Bicameralism is not something you hear talked about much, but that is the parliamentary system we use in Ireland.
Latin scholars will know "camera" in the middle of that word refers to a "chamber".
Armed with that bit of knowledge bicameralism becomes self-explanatory; two chambers which in Ireland's case refers to the Dáíl, the lower house of parliament and Seanad Éireann the upper house.
Dáil elections are well over, but elections for the Seanad are in full swing. Voting finishes this week, and the counts commence on Wednesday and Thursday.
So, what does the Seanad do?
In bicameral parliamentary systems, and there are many of them around the world including the UK and the US, the two houses work in consort to ensure there is proper exploration and debate of legislation.
The main role of the Seanad, as outlined in Article 20 of Bunreacht na hÉireann is to debate and vote on every piece of legislation that is passed by the Dáil.
In order to ensure the programme of the Government of the day is progressed, the Government side ensures it keeps a majority in the house so bills are passed.
However, a majority of Seanadóirí can often depart from what has been sent from the lower house and go ahead and amend a bill, which must then be sent back to the Dáil for further debate and voting.
Ultimately the Seanad can delay the passage of bills, but the rules dictate they cannot stop them.
It is also possible for legislative proposals to be initiated in the Seanad. If a majority gives their vote to a bill it goes on the agenda of the lower house for further debate.
The best example of this is the Occupied Territories Bill. It was initiated in the Seanad in January 2018 by Independent Senators, including Frances Black, Alice Mary Higgins and others. By the end of the year it was backed by a majority of Senators and was sent to the Dáil.
Due to events in the Middle East, the bill has lately gained Government support, albeit with the Taoiseach’s caveat it will have to be heavily amended.
The Seanad has also been the place where different perspectives have challenged consensus in the wider political system.
Back in 2001 a bill to ban the publication of opinion polls in the seven days prior to an election or referendum was dropped after a loophole was pointed out in the Senad that opinion polls could still be published on the day of voting.
More recently, the Seanad forced substantial amendments to be made to the Criminal Justice Bill that became known as the Hate Speech bill which had been voted through by Dáil Éireann.
Senators in the upper house pointed to the lack of definition of what "hate speech" was and the potential risk to free speech as a result. That led to significant sections of the bill being dropped by the Minister for Justice.
Abolition
Over the years, there have been many accusations the Seanad was a waste of public money and the chamber was used either as a cushion to allow Government to soften the blow for politicians who lost their seats in the General Election or as a launch pad for "young gun" politicians on their way to the Dáil.
The closed nature of the electorate has also been a source of complaint. The general voting population does not get to vote here.
Only TDs, outgoing Senators, and county councillors get to vote for candidates for 43 of the 60 seats, while only graduates of the National University of Ireland and University of Dublin, (otherwise known as Trinity College) get to elect 6 university Senators (although for the next Seanad election, expected in 2030, all 3rd level graduates will have a vote).
As a result of those complaints, in 2013, the then Fine Gael led government and Taoiseach Enda Kenny decided to hold a referendum to abolish the upper house.
There were promises of multi-million euro savings to be made every year. It seemed it would be slam-dunk for the Government side.
In the latter stages of the campaign however, fears that parliamentary scrutiny of legislation would be weakened, and that democracy in the country would suffer began to gain traction.
Ultimately when the proposed abolition was put to the people in October that year it was defeated by a margin of 3.4%. 51.7% voted for retention and 48.3% voted for abolition.
Future
The outcome of that referendum over a decade ago silenced some of the critics, and probably assured the survival of the upper house for some time to come. Calls continue for Seanad reform however, and for the role for the upper house to be consolidated and even expanded. One recent example of expansion involves scrutiny of the myriad of EU legislation Ireland must adopt by a Seanad committee.
Whatever its shortcomings, Seanad Éireann continues to play a key constitutional role in the legislative process in the state.
It remains a chamber where new proposals can generated, and for conventional wisdom to be questioned and scrutinised.
More than a decade after the attempt to have it abolished, it seems the bicameral parliamentary system in use in this country is here to stay.
