Constitution of Ireland in the context of "Irish reunification"

Ireland (Irish: Éire [ˈeːɾʲə] ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (Poblacht na hÉireann), is a country in Northwestern Europe. It consists of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland, with a population of about 5.4 million. Its capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island, with a population of over 1.5 million. The sovereign state shares its only land border with Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. It is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the Celtic Sea to the south, St George's Channel to the south-east and the Irish Sea to the east. It is a unitary, parliamentary republic. The legislature, the Oireachtas, consists of a lower house, Dáil Éireann; an upper house, Seanad Éireann; and an elected president (Uachtarán) who serves as the largely ceremonial head of state, but with some important powers and duties. The head of government is the Taoiseach (prime minister, lit. 'chief'), elected by the Dáil and appointed by the president, who appoints other government ministers.

The Irish Free State was created with Dominion status in 1922, following the Anglo-Irish Treaty. In 1937, a new constitution was adopted, in which the state was named "Ireland" and effectively became a republic, with an elected non-executive president. It was officially declared a republic in 1949, following The Republic of Ireland Act 1948. Ireland became a member of the United Nations in 1955. It joined the European Communities (EC), the predecessor of the European Union (EU), in 1973. The state had no formal relations with Northern Ireland for most of the 20th century, but the 1980s and 1990s saw the British and Irish governments working with Northern Irish parties to resolve the conflict that had become known as the Troubles. Since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, the Irish government and Northern Irish government have co-operated on a number of policy areas under the North/South Ministerial Council created by the Agreement.

United Ireland (Irish: Éire Aontaithe), also referred to as Irish reunification or a New Ireland, is the proposition that all of Ireland should be a single sovereign state. At present, the island is divided politically: the sovereign state of Ireland (legally described also as the Republic of Ireland) has jurisdiction over the majority of Ireland, while Northern Ireland, which lies entirely within (but consists of only 6 of 9 counties of) the Irish province of Ulster, is part of the United Kingdom. Achieving a united Ireland is a central tenet of Irish nationalism and Republicanism, particularly of both mainstream and dissident republican political and paramilitary organisations. Unionists support Northern Ireland remaining part of the United Kingdom and oppose Irish unification.

Ireland has been partitioned since May 1921, when the Government of Ireland Act 1920 came into effect, creating two separate jurisdictions—Southern Ireland and Northern Ireland—within the United Kingdom. Southern Ireland never fully functioned and was soon replaced by the Irish Free State in 1922, which became independent, while Northern Ireland opted to remain part of the UK. The Anglo-Irish Treaty, which led to the establishment in December 1922 of a dominion called the Irish Free State, recognised partition, but this was opposed by anti-Treaty republicans. When the anti-Treaty Fianna Fáil party came to power in the 1930s, it adopted a new constitution which claimed sovereignty over the entire island. The Irish Republican Army (IRA) had a united Ireland as its goal during the conflict with British security forces and loyalist paramilitaries from the 1960s to the 1990s known as The Troubles. The Good Friday Agreement signed in 1998, which ended the conflict, acknowledged the legitimacy of the desire for a united Ireland, while declaring that it could be achieved only with the consent of a majority of the people of both jurisdictions on the island, and providing a mechanism for ascertaining this in certain circumstances.

According to the Constitution of Ireland, the names of the Irish state are Ireland (English) and Éire (Irish). From 1922 to 1937, its legal names were the Irish Free State (English) and Saorstát Éireann (Irish). The state has jurisdiction over almost five-sixths of the island of Ireland. The rest of the island is Northern Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom. In 1948 Ireland adopted the terms Republic of Ireland (English) and Poblacht na hÉireann (Irish) as the official descriptions of the state, without changing the constitutional names.

The terms Republic of Ireland (ROI), the Republic, the 26 counties or the South are the alternative names most often encountered. The term "Southern Ireland", although only having legal basis from 1921 to 1922, is still seen occasionally, particularly in Britain.

Dáil Éireann (/dɑːl ˈɛərən/ dahl AIR-ən; Irish: [ˌd̪ˠaːlʲ ˈeːɾʲən̪ˠ], lit. 'Assembly of Ireland') is the lower house and principal chamber of the Oireachtas, which also includes the president of Ireland and a senate called Seanad Éireann. It consists of 174 members, each known as a Teachta Dála (plural Teachtaí Dála, commonly abbreviated as TDs). TDs represent 43 constituencies and are directly elected for terms not exceeding five years, on the system of proportional representation using the single transferable vote (PR-STV). Its powers are similar to those of lower houses under many other bicameral parliamentary systems and it is by far the dominant branch of the Oireachtas. Subject to the limits imposed by the Constitution of Ireland, it has the power to pass any law it wishes, and to nominate and remove the Taoiseach (head of government). Since 1922, it has met in Leinster House in Dublin.

The Dáil took its current form when the 1937 Constitution was adopted, but it maintains continuity with the First Dáil established in 1919.

The president of Ireland (Irish: Uachtarán na hÉireann) is the head of state of Ireland and the supreme commander of the Irish Defence Forces. The presidency was established by the Constitution of Ireland in 1937. The first president assumed office in 1938, and became recognised internationally as head of state in 1949 after the coming into effect of the Republic of Ireland Act. The president's official residence and principal workplace is Áras an Uachtaráin in Phoenix Park, Dublin.

The presidency is a predominantly ceremonial institution, serving as the representative of the Irish state both at home and abroad. Nevertheless, the office of president is endowed with certain powers which have constitutional importance. While Éamon de Valera described his intentions for the office as being 'mainly to guard the Constitution', such a description is depricated by academic commentators, with the leading constitutional text noting "the Constitution is extremely sparing in its attribution of any independent functions to the office at all".

The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon nomination by Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legislature) and the office-holder must retain the support of a majority in the Dáil to remain in office.

The Irish word taoiseach means "chief" or "leader", and was adopted in the 1937 Constitution of Ireland as the title of the "head of the Government or Prime Minister". It is the official title of the head of government in both English and Irish, and is not used for the prime ministers of other countries, who are instead referred to in Irish by the generic term príomh-aire. The phrase an Taoiseach is sometimes used in an otherwise English-language context, and means the same as "the Taoiseach".

The predominant religion in the Republic of Ireland is Christianity, with the largest denomination being the Catholic Church. The Constitution of Ireland says that the state may not endorse any particular religion and guarantees freedom of religion.

The Courts of Ireland consist of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal, the High Court, the Circuit Court, the District Court and the Special Criminal Court. With the exception of the Special Criminal Court, all courts exercise both civil and criminal jurisdiction, although when the High Court is exercising its criminal jurisdiction it is known as the Central Criminal Court.

The courts apply the laws of Ireland. There are four sources of law in Ireland: the Constitution, European Union law, statute law and the common law. Under the Constitution, trials for serious offences must usually be held before a jury. Except in exceptional circumstances, court hearings must occur in public. The High Court, the Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court have authority, by means of judicial review, to determine the compatibility of the common law and statute law with the Constitution. Similarly, the courts may determine the compatibility of the common law with statute law.

The Oireachtas of the Irish Free State (Irish: Oireachtas Shaorstát Éireann) was the legislature of the Irish Free State from 1922 until 1937. It was established by the 1922 Constitution of Ireland which was based from the Anglo-Irish Treaty. It was the first internationally recognised independent Irish Parliament since the historic Parliament of Ireland which was abolished with the Acts of Union 1800.

The Parliament was bicameral, consisting of Dáil Éireann (the lower house, also known as the Dáil) with 153 seats and Seanad Éireann (the upper house; also known as the Seanad) with 60 seats). The Seanad was abolished on 29 May 1936, and from then until its abolition the Oireachtas was unicameral. The King, who was officially represented by the Governor-General, was also a constituent part of the Oireachtas. The Oireachtas of the Irish Free State was disbanded by the 1937 Constitution of Ireland which created the modern Oireachtas.