“Posters are environmentally destructive, visually ugly and a waste of money.”
In the aftermath of the recent referendum to repeal the Eighth Amendment, the Green Party has called for restrictions to be brought in for all posters that will be displayed for future election campaigns and referendums.
In a statement that was released on their website, Green Party Spokesperson for Local Government, Cllr Malcolm Noonan has said that the referendum exit polls showed that the poster campaign had little influence on voter attitudes or decision making.
“It is clear now that social media is the campaign tool of choice for elections and referenda. Posters are environmentally destructive, visually ugly and a waste of money; in the case of general elections, taxpayers money.
He adds: “We are proposing that election and referendum posters be restricted by Local Authorities to designated sites in large towns or cities, where all campaigners and candidates can display their posters. This would reduce significantly the number of posters being printed and displayed, improve road safety and the attractiveness of our towns during the tourist season. Perhaps over time we could eliminate them altogether, but for now the Minister could issue direction to Local Authorities to introduce restrictions.”
“The repeal campaign proved that posters as a campaign tool are redundant. These posters waste vast quantities of plastic and ink, most people I spoke to find them repulsive and would not be swayed either way in a campaign by a poster. Like the 8th amendment, it’s time to consign them to history.”
While the numbers vary and parties like to keep financial figures to themselves, a report in The Irish Times stated that in 2011, Fine Gael spend €178,128 on posters – according to the Sipo records. Fianna Fáil spent €204,114, Sinn Féin spent €19,514. Labour are estimated to have spent €262,500 on posters during that particular election.
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