In response to the financial crisis, the Oireachtas (Parliament of Ireland) established a Constitutional Convention made up of 66 randomly selected citizens, 33 politicians and 1 independent chairman.

It was convened to make recommendations on political and social reforms in the wake of the economic crisis.

Despite a narrow agenda, its recommendations were truly transformative. They included:

• reform of the electoral system to make politics more representative and accessible for all Irish people
• provision for citizen-initiated referendums to empower the Irish people
• the separation of the government and the Dáil to breath life into the Irish parliament

For a full list of its recommendations, see here.

Hold a referendum

One year on, virtually all of its recommendations have been rejected or consciously ignored by the government. At a time when public trust is hanging by a thread, the government's refusal to consider some of the most important recommendations only undermines public confidence in politics even further.

We call on the Government of Ireland to stop standing in the way of reform and allow the people of Ireland to decide for themselves on the recommendations of the Constitutional Convention.

We call on the Taoiseach (Prime Minister) to initiate a referendum on the recommendations of the Constitutional Convention.

Photograph: Bjørn Christian Tørrissen