The power of the President

It has become a cliché of sorts to say that the president of Ireland has no power. In our most recent election an independent candidate Seán Gallagher was heavily criticised heavily by the media for his claim that, should he be elected, he would use his power to create jobs. Surely everyone knows that the office is a purely ceremonial one, limited to stamping legislation and visiting foreign dignitaries? This however, is a very short-sighted if not downright incorrect claim. The President is the Head of State in Ireland after all. While the power of the office is certainly limited, particularly in comparison with other countries presidents such as America, they are still a very important figure. While their ability to refer a bill to the Supreme Court under Article 26 is perhaps their most recognisable role, they still have many other duties which they most fulfil. For this reason, it is a wrong to presume that the President of Ireland has no meaningful power.

When examining the position of the president within our constitution, it is important to give adequate historical context to the document. Being written in 1937, a mere two years from the Second World War, its drafters were no doubt highly wary of giving one man too much power, likely fearing the possibility of a totalitarian regime a lá  Hitler’s Germany or Mussolini’s Italy. What is quite surprising in this scenario is that the length of office is pretty long, seven years, with the option to extend to fourteen. This is because the president, in fact has very few real powers, and as a general rule, the functions he does enjoy must be on ‘the advice of the government’. Despite the wording, this effectively means that the president must obey the will of parliament, except where otherwise stated. This severely limits that functions the president can independently perform, and include such powers as the appointment of judges, the pardoning of offences, and the command of the military. All of these must, effectively be carried out in the manner directed by the Government, and thus drastically reduces the scope of power the Head of State might otherwise have. In addition there are other duties which require the approval of the Dáil rather than the government such as appointing the Taoiseach, dissolving of parliament for an election and the appointment of the attorney general.

Taken together, it would appear that the president, far from being the Head of State, is more a subject of the current government. Indeed this is the popular conception of the office in this country. However, there are certain important powers which the president may exercise at his discretion. The most notable of these is of course, Article 26, which allows the president to refer a bill to the Supreme Court before signing it. However, there are also several other powers which he enjoys and, far from being pointless, can in fact be hugely influential. Article 27 for example, allows the president to refer a bill, which has been rejected by the Seanad, to the people via referendum. Another article of huge importance where the President is concerned is article 13:7, which grants the president the ability to address either the houses of the Oireachtas, or the nation as a whole. In addition, should a bill be declared a ‘money bill’ by the Dáil and should the Seanad dispute this claim, they may refer to the President to resolve this claim. These powers, while at first inconsequential, can be combined to create a very powerful head of state. A president for example, who enjoys the support of the Seanad and a one-thirds minority of the Dáil, could be a nightmare for the present government, able to severely hamper any attempt to introduce new legislation.

In reality though, a situation such as the one alluded to above has never occurred, and is highly unlikely to. All presidents in the history of the country have thus far served the state with absolute distinction. Despite this however, there is scope for reform of the office. The key question to resolve would be whether to enhance or detract from the current role of the President. Article 26  can be a very powerful tool if used effectively and some academics argue for its removal. While the Office can exert considerable influence, and has far more power than many realise, most would be in agreement that should reform be necessary more authority, not less should be granted. Perhaps the easiest way to do this would be to remove the provision which provides the President perform his duties on the advice of the current government. This action would give the President full discretion to appoint judges, to issue pardons and command the military. This would be a huge increase in power for the president and creative a far more influential head of state. However, with this being said there is a real chance that in doing this one would be creating a president that is too powerful. One need only look at the bitterly divided and broken system that exists in the United States to the danger. The simple fact is that, the present system, for all its faults works quite well. The president, while having the potential to be a powerful figure, has his authority severely limited, and is thus dependent on both the Houses of the Oireachtas and the Executive. 

Despite being famously referred to by former Taoiseach Jack Lynch as ‘that Mausoleum in the park’, the office of the president is an important role. While his power is certainly limited and constrained, he does enjoy certain authority to act as his discretion and is thus far from pointless. However, the Head of State is best viewed as the protector of our Constitution in this role he acts ensuring that any bill that is passed by the Oireachtas does not breach the civil liberties of the Irish people. This elevates the President above party politics, and keeps our presidential system impartial.