Company, and linking all important points on the island. As a result of the scattered rural population, Ireland has developed a large road system, in which even small local roads are generally well surfaced. The road system totalled about 95,736 km (59,488 mi), of which about 100 per cent was paved. In 1996 there were around 939,000 passenger cars; there was a ratio of 382 cars per 1,000 people. Navigable inland waterways total about 435 km (270 mi). International airports are located at Dublin; Shannon; Cork; and Knock, in County Mayo. Several international airlines, together with the national carrier Aer Lingus, provide regular service between Ireland, the United Kingdom, and major cities throughout the world.

J

Communications

All postal, telegraph, telephone, and broadcasting services are operated by government agencies or statutory bodies. In 1995 the state sold off 35 per cent of its holding in the telecommunications statutory body Telecom Éireann. In 2002 about 1.6 million telephone lines were in use. Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ), the public broadcasting authority, operates four radio networks (one delivering Irish-language programming, Raidió na Gaeltachta) and two television channels. In 1997 radios in use numbered about 3 million and there were 2 million television licences. In addition to the state radio stations, there were 25 franchised commercial radio stations in 2007.

V

Government

Under the constitution of 1937, Ireland is a sovereign, democratic state. It became a republic in 1949 when Commonwealth ties with the United Kingdom were severed. The head of state is the president (Irish Uachtarán na hÉireann) elected for a seven-year term by direct vote. The current president, Mary McAleese, was first elected in October 1997. The constitution can only be altered with the approval of the people through a referendum.

A

Executive and Legislature

Executive power under the Irish constitution is vested in a Cabinet, which consists of between 7 and 15 members, including the Taoiseach (prime minister). The Cabinet is further assisted by some 17 ministers of state. The government is responsible to the lower house of the Oireachtas (the national legislature), Dáil Éireann. The Taoiseach serves as head of government and is appointed by the president after nomination by the lower house. The deputy prime minister is the Tánaiste. Members of the government head the administrative departments, or ministries. They are selected by the Taoiseach, approved by the Dáil, and appointed by the president.

Ireland has a bicameral parliament, known as the Oireachtas. Members of the lower house, the Dáil, are directly elected by proportional representation for a five-year term. The Dáil has 166 members, known as Teachtaí Dála (“representatives to the assembly”), or TDs. The upper house, Seanad Éireann, has 60 members—11 nominated by the Taoiseach, 6 elected by university graduates, and 43 chosen by an electoral college of some 900 representatives from local government and the national legislature. The slate of candidates represents labour, agriculture and fisheries, public administration, and social services, commerce and industry, and national culture. The upper house is limited in authority, while the lower house has the power to support or bring down governments in the parliamentary tradition.

B

Political Parties

The system of proportional representation by which members are elected to the Dáil means it is unlikely a single party will obtain an absolute majority. Politics therefore has featured many party mergers, splinter groups, and coalitions. The most powerful parties are Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael, the Labour Party, and the Progressive Democrats. Other parties represented are Comhaontas Glas (the Green Party) and Sinn Féin, the only party with representation in both the Republic and in Northern Ireland. Over the years Taoiseachs have often been unable to form governments with a clear-cut working majority.