Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 25 Aug 1921

Vol. S No. 6

MOTION RE PROVISIONAL ORDERS DECREE

MINISTER FOR HOME AFFAIRS

presented the following motion¹ re Provisional Orders Decree. He said it was on all fours with the Defence of the Realm Act passed by the British government during the great European war and as European powers considered such acts necessary for their protection he considered this Decree necessary for Ireland's protection.

1. Not entered in the record. The decree is printed in Appendix 3.

All the members realized it would be extremely difficult for the Dáil to meet again if hostilities were resumed and it was with a view to invest the Cabinet with powers to legislate pending meetings of the Dáil that this Decree was introduced. He proposed adoption of the Decree.

DONAL O'CALLAGHAN

seconded.

LIAM DE RÓISTE

supposed they were to understand those orders were not to be issued without Cabinet approval.

M.P. COLLIVET

supported the principle of the Decree but he asked if some means could not be devised by which those orders could be submitted to the Dáil members individually, if the Dáil was unable to meet, and get some expression of opinion, otherwise they might be enforcing regulations against the will of the Dáil.

PRESIDENT

said that brought up a big question—that provision should be made that a body other than the Ministry should meet, one-third or one-fourth of this House. The Cabinet had that in mind before and he certainly thought there should be some regulation delegating the powers of the Dáil and supervision of the Ministry to some committee of the House. A number of schemes were proposed but there was no unanimity about them. His idea was that the members of each constituency should select one of their number to represent them in a committee of the whole House with legislative powers to meet in time of stress. He believed they could not make arrangements for anything over 30 to meet at a time. But as long as the members were sufficient to outvote the Ministry he considered it satisfactory enough. A provision of that kind would have to be made, but he did not think anything could be done with this particular order at present except as it stood.

Ceist curtha agus aontuithe.