The House decides all questions put to it by the Chair. The question on an item of business is put at the conclusion of the debate and the manner in which questions are put is for the Chair to decide, based on his or her experience and judgment.
Questions are determined by a majority of the votes of the Members present and voting. In the event of an equality of votes, the Chair or the presiding Member has a casting vote under Article 15.11 of the Constitution.
Putting the question
No dissent
If the matter before the House is one on which there appears to be general agreement, the Chair may put the question in an informal manner – "Is the motion [or amendment] agreed?" and, if there is no dissent evident, will confirm the decision of the House by stating "Motion [amendment] agreed". This is sometimes referred to as “simple agreement”.
Similarly, in the case of Opposition amendments to Government Bills or motions, the Chair may ask the Member sponsoring the amendment if he or she wishes to press it and, if the Member does not wish to do so, there is no need to put the question.
Possible dissent
If an item is not either given simple agreement or withdrawn, where a Member wishes to press the motion or amendment, the Chair will rise and state "The question is that…".
The Chair will then ask the Members to decide by saying "Tá" or "Níl". The Chair judges the result by the verbal responses and states that the question is carried or lost. This is known as a "voice vote".
At this point, the Members may dissent from the Chair’s statement by calling "Vótáil". The House will then prepare to divide, or vote formally.
There are two methods of voting: electronic and manual. In the Seanad, all votes are conducted electronically, with the exception of the election of the Cathaoirleach, which is conducted manually. Each Member votes from a designated seat for the purpose of electronic voting, the location of which is assigned by the Whip of each party or group.
Members should take their seats as soon as practicable after the division bells have been rung and should remain seated in case the Chair finds it necessary to ask those Senators claiming a division to rise in their places.
Recording dissent by other means
As an alternative to claiming a division of the House and voting formally, Members may have their dissent to a measure otherwise recorded if not present in the Chamber when a question is put by the Chair. This may be done by signing a register held on the Clerk's desk in the Chamber in advance on that same sitting day or, if present, by raising his or her hand to indicate dissent when asked by the Chair.
Last Updated: Thu, 5 Dec 2024