Time for a rethink about our Presidency?

Good points. What if we reduced the age you become President to say 30? So after there term they could still get a job maybe as a TD or a lecturer etc and still Not get their pension untill pension age like the rest of us.

A lot of people citing the cost of the president as the reason to reduce the term. You do know that elections cost a lot of money so if we took a 35 year stretch - with a 7 year presidency, we'd have 5 elections in that time. With a 5 year, that would be 7 elections. I couldn't find the more recent figures but the 2011 presidential election cost in total about €60m (https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/question/2017-10-24/114/).

Also part of the point of the length of term is that it is designed to span 2 governments (which at best get 5 years). This is so that there is continuity during that time. Similar to how the US have the presidential elections & the mid-terms then for the House & Senate.

I do think the age could be lowered to 30 & that we should try to attract someone younger to the role (as opposed to the idea of bringing someone back from political wasteland) but honestly I think it's about the right person as opposed to just basing it on their age completely.

A shorter term with a fool in office is still too long. With a higher rate of turnover, you are more likely to have fools in the Áras. If people feel the incumbent is a fool, they can just not vote to reelect them.

This whole thread smacks of "I don't like the current president so let's implement knee-jerk changes" without consideration of the consequences.

What did he say?

I would reduce it to 5 years, yes, but not mandate a single term. An overall reduction from 14 to 10 years would make sense.

Instead I would mandate that no public representative, be it at Council, Oireachtas or Presidential level should serve beyond the age of 80.

Though President Higgins' cognition is fine, his physical health is not, and he shall be 84 when he leaves office. And as we saw with President Biden, cognitive decline in those that are affected, commonly accelerates past 80 years of age.

Indeed the Catholic Church in 1970 barred Cardinals from exercising certain functions, including acting as Papal Electors past their 80th birthday, effectively imposing retirement at that point.

While back here in Ireland, those public servants who began their careers post 1994, and do not have to retire at age 65, still must do so at age 70, irrespective of their service length.

So for me, two five year Presidential terms max, neither of which may take you past your 80th Birthday.

But again missing the whole reasoning behind the length of the term. The Dail is a 5 year term. Having the presidency being 7 means that it will always span 2 Dail terms. It's meant as a safeguard so that not all of government (Seanad, Dail & President) are due for election at the same time.

Also cost wise doesn't make sense either. If we take 15 years as a block with the current Presidential term & salary it costs the tax payer (€335k x 15) + (€60m x 2 election costs) = €125,025,000 total for that period. Or with the 5 year term it's (€335k x 15) + (€60m x 3 election costs) = €185,025,000. So in costing an extra €60m approx. Surely that is wasting tax payers money.