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Dáil Éireann debate -
Friday, 11 Dec 1936

Vol. 64 No. 9

Business of the Dáil.

Business will be taken as on the Order Paper.

Before item No. 1 is reached, I should like if the President would say for what reason it has been found necessary to convene the Dáil with this haste. A certain event took place in Great Britain yesterday and apparently because of that fact, the Dáil has had to meet to-day. It is being asked to deal with legislation arising out of an event which took place in another country. Might I suggest to the President, Sir, seeing that this event only took place yesterday, and that the whole atmosphere surrounding it is now involved in a kind of sensationalism, that he should consider the question of not asking the Dáil to deal with any legislation to-day; that instead he should give the people an opportunity of studying the position which has arisen so that we may consider the position dispassionately, and consider it more particularly from an Irish and not from a Commonwealth standpoint?

I think it must be obvious to everybody that the present situation cannot be allowed to remain as it is for any length of time. If we take no action you are going to have an anomalous situation. The Irish people will have an opportunity at any time of considering any fundamental questions that are involved here. There is no question of rushing the Irish people at all in this matter. Neither is there any question of rushing the House, but every Deputy will clearly understand that you are going to have a position here in this country—apart from any considerations anywhere else —which needs clearing up. The purpose of bringing the Dáil together is to consider legislation, as contained in these proposals, for clearing up that situation. I find it very difficult to think that the Deputy who has made that remark so naïvely, is quite as innocent as he would appear to be.

Might I point out that, so far as this Legislature and this Government are concerned, they had nothing to do with the bringing about of this situation? That situation was created elsewhere and by other people. Surely, even if we are to have a statement of the Government's intentions, we ought not to be asked to enact legislation, particularly when that legislation is likely to be legislation providing for the appointment of a successor to the abdicating King, without the people having an opportunity of knowing what precisely the Legislature is doing?

This, as everybody knows, is not a question which is purely external to our law. It is a matter that affects our law immediately and directly as well as indirectly. The Government has been informed that His Majesty King Edward VIII desires to relinquish the Throne and he has forwarded to me a signed and witnessed instrument of abdication. We will have, as I indicated, an anomalous legal situation here until that matter is cleared up. We would hold that, constitutionally and legally, King Edward VIII will continue to be King here until his abdication has been decided upon by Parliament. I suggest it is not a satisfactory situation to allow that to continue. Besides, if we are to remain associated at all with the States of the British Commonwealth, it is evident that common action of some kind, or rather concerted action, should be taken in the matter. We have come in here as a Government with well defined objectives and with a definite, clearly understood policy by the people. We assumed office under certain conditions. Those conditions impose certain responsibilities—

Is this in order?

—and a certain obedience to the Constitution.

A question has been raised as to whether this debate is in order. The debate is quite irregular since there is nothing before the House. On a reply to a question put by Deputy Norton, a debate on the proposed measure or measures is out of order.

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