I move that the Dáil do now adjourn until 9.30 p.m. if that meets the convenience of Deputies
DAIL IN COMMITTEE. - SITTING TEMPORARILY SUSPENDED.
I would like to know if we can have some assurance that the Judiciary Bill, the Licensing Bill, the Ministries Bill, the Public Health Bill, the Local Government Bill, and Patents, Trade Marks and Copyright Bill—that all these will not be brought in and rushed through.
That will not happen. I only give notice of this one Bill to-night and I regret the occasion has arisen for breaking the agreement we came to about non-contentious measures But we did not anticipate what has happened, and could not have anticipated it, and if it were not for the peculiar circumstances of the times I would not impose upon the Dáil this new measure, but in view of what happened it cannot be looked upon as an imposition or as if I were trying to run something through.
The point I want to bring before the President is this, as to the necessity imposed upon us for getting through this Bill. The necessity is not apparent, because some of us—I, at least myself—have endeavoured to get the arguments that caused this in the evening papers and they are not available, and inasmuch as we are now on a rather important fundamental constitutional point I think the arguments that brought about this necessity in the courts to-day might at least be available for Deputies in order that they may have the position before them in deciding constitutional procedure of this kind.
I have not got it; I did not get it myself. I simply got a verbal intimation from our legal officials that this course is necessary.
I appreciate that, but it is obvious to the President we are doing something here to-night that will form some kind of constitutional precedent. We should have the facts before us. When I refer to the facts I do not mean merely the decision the court came to, but the basis of their deliberations by the judges and all the documents that brought that about, and that may be of importance to future proceedings of future Dala under Article 47 of the Constitution.
I will undertake to give all the information at my disposal, and that I may be able to get in the meantime.
I only hope the Minister will not forget in the future when he is criticising procedure in Russia that he is doing the very same thing in regard to his method of legislation as is condemned when done by the Soviet Government.
Dáil adjourned accordingly until 9.30 p.m.