Federal Ireland

Gunnerkid

Would it be a good or bad idea for Ireland to adopt a Federal system rather to the current system we have in place, and would it be a good idea to remove either the President or Taoiseach and be left with one of the two.

ballsymchugh

having one or the other doesn't make ireland federal. you'd have to make the provinces or counties much more powerful with them having their own laws and taxation systems etc before unifying them under one federal leader.

it does mean that cork could finally secede from the country though. not a bad idea now that i think of it!

Duffy the Vampire Slayer

Which question I am saying yes or no to?

pow wow

More opportunity for even more idiots to gain power so no, no federalist system. Benevolent autocrat ftw.

mikemac

The Province of Munster!

As the banks have their headquarters in Dublin, let Leinster deal with any debts!

Biggins

Gunnerkid wrote: »

Would it be a good or bad idea for Ireland to adopt a Federal system rather to the current system we have in place, and would it be a good idea to remove either the President or Taoiseach and be left with one of the two.

What do you think OP?
...Or are we just providing some answers for homework somewhere?

Gunnerkid

Biggins wrote: »

What do you think OP?
...Or are we just providing some answers for homework somewhere?

not really sure myself I can see pros and cons to both, so thats basically why I asked to get others opinions on the matter.

Biggins

Gunnerkid wrote: »

not really sure myself I can see pros and cons to both, so thats basically why I asked to get others opinions on the matter.

Thats fair enough and an honest sounding answer.

Dangerous Man

A Federalist system for a country of less than five million people? On a tiny island that's less than half the size of the state of Texas? Are you serious?

pow wow

Yes, that's why the OP posted in AH, clearly

Augmerson

Dangerous Man wrote: »

A Federalist system for a country of less than five million people? On a tiny Island that's less than half the size of the state of Texas? Are you serious?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switzerland

Gunnerkid

Augmerson wrote: »

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switzerland

beat me to posting that :cool:

PK2008

Can we have an FBI?

Duffy the Vampire Slayer

Personally I don't have faith in the parliamentary system and therefore simply creating a few local parliaments wouldn't make much of a difference.

mikemac

PK2008 wrote: »

Can we have an FBI?

Batchelors Beans, Finest Beans in Ireland

I must be old to remember that ad campaign

Augmerson

Let's just get the Brits back in here, they'd know how to run the country.

Einhard

No, Ireland is far too small for a federal system to work efficently. It would only create more bureaucracy, more levels of management (and thus potential mismanagement), more red tape etc.

Augmerson wrote: »

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switzerland

There are historical reasons for the federal system in Switzerland.

Wolfe Tone

I think the éire nua plan is a good one, but fcuk Athlone

mikemac

Éire Nua, or "New Ireland", was a political strategy of the Provisional IRA and Sinn Féin during the 1970s and early 1980s.

Éire Nua envisaged an all-Ireland Republic that would be created when the British withdrew from Northern Ireland.
It also involved the dissolution of the existing Republic of Ireland, which republicans of that era considered an illegitimate entity imposed by the British in 1922.
Under Éire Nua, Ireland would become a federal state, with parliaments for each of its four provinces as well as a central parliament based in Athlone.[2]

The purpose of the federal structure was twofold. Firstly, it was intended to show unionists in Northern Ireland that they would have some kind of self-government in a united Ireland.

This would be achieved by the provision of a parliament, Dáil Uladh, for Ulster. However, by including all of historic Ulster - nine counties instead of the six in Northern Ireland - it was intended that the unionist majority would be slim enough to prevent abuses against the Catholic/nationalist population in the province. [3]

Secondly, the federal parliaments were intended to redress the perceived economic imbalance between the eastern and western parts of Ireland and was hoped to increase economic prosperity in the poorer west of the country.

Wolfe Tone

Ha thats it exactly, except RSF still advocate it.

PK2008

Not gonna happen lads

Mrmoe

feelingstressed wrote: »

Batchelors Beans, Finest Beans in Ireland

I must be old to remember that ad campaign

No, Federal Boobie Inspector

Duffy the Vampire Slayer

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

I think the éire nua plan is a good one, but fcuk Athlone

Where would you have the capital-still in Dublin?

Seloth

Nooo nooo noo...Not with the Current territory that is the Republic(N.I is a completely different topic)

While I'd like to see things to a certain except of province level by no means should each part be federal.Like you'd practically change laws each time you went for a sunday spin with the size of the country.

Maybe for more financing spending it'd make sense but legislatively no.

Coincidentally reading a book on the Irish government at the moment :pac:

Wolfe Tone

Duffy the Vampire Slayer wrote: »

Where would you have the capital-still in Dublin?

Yep!

Seloth

Wolfe Tone wrote: »

Yep!

It wouldn't be the real capital though -Insert witty laughter-

Oh my us Cork people can be so funny :pac::rolleyes:
I know I'm sad

johngalway

Federal Republic of Connacht, hmmm, I like the sound of that.

That's if it's possible to have a republic inside a republic :rolleyes:

Eric Cartman

federal ireland , coppers becomes its own state with no laws regarding opening hours or alcohol tax

Yugoslavia used to be a federal republic, that ended well!
The UK is almost a federal state now, devolution is giving more and more powers to Wales, Scotland & NI.

southsiderosie

I don't think federalism is bad, but it is generally put into place in countries that have significant national or ethnic minorities (Spain, Switzerland, etc).

I can see why historically this would have made sense on an all-Ireland basis, but I think the question of "Rome Rule" has softened considerably, so it poses less of a threat to Northern Protestants. I also think it would be a tremendous waste of resources in terms of overlapping service provision for a country as small as Ireland.

What I do think would make sense is for Ireland to have a national list system based on proportional representation like the Netherlands. That way, the Dail would be forced to consider national matters, rather than pothole politics, and in the meantime, 'traditional' unionists (who I think have a lot in common politically with conservative Catholics, especially on social policy) would still be represented in government. This might also actually force parties to differentiate themselves on actual policy, rather than attributes of individuals.